Weber State Rides Hot Hand to Win in Worthington Arena

Saturday, February 22

Bozeman, MT

7:05 pm

Montana State University

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WEBER STATE

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Weber State

Montana State

Paul Egwuonwu drives against Weber State on Saturday

Photo by: Ruth Shellenberg

2/22/2014 10:40:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Wildcats shoot 58%, holding Bobcats to 37% shooting

By: Bill Lamberty

Montana State center Paul Egwuonwu was addressing a 16-4 first half scoring run that gave Weber State control in its 86-68 win over the Bobcats Saturday, but he might as well have been commenting on the game as a whole.

"They were making shots," the Bobcat senior said, "and we weren't."

That theme pretty much carried a night on which visiting Weber State looked awfully comfortable in Worthington Arena. The Wildcats shot 58% from the floor, including 62% in the second half, and scorched the nets for 59% from beyond the arc.

MSU coach Brad Huse said the dichotomy of not getting enough stops and not answering Weber's run of points in the crucial first half told the game's tale. "We needed to get more stops and/or answer with more points," he said. "It's a combination."

With the Bobcats leading 10-7 after Egwuonwu's jumper at the 12:07 mark, Davion Berry hit a three-pointer 23 seconds later, then Richaud Gittens hit another to give Weber State a lead it would never relinquish. Gittens' layup pushed the lead to five, and capped the run with a layup at 8:22 to give Weber State a 23-14 lead.

Huse lauded Weber State's approach. "They're patient, but not one-headed," he said of the Wildcats' multiple offensive threats. "They do a good job sharing the ball. They played inside-out. We were committed to stopping that, but their guards answered by hitting shots."

Davion Berry paced the Wildcats, scoring a game-high 20 points and hitting all 10 of his free throws. Jordan Richardson's 19 points included three three-pointers. Gittens scored 14 points while Jeremy Senglin added 12.

After Kyle Tresnak opened the second half with a jumper the Bobcats scored five straight points on two free throws by Paul Egwuonwu and a conventional three-point play by Flavien Davis to bring the Cats within 43-35. That was as close as Montana State would be the rest of the game. Richaud's layup triggered a 14-5 run to give Weber State control for good.

The Wildcats also regained control of the Big Sky race with the win, raising their record in conference play to 12-4. Coupled with Northern Colorado's loss at Sacramento State, WSU now owns a two-game lead. MSU fell to 8-8 in the league, 13-14 overall. Flavien Davis led the Cats with 15 points and seven rebounds, while Paul Egwuonwu scored 14 and Terrell Brown added 12.

The Bobcats host Southern Utah on Thursday night for the team's final home game of 2013-14. MSU's four seniors – Egwuonwu, Davis, Antonio Biglow and Calen Coleman – will be honored.