Bobcats Host Final Regular-Season Games

Wednesday, March 1

BOZEMAN

7 p.m.

Montana State University

Idaho State

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Head Coach Tricia Binford celebrates MSU's win over Montana on Saturday afternoon.

Photo by: Adrian Sanchez-Gonzalez

2/28/2017 6:07:00 PM | Women's Basketball

MSU WBB NOTES (PDF)

The Montana State women’s basketball team will play its final two regular-season games in Worthington Arena this week

By: Tom Schulz

IDAHO STATE (16-11, 10-6) at MONTANA STATE (20-6, 13-3)
    Date:                       March 1, 2017
    Tipoff: 7:05 p.m. (MST)
    Site:                        Worthington Arena (7,250) * Bozeman, MT
    Radio:                     1450 KMMS-AM; Play-by-Play with Jason Alvine
    Live Video: WatchBigSky.com
    Live Stats: bobcatstats.com

WEBER STATE (12-15, 6-10) at MONTANA STATE (20-6, 13-3)
    Date:                        March 3, 2017
    Tipoff:                       7:05 p.m. (MST)
    Site:                         Worthington Arena (7,250) * Bozeman, MT
    Radio:                      1450 KMMS-AM; 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 its final two regular-season games in Worthington Arena this week. Due to the Big Sky Conference Tournament starting on March 6 in Reno, Nevada, league games this week will be played on Wednesday and Friday nights. The Bobcats will host Idaho State on March 1 and will celebrate its three seniors - Peyton Ferris, Riley Nordgaard, Margreet Barhoum - on Friday, March 3. Both games are slated to tip-off at 7:05 p.m.

ON A SERIES NOTE: Montana State holds the all-time series mark with Idaho State 41-35 dating back to the 1977-78 season. However, the Bengals are 8-2 against the Bobcats in the last ten meetings. Of those ten meetings, three games have gone into overtime. ISU is currently on a two-game win streak including a 67-59 decision on Dec. 31, 2016 in Pocatello to ring in the New Year.

WHAT'S AT STAKE: The Bobcats are assured a top three seed and a first-round bye at the Big Sky tourney. However, the Bobcats are also battling with North Dakota and Northern Colorado for the regular-season title. ISU is looking for a top 4 seed.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME: The Bobcats are riding a 23-game home winning streak after its 71-68 victory over Southern Utah on Feb. 11. The streak is fourth longest at the NCAA Division I level, behind UConn 64, UCLA 27 and Bucknell 24.

STATE OF THE LEAGUE: The Big Sky is currently ranked 20th out of 32 conferences in the RPI. This week's NCAA Nitty-Gritty team RPI has MSU ranked 88, followed by North Dakota 117, Eastern Washington 120, Idaho 127, Northern Colorado 128, Idaho State 161, Weber State 230, Portland State 247, Sacramento State 283, Southern Utah 298, Northern Arizona 308 and Montana 328.

MSU PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Delany Junkermier matched a career-high 19 points to lift the Bobcats to a 71-54 win over Montana on Saturday. The Spokane product also posted three 3-pointers and three assists.

SCOUTING THE BENGALS:
Idaho State is 16-11 overall and 10-6 in Big Sky Conference action heading into Wednesday night's game. The Bengals sit fifth in the league standings and are still in the hunt for a top 4 seed to next week's Big Sky Tournament. ISU has won seven of its last nine games and are coming off a 61-58 setback to Eastern Washington on Senior Day in Pocatello. On the season, the Bengals have been led by Saylair Grandon, who averages 11.4 points per game. However, the 5-10 guard has been sidelined with a hand injury and has missed six league games. Sophomore Grace Kenyon has picked up the slack for ISU and averages 10.3 points per contest. Kenyon also guides Idaho State under the boards hauling in 6.8 caroms per outing. The last time MSU and ISU met resulted in a 67-59 Bengal win. The Bobcats were led in the game by Peyton Ferris and Riley Nordgaard with 16 and 10 points, respectively. Grandon and Kenyon paced ISU with 21 and 19 points, respectively.

TALE OF THE TAPE: MSU vs. ISU

MSU.................. Stat................... ISU
73.7................... PPG................. 61.1
41.3................... FG%................. 38.1
33.8.................. 3FG%................ 32.8
70.4................... FT%................. 70.9
43.8.................. REB/G................ 40.9
16.2.................. AST/G................ 12.1
7.5.................... STL/G.................. 5.9
3.2................... BLK/G.................. 3.2
16.1.................. TO/G................ 17.6

BUELLER: Peyton Ferris, a two-time Big Sky Top Reserve of the Year, came off the bench in all 31 games last season. This year, Ferris has started every game. She leads the team and is second in the Big Sky averaging 18.4 points per game. Ferris is second on the squad in rebounding at 7.1 per contest, which is eighth in the league. Ferris joined MSU's 1,000-point club with a season-best 32 points at North Dakota. Currently, she is 16th on MSU's all-time scoring chart, and 36 points away from surpassing Amy Meckling (97-01) for 15th. In addition, Ferris became the 12th member of MSU's prestigious 1,000/500 club as she is 17th all-time with 540 rebounds. Ferris, who was voted 2016-17 preseason Big Sky MVP, recorded her second double-double of the year with 27 points and 12 boards at Montana on Feb. 4. In Big Sky action, the Twin Bridges product has notched six games over 20 points and two games over the 30-point plateau. At UM on Feb. 4, she swatted a career-high five blocks. Last year, Ferris finished eighth in the nation in field-goal percentage shooting at a 58 percent clip.

THE LIFE OF RILEY: Riley Nordgaard, the 2015-16 Big Sky Newcomer of the Year, made her debut on Nov. 23 at UC Davis. Nordgaard made an immediate impact earning Big Sky Player of the Week kudos, after averaging 12.7 points and 8.7 rebounds in three games. The Canby, Minn., product has seven double-doubles on the season after posting 25 points and 11 rebounds at Sacramento State Feb. 18. She recorded a career-high 26 points in MSU's win over Sacramento State on Jan. 19, connecting on eight-of-14 from the field. In MSU's win over Portland State on Jan. 21, Nordgaard connected on a career-high six 3-pointers. She had a career-high 13 rebounds against Idaho on Jan. 7. She is currently second on the team with 50 3-pointers and is second shooting 37.0 percent from beyond the arc.

DISHING THE ROCK: Junior Hannah Caudill is averaging 4.5 assists per game, which ranks third in the Big Sky. Her +1.4 assist-turnover ratio is sixth in the league. The graduate of Gonzaga Prep in Spokane, Washington posted a career-high 23 points at Eastern Washington on Jan. 5. Last winter, Caudill led the Big Sky averaging 5.4 assists per contest. She dished out 166 assists, which was second most ever recorded in a single-season at MSU. Caudill, who has averaged 6.0 assists per game over the last eight outings, broke into MSU's all-time career assists rankings a month ago and is currently sixth all-time with 339 assists. She is also fourth all-time in three-point field-goals made at 140 triples.

THAT AINT NO LIE: Sophomore Annika Lai has started four games this season filling in during the absence of Riley Nordgaard. The 6-1 product of Boulder, Colorado posted a career-high 15 points against Idaho on Jan. 7, connecting on seven-of-13 from the field. She has seven double-figure scoring games on the season, after knocking down 11 points at Sacramento State on Feb. 18. In Montana State's 83-68 win at Weber State, Lai notched 13 points and grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds for her first-ever double-double. On the season, Lai is averaging 6.9 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. She is averaging 22.3 minutes per contest. Lai is third on the Bobcat team shooting 46.5 percent from the field. She is also fourth in rebounding and fifth in scoring. Lai had 8 points v Montana on Saturday

JUNK MAIL: Delany Junkermier has delivered seven double-figure scoring games this season, including a season-high 19 points in Montana State win over rival Montana on Saturday. Averaging 7.4 points per game, the Spokane product has averaged 8.3 points per contest in Big Sky action. Last Saturday, she connected on seven-of-12 from the floor with three triples.

FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS: Senior Margreet Barhoum has had a knack for answering the bell when MSU has needed a three-pointer this season. Barhoum answered the call and dialed up a key 3-pointer in Montana State's win over Pacific on Nov. 25 with 41-seconds left. She hit another big triple at Portland on Dec. 11 with 2:21 left to give the Cats the lead for good over the Pilots. Against Cal Poly on Dec. 20, her 3-pointer ignited a MSU fourth quarter run and her 3-pointer with six-minutes left vs. Portland State broke open a tie game. The Edmonds, Washington product, who is averaging 2.6 points per contest, finished with a season-high ten points - connecting on three-of-five from the field and two-of-two from beyond the 3-point line at Portland on Dec. 11. She also added two assists and a rebound against the Pilots. Barhoum is currently shooting 30.8 percent from the field. Last weekend, she posted six points and two assists against the Lady Griz.

FAB FRESH: All three Bobcat true-freshmen - Blaire Braxton, Oliana Squires and Madeline Smith - have made an impact this season. Braxton, a native of Highlands Ranch, Colo., has started all 26 games and is averaging 3.7 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. At Sacramento State on Feb. 18, she yanked down a season-best 14 rebounds. She is seventh in the Big Sky in rebounding and blocks. Braxton notched a career-high 10 points on Feb. 9 vs. Northern Arizona. Squires has played in 22 of 26 games and is averaging 6.7 points per game, which is sixth best on the team. She posted a season-high 17 points in MSU's loss at Northern Colorado. She is averaging 14.4 minutes per game and is third on the team with 24 three-pointers. On. Jan. 7 against Idaho, Smith tallied a season-high 13 points. The product of Snohomish, Washington is averaging 14.9 minutes per game and is chipping in 6.0 points and 3.8 rebounds per contest. She posted her eighth double-digit scoring game with 11 points at Sacramento State on Feb. 18. Smith is averaging 6.8 points and 3.9 boards per game in Big Sky play, while shooting 57.1 percent from the field. She went scoreless against Montana.

BOZEMAN DOWNTOWN ASSOCIATION: After the 26 games, the Bobcats have connected on 197-of-583 from beyond the three-point arc. MSU is paced from long distance by Hannah Caudill with 63 triples. The Spokane product is followed by Riley Nordgaard 50, Delany Junkermier 26, Oliana Squires 24, Peyton Ferris 15 and Margreet Barhoum 9. MSU is shooting 33.8 percent from beyond 20-feet, 9-inches, which is the 3rd best in the Big Sky Conference. Last year, the Bobcats went 179-of-498 (35.9%) from three-point territory. As a team, Montana State has recorded at least one 3-pointer in the last 128 consecutive games. The last time Montana State was held without a three-pointer was Jan. 24, 2013 (0-9) at Weber State in Ogden, UT.

STINGY D: The Bobcat defense has evolved into one of the best units in the Big Sky. MSU is first in three-point field goal defense (.276), rebounding offense (43.8), and defensive rebounds (30.2). Nationally, the Bobcats are ranked No. 6 in defensive rebounds per game; No. 8 in rebounds per game; No. 18 in 3-point field-goal percentage; No. 43 in field-goal percentage defense, No. 64 in rebound margin and No. 77 in total rebounds.

TO CATCH A THIEF: MSU had logged 194 steals on the season. Eight Bobcat players have recorded double-digit steals, paced by Riley Nordgaard with 45. Nordgaard has made her presence felt on the defensive end having played in 23 games to date and averaging 7.8 rebounds. Last year, the 5-10 forward who transferred to Bozeman from Augustana College, recorded 76 thefts, the eighth highest single-season total in Montana State history.