Tuesday, December 7
BOZEMAN
7 p.m.
Montana State University
vs
North Dakota State
Jubrile Belo
Photo by: Garrett Becker
Bobcats and Bison Meet in Worthington Arena Tuesday Evening
12/6/2021 6:18:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Montana State hosts its first game in Worthington Arena in nearly a month when the Bobcats take on North Dakota State Tuesday at 7 p.m
| Montana State Bobcats (5-4) vs. North Dakota State Bison (5-3) | |
| Date and Time | Tuesday, December 7 - 7 p.m. MT |
| Location | Bozeman, Montana |
| Site | Worthington Arena |
| Stream | ESPN+ |
| Radio | KMMS 1450 AM | Bobcat Sports Radio Network |
| Listen Live | Varsity Network app |
| Live Stats | MSUBobcats.com |
| Montana State | Game Notes | Men's Basketball Home Page |
| NDSU | Men's Basketball Home Page |
BOZEMAN, Mont. – Montana State hosts its first game in Worthington Arena in nearly a month when the Bobcats take on North Dakota State Tuesday at 7 p.m. The home game versus the Bison is the first for MSU following a span of seven consecutive contests away from Bozeman.
"The most important thing for us is to get to be able to play in front of our fans," Montana State head coach Danny Sprinkle said. "It'll be awesome after playing our first eight Division I games on the road. We'll be playing a quality opponent. North Dakota State does a tremendous job, they're super disciplined, they do not beat themselves."
MSU finished its stretch away from Bozeman between Nov. 14-Dec.7 with a 4-3 record. The Bobcats dropped matchups at South Dakota State and New Mexico prior to earning victories over Portland, Incarnate Word and Southeast Missouri from Nov. 26-28. MSU's undefeated stay at the UIW Thanksgiving Invitational was the Bobcats' second regular season tournament under Danny Sprinkle that they've finished 3-0. The 'Cats opened the early portion of their Big Sky Conference schedule this past week falling in overtime to Northern Colorado while narrowly defeating Sacramento State.
Montana State and North Dakota State meet for the second time in the Danny Sprinkle era. The two sides last met on Dec. 6, 2019, in Fargo when the Bison outscored the Bobcats by 11 in the second half to pull away with a 79-65 victory. Current senior Amin Adamu led MSU with 19 points and six rebounds in the contest.
The Bobcats and Bison have squared off five times during the 21st century and NDSU has won all five of those meetings. MSU owns the head-to-head series lead by an 11-8 margin with the Bobcats' last victory over the Bison coming in 1979.
"They've been good forever," Sprinkle said. "They do a good job coaching, they've got disciplined players, we're going to have to continue to get better and learn from the late struggles we've had. Not just against Sacramento State, but almost every game this year.
"In order for us to win, which is obviously the goal, we've got to clean a lot of stuff up. But hopefully our fans give us some great energy and give us a six-to-seven point advantage for us."
Montana State is scheduled to play three Summit League teams during its 2021-22 non-conference slate. The Bobcats dropped a 91-74 affair at Summit League preseason favorite South Dakota State on Nov. 17. NDSU was picked second in the Summit League before the season following a third straight appearance in its conference's postseason championship. MSU heads to St. Paul this weekend to take on St. Thomas Saturday. The Tommies are in the midst of their first season at the Division I level.
Montana State has been paced by its starting lineup of Amin Adamu, Jubrile Belo, Xavier Bishop, Abdul Mohamed and Tyler Patterson through nine games this season. All five are playing over 27 minutes per contest and each are averaging double digits in the scoring column.
MSU returners in Adamu, Belo and Bishop have steadily moved up both NCAA and program charts during their time as Bobcats. Bishop's career 1,465 points rank him 54th among active Division I men's basketball players. His 416 assists have him at 42nd overall. Adamu and Belo each are on trajectories to become 1,000 point scorers at Montana State. Adamu heads into Tuesday's matchup with 759 points. Belo, who already ranks among MSU's top 10 in field goal percentage and blocks, sits at 861 points.
The Bobcats rank among in the Big Sky Conference in multiple areas. MSU is first in 3-point field goal percentage averaging a 37.5% clip. They also rank second in the Big Sky in field goal percentage (46.6%), 3-point field goals per game (9.3), assists per game (15.2) and assist/turnover ratio (1.05). The Bobcats are third in free throw percentage (73.6%) and blocked shots per game (3.6).
Montana State's game against North Dakota State will be streamed on ESPN+. The game will also be broadcast on the Bobcat Radio Network on KMMS 1450 AM, with the Voice of the Bobcats Zach Mackey on the call, as well as on the Varsity Network app. Links for live streams, live stats and radio coverage are available on the men's basketball schedule page on msubobcats.com.
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