Montana State University
Southern Utah
Bobcats Host Thunderbirds
2/10/2017 4:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Montana State women’s basketball team will play four of its last six games in Worthington Arena, beginning with Southern Utah, Saturday, Feb. 11 at 2 p.m. against Southern Utah.
SOUTHERN UTAH (5-18, 0-12) at MONTANA STATE (17-5, 10-2)
Date: Feb. 11, 2017
Tipoff: 2 p.m. (MST)
Site: Worthington Arena (4,500) * Bozeman, MT
Radio: My 103.5 FM; Play-by-Play with Jason Alvine
Live Video: WatchBigSky.com;
Live Stats: bobcatstats.com
NEXT UP: The Montana State women's basketball team will play four of its last six games in Worthington Arena, beginning with Southern Utah, Saturday, Feb. 11 at 2 p.m. against Southern Utah. MSU's game vs. SUU will be the 3rd Annual PACK THE PLACE IN PINK contest with anyone wearing pink admitted for $5. The event is sponsored with Bozeman OB/GYN and Billings Clinic.
ON A SERIES NOTE: MSU is 14-5 all-time against Southern Utah dating back to the first meeting on Nov. 29, 1988 - a 76-52 Bobcat victory in Worthington Arena. MSU captured the season series last winter, winning 86-59 in Bozeman, and 87-66 in Cedar City. The Thunderbirds last win over MSU came on Jan. 22, 2015 in a 74-69 decision at SUU. Bobcat head coach Tricia Binford is 6-3 all-time against the T-Birds.
LOOKING AHEAD: The Bobcats sit one game back of Northern Colorado and North Dakota for the top spot in the Big Sky. MSU is also looking for a top 4 seed at the Big Sky Tournament and a first-round bye. Montana State will make its last road trip of the season to Portland State and Sacramento State next week.
NO PLACE LIKE HOME: The Bobcats are riding a 21-game home winning streak after its 86-69 victory over Northern Arizona on Thursday. The streak is the fourth longest at the NCAA Division I level, behind UConn 59, UCLA 25 and Bucknell 22.
STATE OF THE LEAGUE: The Big Sky is currently ranked 18th out of 32 conferences in the RPI. This week's NCAA Nitty-Gritty team RPI has MSU ranked 65, followed by Northern Colorado 109, North Dakota 139, Idaho 141, Eastern Washington 143, Idaho State 190, Weber State 228, Portland State 253, Southern Utah 273, Sacramento State 278, Northern Arizona 296, and Montana 328.
BIG SKY PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Peyton Ferris put her team on her back to stage an impressive come-from-behind 75-69 overtime win over arch rival Montana. , Ferris posted her seventh 20+ scoring game of the season and her second double-double of the year with a game-high 27 points. In addition, she matched her career-high with a game-high 12 rebounds. The Twin Bridges product had an outstanding all-around game adding a career-high five blocks, while dishing out three assists and notching two steals. For the game, she shot 50 percent (11-22) from the field, including a two-of-three effort from long distance. In all, Ferris notched 11 points in the opening half, 14 in the second period and two in the overtime frame.
SCOUTING THE THUNDERBIRDS: Southern Utah enters Saturday's game 5-18 overall and 0-12 in Big Sky Conference action. The Thunderbirds opened its season with three straight victories, but have gone 2-18 since that time. Southern Utah is currently on a 12-game losing streak, however, the record is deceptive as the Thunderbirds have dropped five games by five points or less, and have gone into overtime on two occasions in Big Sky play. On Thursday night, SUU dropped a 64-55 decision at Montana. The T-Birds trailed 24-21 at intermission, then saw the Lady Griz out-score them by nine points in the third quarter. SUU was led in the loss by Jessica Richardson with 13 points, while Skylee Doman and Whitney Johnson each added 10 points, apiece. Darri Frandsen paced the Thunderbirds under the glass with a team-high 10 rebounds. For the game, SUU shot 32.2 percent from the field. On the season, Southern Utah has been led in scoring by Frandsen and Richardson. The duo averages 12.7 and 11.0 points per game, respectively. The twosome also guided the Thunderbirds under the glass, averaging 7.7 and 6.6 rebounds per game.
TALE OF THE TAPE: MSU vs. SUU
MSU.................. Stat................. SUU
73.0................... PPG................. 64.4
41.3................... FG%................. 38.4
34.3.................. 3FG%................ 27.3
70.2................... FT%................. 67.6
43.8.................. REB/G................ 41.1
15.6.................. AST/G................ 14.4
7.5.................... STL/G.................. 9.5
3.0................... BLK/G.................. 2.0
