Thursday, February 27
Bozeman, MT
7:05 pm
Montana State University
vs
SOUTHERN UTAH
Paul Egwuonwu is one of four MSU seniors playing his final home game Thursday
Photo by: Kelly Gorham
Sprint to Finish Line Begins Thursday as Cats Host Southern Utah
2/25/2014 3:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Montana State faces final road test of season Thursday against T-Birds
If Brad Huse needs to remind himself how quickly time passes, he needs to look no further than the his team's remaining schedule, which includes just four regular season games.
MSU Game Notes vs. Southern Utah
"It's crazy how fast the season goes," Huse said, referencing MSU's home finale Thursday against Southern Utah. "I have a pretty vivid memory of our exhibition game (in early November), and now here we are, our last league game at home, and there's a lot at stake. That's what's going through my mind. We've got to get ready to play."
Thursday's contest, as well as the road games at Montana, Northern Arizona and Sacramento State that end MSU's regular season, hold plenty of meaning for the 2013-14 Bobcats. MSU is 8-8 in Big Sky play, along with three other squads, and one more is in hot pursuit at 7-9. Three others are 9-7, maintaining the serious logjam that has existed in the middle of the league standings for most of the season.
Huse said Big Sky teams have been dealing with the situation long enough that it's become the norm in 2013-14. "It's been that way since the beginning of conference," he said. "I said it very early, you just don't make too much of (the ups and downs). We know we have to take care of business if we're going to make the playoffs, and that's on us. We can't wait around for someone else to do it for us."
That process begins Thursday night, when Southern Utah brings its 0-16 squad to Worthington Arena. Don't try to tell Huse or the Bobcats that they will see a drop in competitiveness from Saturday's loss to league-leading Weber State, even with rival Montana awaiting MSU in Missoula on Monday.
"Southern Utah's going to be a tough team," said sophomore forward Danny Robison. "They're looking for their first win and we can't look past them to the Griz. This is an important game for us, especially being out last home game. It will be senior night and everyone wants to give everything they have for Paul, Flav, Antonio and Calen."
"Take the records out of it," Huse said. "Southern Utah's playing for something, Weber was playing for something, we're playing for something. This is a difficult contest, a very tough team to play against. They're fighting for something, maybe a little different than what Weber was fighting for, but they are fighting for something, and they're showing that. They're right there on the cusp of breaking throw. We just need to do what we do, in a sense, and take this game no different than any other one."
The Thunderbirds' average margin of defeat in Big Sky games is 13.2 points, a figured skewed by three losses early in the league season (36 points at UNC, 28 points to Sacramento State, and 34 points to Northern Arizona). MSU beat Southern Utah 54-52 in Cedar City on February 1, with Eric Norman blocking a three-point attempt that would have won the game at the buzzer.
"They've been there," Huse said. "They're close, they've competed well, they've improved as the season's gone on. Every game, watching and analyzing it, has come down to the last few minutes. They're a better team than when we saw them before."
The Bobcats have run into a fairly clear demarcation between winning and losing since conference play begin nearly two months ago. When the Cats hold Big Sky opponents below 47% shooting, MSU is 8-1. When allowing the opponent to shoot at least 47%, Montana State is 0-7.
The team's perimeter defense has been boosted, while the interior has been hampered, in recent weeks. The Bobcats regained the services of guard Michael Dison, one of the team's top on-ball defenders who missed four games with a hand injury, last weekend. Gone, however, is forward Eric Norman, who suffered a sprained ankle in practice last week. He is out indefinitely.
Huse hopes his team's belief system can provide an extra boost in the season's final two weekends. "It's a battle," he said. "It's competitive. There's no secret that three of our last four are on the road, but we've had some success on the road so that should give us some confidence."
Tipoff for Thursday's game is at 7:05 pm, with MSU's Senior Night ceremonies beginning about 10 minutes before then.
MSU Game Notes vs. Southern Utah
"It's crazy how fast the season goes," Huse said, referencing MSU's home finale Thursday against Southern Utah. "I have a pretty vivid memory of our exhibition game (in early November), and now here we are, our last league game at home, and there's a lot at stake. That's what's going through my mind. We've got to get ready to play."
Thursday's contest, as well as the road games at Montana, Northern Arizona and Sacramento State that end MSU's regular season, hold plenty of meaning for the 2013-14 Bobcats. MSU is 8-8 in Big Sky play, along with three other squads, and one more is in hot pursuit at 7-9. Three others are 9-7, maintaining the serious logjam that has existed in the middle of the league standings for most of the season.
Huse said Big Sky teams have been dealing with the situation long enough that it's become the norm in 2013-14. "It's been that way since the beginning of conference," he said. "I said it very early, you just don't make too much of (the ups and downs). We know we have to take care of business if we're going to make the playoffs, and that's on us. We can't wait around for someone else to do it for us."
That process begins Thursday night, when Southern Utah brings its 0-16 squad to Worthington Arena. Don't try to tell Huse or the Bobcats that they will see a drop in competitiveness from Saturday's loss to league-leading Weber State, even with rival Montana awaiting MSU in Missoula on Monday.
"Southern Utah's going to be a tough team," said sophomore forward Danny Robison. "They're looking for their first win and we can't look past them to the Griz. This is an important game for us, especially being out last home game. It will be senior night and everyone wants to give everything they have for Paul, Flav, Antonio and Calen."
"Take the records out of it," Huse said. "Southern Utah's playing for something, Weber was playing for something, we're playing for something. This is a difficult contest, a very tough team to play against. They're fighting for something, maybe a little different than what Weber was fighting for, but they are fighting for something, and they're showing that. They're right there on the cusp of breaking throw. We just need to do what we do, in a sense, and take this game no different than any other one."
The Thunderbirds' average margin of defeat in Big Sky games is 13.2 points, a figured skewed by three losses early in the league season (36 points at UNC, 28 points to Sacramento State, and 34 points to Northern Arizona). MSU beat Southern Utah 54-52 in Cedar City on February 1, with Eric Norman blocking a three-point attempt that would have won the game at the buzzer.
"They've been there," Huse said. "They're close, they've competed well, they've improved as the season's gone on. Every game, watching and analyzing it, has come down to the last few minutes. They're a better team than when we saw them before."
The Bobcats have run into a fairly clear demarcation between winning and losing since conference play begin nearly two months ago. When the Cats hold Big Sky opponents below 47% shooting, MSU is 8-1. When allowing the opponent to shoot at least 47%, Montana State is 0-7.
The team's perimeter defense has been boosted, while the interior has been hampered, in recent weeks. The Bobcats regained the services of guard Michael Dison, one of the team's top on-ball defenders who missed four games with a hand injury, last weekend. Gone, however, is forward Eric Norman, who suffered a sprained ankle in practice last week. He is out indefinitely.
Huse hopes his team's belief system can provide an extra boost in the season's final two weekends. "It's a battle," he said. "It's competitive. There's no secret that three of our last four are on the road, but we've had some success on the road so that should give us some confidence."
Tipoff for Thursday's game is at 7:05 pm, with MSU's Senior Night ceremonies beginning about 10 minutes before then.
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