Thursday, January 25
BOZEMAN
7 pm
Montana State University
vs
Northern Arizona
Photo by: Andrew Pedersen
GAME #21: Bobcats Near League Season's Mid-Point with NAU Rematch
1/24/2018 11:13:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Bobcats face Northern Arizona, Southern Utah for second time in 2017-18
BOZEMAN, Montana – Montana State reaches the mid-point of the Big Sky Conference season this weekend, which Northern Arizona opens with a Thursday evening visit to Worthington Arena.
The Lumberjacks' lineup and rotation be slightly changed from the squad the Cats edged 76-73 in overtime in Flagstaff just less than a month ago, but one characteristic has remained constant for NAU. "They're playing very hard," said Bobcat coach Brian Fish. "Sometimes when a team's struggling and having a tough year it's hard keeping kids playing hard and buying in. But when you watch (NAU) on tape you don't see any letdown. They're in every single game they play and they're playing really hard."
Fleet guard JoJo Anderson leads the Lumberjacks (3-17 overall, 0-7 in Big Sky play). The 6-3 sophomore scores a team-high 12.4 points a game off the bench, and his 130 free throw attempts leads the Big Sky. Torry Johnson (9.6 ppg) and Chris Bowling (9.7 ppg) each score nearly 10 points a game, and Brooks DeBisschop paces the team with 7.0 boards a contest.
After shooting 35 three-pointers in their first two league contests of the season, the Lumberjacks average over 20 per game in the most recent four. "They've been shooting more three-pointers," Fish said, "and they made 14 against Idaho (last Saturday)." Six different Lumberjacks pose a legitimate threat from the arc.
The Bobcats (11-9, 4-3) counter with an attack that continues to diversify, but which also seeks consistency. Tyler Hall (18.8 ppg) and Harald Frey (14.5 ppg) lead Montana State, and Keljin Blevins chips in 10.0 points a game. Joe Mvuezolo Jr. flashes brilliance, averaging eight points a game, but struggles with efficiency. Konner Frey scores 5.7 points a game and shootings 55.6%, but continues to struggle with foul trouble.
This weekend's games mark the first rematches of the Big Sky season, which alters preparation in some ways. "The biggest thing is they get to see film of themselves," Fish said. "We play Northern Arizona, so we show them film of when we played them so there's a little more attention to detail because they see themselves, what works and what doesn't work. The scouting report is a little quicker. Northern Arizona's doing a lot of the same things, (but) they've adjusted their lineup a little."
Fish said matching up with Northern Arizona's shooters coming out of the fast break is high on Thursday's to-do list. "We didn't do a very good job of defense in transition there, so we need to do a better job there. We need to get back."
Tipoff is 7 pm Thursday in Worthington Arena. MSU completes weekend action against Southern Utah on Saturday. Fans with a ticket from last week's Cat-Griz game receive a game ticket to either of this weekend's contests for $5.
The Lumberjacks' lineup and rotation be slightly changed from the squad the Cats edged 76-73 in overtime in Flagstaff just less than a month ago, but one characteristic has remained constant for NAU. "They're playing very hard," said Bobcat coach Brian Fish. "Sometimes when a team's struggling and having a tough year it's hard keeping kids playing hard and buying in. But when you watch (NAU) on tape you don't see any letdown. They're in every single game they play and they're playing really hard."
Fleet guard JoJo Anderson leads the Lumberjacks (3-17 overall, 0-7 in Big Sky play). The 6-3 sophomore scores a team-high 12.4 points a game off the bench, and his 130 free throw attempts leads the Big Sky. Torry Johnson (9.6 ppg) and Chris Bowling (9.7 ppg) each score nearly 10 points a game, and Brooks DeBisschop paces the team with 7.0 boards a contest.
After shooting 35 three-pointers in their first two league contests of the season, the Lumberjacks average over 20 per game in the most recent four. "They've been shooting more three-pointers," Fish said, "and they made 14 against Idaho (last Saturday)." Six different Lumberjacks pose a legitimate threat from the arc.
The Bobcats (11-9, 4-3) counter with an attack that continues to diversify, but which also seeks consistency. Tyler Hall (18.8 ppg) and Harald Frey (14.5 ppg) lead Montana State, and Keljin Blevins chips in 10.0 points a game. Joe Mvuezolo Jr. flashes brilliance, averaging eight points a game, but struggles with efficiency. Konner Frey scores 5.7 points a game and shootings 55.6%, but continues to struggle with foul trouble.
This weekend's games mark the first rematches of the Big Sky season, which alters preparation in some ways. "The biggest thing is they get to see film of themselves," Fish said. "We play Northern Arizona, so we show them film of when we played them so there's a little more attention to detail because they see themselves, what works and what doesn't work. The scouting report is a little quicker. Northern Arizona's doing a lot of the same things, (but) they've adjusted their lineup a little."
Fish said matching up with Northern Arizona's shooters coming out of the fast break is high on Thursday's to-do list. "We didn't do a very good job of defense in transition there, so we need to do a better job there. We need to get back."
Tipoff is 7 pm Thursday in Worthington Arena. MSU completes weekend action against Southern Utah on Saturday. Fans with a ticket from last week's Cat-Griz game receive a game ticket to either of this weekend's contests for $5.
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