Saturday, February 20
7:05 pm
Montana State University
at
Montana
Marcus Colbert and the Bobcats head to Missoula on Saturday
Photo by: Kelly Gorham
Bobcats Head to Missoula for Brawl of the Wild Rematch
2/18/2016 4:45:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MSU looks to extend three-game win streak against league-leading Grizzlies
Montana State's recent hot streak runs into the sternest test possible starting Saturday in Dahlberg Arena, when the Bobcats start a string of games against teams occupying three of the top four spots in the Big Sky standings.
The Bobcats face league-leading Montana on Saturday at 7:05 pm departing on a trip to Weber State and Idaho State next weekend. For Montana State coach Brian Fish, the sole focus is on Saturday's matchup with the Grizzlies.
"They're an elite team in our league," Fish said. "Montana and Weber (State) are at a little different level so you have to do some different things and to them and have some things go your way."
Montana has moved into the league lead by finding balance. Guards Michael Oguine (11.7 points per league game) and Walter Wright (14.3) have become offensive threats, and combined to score 45 of Montana's 80 points against the Bobcats in Bozeman last month. Yet Fish said center Martin Breunig continues to attract a lion's share of the attention.
"They've got the most skilled basketball-playing big guy in the league," Fish said, "so they've always got that they can go to. That makes them more special. If a play goes wrong for them, they can still get a layup out of it (because of Breunig). And, they can really shoot the basketball."
The emergence of their two new guards, Wright and Oguine, coupled with the return from injury of a long-time contributor has diversified the Grizzlies on both ends of the court, Fish said. "They're pressing a little more, they're more aggressive. (Guard Mario) Dunn is coming along and playing more minutes now, so they've added another guy to the rotation. That makes them quicker and faster. "
The Bobcats have played at a high level offensively throughout the season. The backcourt tandem of Marcus Colbert and Tyler Hall, like their opposites on Saturday night, possess wide-ranging and complementary skills. Colbert is among the league's assist leaders at 5.3 a game, and scores 16.3 points a game, as well. Tyler Hall is one of the nation's top-scoring freshmen, averaging 18.1 points a game.
Fish, though, is most pleased with his team's recent improvements on defense. "We're better defensively than we were 30 days ago," he said. "We're competing. We have some guys that have come along a little bit, we have more and more guys helping us. I like our development, but we have a long way to go."
The Cats and Grizzlies tip off at 7 pm Saturday in Dahlberg Arena. The game is televised across Montana on Fox stations, and in the Billings area on SWX Montana.
The Bobcats face league-leading Montana on Saturday at 7:05 pm departing on a trip to Weber State and Idaho State next weekend. For Montana State coach Brian Fish, the sole focus is on Saturday's matchup with the Grizzlies.
"They're an elite team in our league," Fish said. "Montana and Weber (State) are at a little different level so you have to do some different things and to them and have some things go your way."
Montana has moved into the league lead by finding balance. Guards Michael Oguine (11.7 points per league game) and Walter Wright (14.3) have become offensive threats, and combined to score 45 of Montana's 80 points against the Bobcats in Bozeman last month. Yet Fish said center Martin Breunig continues to attract a lion's share of the attention.
"They've got the most skilled basketball-playing big guy in the league," Fish said, "so they've always got that they can go to. That makes them more special. If a play goes wrong for them, they can still get a layup out of it (because of Breunig). And, they can really shoot the basketball."
The emergence of their two new guards, Wright and Oguine, coupled with the return from injury of a long-time contributor has diversified the Grizzlies on both ends of the court, Fish said. "They're pressing a little more, they're more aggressive. (Guard Mario) Dunn is coming along and playing more minutes now, so they've added another guy to the rotation. That makes them quicker and faster. "
The Bobcats have played at a high level offensively throughout the season. The backcourt tandem of Marcus Colbert and Tyler Hall, like their opposites on Saturday night, possess wide-ranging and complementary skills. Colbert is among the league's assist leaders at 5.3 a game, and scores 16.3 points a game, as well. Tyler Hall is one of the nation's top-scoring freshmen, averaging 18.1 points a game.
Fish, though, is most pleased with his team's recent improvements on defense. "We're better defensively than we were 30 days ago," he said. "We're competing. We have some guys that have come along a little bit, we have more and more guys helping us. I like our development, but we have a long way to go."
The Cats and Grizzlies tip off at 7 pm Saturday in Dahlberg Arena. The game is televised across Montana on Fox stations, and in the Billings area on SWX Montana.
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