Thursday, January 11
Portland, OR
9 pm
Montana State University
at
Portland State
MSU's ability to take care of the ball becomes crucial Thursday
Photo by: Garrett Becker
GAME #19: Bobcats Visit Portland State for Showdown with Fast-Paced Vikings
1/9/2018 7:44:00 AM | Men's Basketball
PSU among nation's top teams in turnovers forced and turnover margin
The Montana State men's basketball team finds itself in unusual circumstances Thursday when the team visits Portland State.
The Bobcats face a Barret Peery-coached Vikings team for the first time, and the game is played in Lewis & Clark College's Pamplin Sports Center while PSU constructs its new sports pavilion. And to add another subtle wrinkle, tipoff is 8 pm local time (9 pm Mountain), a bit later than most Bobcat games begin.
But Brian Fish isn't worried about any of that. Portland State's team poses enough of a challenge to keep MSU's fourth-year head coach occupied.
"They really play pressure defense," Fish said of a Vikings team that is 11-5 overall, 1-2 in the Big Sky, "and they play very hard. They defend the whole court and they have turned everyone (they play) over."
Portland State leads the nation in steals with 12.1 per game and is second with 21.5 turnovers forced. Four Vikings individuals rank among Division I's top 130 in steals, with Bryce Canda's 2.19 per game checking in at 29th. Freshman Holland Woods pilfers 1.94 balls a game, 64th in the nation.
Portland State's frenetic tempo carries over to the offensive end, where the Vikings' 89.9 points a game is fourth nationally and the +12.3 scoring margin is 43rd. The Vikings check in at fifth in adjusted tempo in the Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings, and PSU leads the Big Sky Conference in 14 different categories just past the season's halfway mark.
While Portland State was tasked with opening Big Sky play with three road games – winning at preseason Big Sky favorite Idaho on Saturday after dropping narrow decisions at Sacramento State (80-75) and Eastern Washington (81-74) – the Bobcats have raced to the program's best league start since 2004-05. By winning its first four Big Sky games MSU has accomplished something only five other Bobcat squads have managed. The Cats stand 11-6 overall.
While Tyler Hall (26.3 ppg in Big Sky games, 1st in the league) and Harald Frey (16.0, 13th) have led MSU's offense during conference play, the Cats have shown strength underneath, as well. Montana State averages 39.5 rebounds a game, second in the Big Sky, and its +5.2 rebounding margin is third. Keljin Blevins averages 7.5 rebounds a game in conference play, tied for seventh in the league, while Sam Neumann's 6.3 boards a game is 17th. Zach Green is two spots lower with 5.8 caroms a contest.
Thursday's game is available on msubobcats.com with Jay Sanderson on the call, while video of the game is streamed on WatchBigSky.com and Pluto TV (channel 238). MSU finishes the weekend trip at Sacramento State on Saturday.
The Bobcats face a Barret Peery-coached Vikings team for the first time, and the game is played in Lewis & Clark College's Pamplin Sports Center while PSU constructs its new sports pavilion. And to add another subtle wrinkle, tipoff is 8 pm local time (9 pm Mountain), a bit later than most Bobcat games begin.
But Brian Fish isn't worried about any of that. Portland State's team poses enough of a challenge to keep MSU's fourth-year head coach occupied.
"They really play pressure defense," Fish said of a Vikings team that is 11-5 overall, 1-2 in the Big Sky, "and they play very hard. They defend the whole court and they have turned everyone (they play) over."
Portland State leads the nation in steals with 12.1 per game and is second with 21.5 turnovers forced. Four Vikings individuals rank among Division I's top 130 in steals, with Bryce Canda's 2.19 per game checking in at 29th. Freshman Holland Woods pilfers 1.94 balls a game, 64th in the nation.
Portland State's frenetic tempo carries over to the offensive end, where the Vikings' 89.9 points a game is fourth nationally and the +12.3 scoring margin is 43rd. The Vikings check in at fifth in adjusted tempo in the Pomeroy College Basketball Ratings, and PSU leads the Big Sky Conference in 14 different categories just past the season's halfway mark.
While Portland State was tasked with opening Big Sky play with three road games – winning at preseason Big Sky favorite Idaho on Saturday after dropping narrow decisions at Sacramento State (80-75) and Eastern Washington (81-74) – the Bobcats have raced to the program's best league start since 2004-05. By winning its first four Big Sky games MSU has accomplished something only five other Bobcat squads have managed. The Cats stand 11-6 overall.
While Tyler Hall (26.3 ppg in Big Sky games, 1st in the league) and Harald Frey (16.0, 13th) have led MSU's offense during conference play, the Cats have shown strength underneath, as well. Montana State averages 39.5 rebounds a game, second in the Big Sky, and its +5.2 rebounding margin is third. Keljin Blevins averages 7.5 rebounds a game in conference play, tied for seventh in the league, while Sam Neumann's 6.3 boards a game is 17th. Zach Green is two spots lower with 5.8 caroms a contest.
Thursday's game is available on msubobcats.com with Jay Sanderson on the call, while video of the game is streamed on WatchBigSky.com and Pluto TV (channel 238). MSU finishes the weekend trip at Sacramento State on Saturday.
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