Saturday, February 8
Cheney, WA
3 p.m.
Montana State University
at
Eastern Washington
Photo by: Garrett Becker
Bobcat Men Hit Road to Face Eagles Saturday
2/7/2020 3:16:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Montana State travels to Cheney to face offensive-focused Eastern Washington
| Montana State Bobcats (12-10, 6-5) at Eastern Washington Eagles (15-8, 8-3) | |
| Date and Time | Saturday, Feb. 8 - 3 p.m. MST |
| Location | Cheney, Wash. |
| Site | Reese Court (5,000) |
| Television | SWX Montana (check local listings) |
| Radio | KMMS 1450 AM | Bobcat Sports Radio Network |
| Listen Live | msubobcats.com/watch | TuneIn app |
| Stream | Pluto TV | WatchBigSky.com |
| Live Stats | EWUStats.com (Statbroadcast) |
| Tickets | GoEags.com |
| Montana State | Game Notes | Men's Basketball Home Page |
| EWU | Men's Basketball Home Page |
BOZEMAN, Mont. – Montana State travels to Cheney, Wash., to face the Eastern Washington Eagles in their second head-to-head meeting of the conference schedule at 3 p.m. MST on Saturday at Reese Court. The Eags earned a 71-58 victory over the Bobcats in Bozeman on Jan. 18.
In the Jan. 18 matchup, EWU held a 48-46 lead with less than nine minutes to play. The Eags went on an 11-0 run to put the game out of reach. EWU's Jacob Davison led all players with 26 points, while Mason Peatling had 17 points and 11 rebounds. Harald Frey (19) and Amin Adamu (16) each scored in double digits for MSU, but the Bobcats had 19 turnovers in the contest and were outshot 38.9-36.8% from the field.
"They got us pretty good here," Montana State head coach Danny Sprinkle said of the Bobcats' first matchup versus Eastern Washington. "Especially early in the game, the first 15 minutes we had trouble keeping up with their pace. That's why they're at the top of the league right now.
"They're a tremendous offensive team, especially at home, so we're going to have to be a better team on defense against them. Coach (Shantay) Legans is going to have his team ready. It's going to be a challenge. They came and gave us problems in the first game, so we'll have to be ready to respond."
Although the all-time series between EWU and MSU is narrowly held by the Bobcats (46-43), both teams have had considerable success against each other on their home courts. MSU is 31-13 in Bozeman versus EWU while the Eags own a 26-12 mark in Cheney over the 'Cats. EWU has won the last eight meetings between the two programs at Reese Court, with MSU's last victory a 60-56 triumph that came on Feb. 24, 2011.
MSU returned to Bozeman for its first game in Worthington Arena in nearly three weeks on Thursday, defeating Idaho 72-50. The Bobcats outscored Idaho 40-18 in the second half behind four double-digit scorers and a 68% clip over the last 20 minutes.
The Bobcats went 30 of 50 from the floor for a 60% shooting percentage. The overall shooting mark was MSU's best in a game since Feb. 18, 2006, when MSU topped Idaho in Bozeman. It was the sixth time this season the 'Cats have shot at least 50%.
The Vandals were held to a 35.6% mark from the field overall, including a 27.3% shooting percentage in the second half. It served as the sixth time this season MSU's defense has held an opponent to under 30% from the field during a half. The Bobcats didn't allow a 3-pointer to fall and held Idaho leading scorer Trevon Allen to four points in the last 20 minutes of play.
The Bobcats owned the boards in their victory over the Vandals. The 39-20 edge in rebounds was the biggest disparity in a contest for MSU this season. MSU's 28 defensive rebounds per game average ranks 32nd in the nation. The 'Cats also improved to 9-3 when winning the battle on the boards during the 2019-20 slate.
MSU's defensive performance against Idaho was one of its best in the past decade in Big Sky action. Idaho's 50 points on Thursday were the least given up by MSU to a Big Sky opponent since the 2010-11 season. The Bobcats lost a 50-45 matchup on Jan. 24 of that season to Idaho State.
MSU's Big Sky scoring defense ranks third (64.4) and field goal percentage defense ranks second (40.8%) through 11 games. Its overall scoring defense of 65.7 points per game is 88th in Division I basketball and its field goal percentage defense is 69th by allowing foes to shoot 40.6% this year.
Montana State's 3-point field goal percentage defense continues to be its best ranking on the NCAA statistical charts. MSU's opponent 3-point shooting mark of 29.6% ranks 30th in the nation and is second in the conference. The Bobcats improved to 12-3 this season when holding opponents to 70 points or less after their win on Thursday. The 15 foes under 70 points or less ties their best mark since the 2014-15 season when MSU also held 15 opponents to that total.
Saturday's game will be televised by SWX Montana. SWX Montana can be found on channel 199 or 503 for Charter spectrum subscribers, while it can also be found through digital antenna offering which can be found here. The contest will be streamed on the Pluto TV app and on WatchBigSky.com. All Bobcat basketball games are available to listen to as part of the Bobcat Sports Radio Network and airing locally on KMMS 1450 AM. All tickets for home games are available at msubobcats.com/tickets, by calling 406-994-CATS or by visiting the Bobcat Ticket Office.
Players Mentioned
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