Thursday, December 29
BOZEMAN
7 p.m.
Montana State University
vs
Idaho
Photo by: Kyle Cajero
Big Sky Play Begins at Home Against Idaho
12/27/2022 11:31:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Bobcats put their 13-game home win streak on the line against the Idaho Vandals on Thursday night.
BOZEMAN, Mont. – After wrapping up one of the toughest non-conference schedules in recent memory, the Montana State men's basketball team begins Big Sky Conference play against the University of Idaho Vandals on Thursday, Dec. 29 at 7 p.m.
With the departure of Southern Utah to the Western Athletic Conference, the Big Sky Conference schedule consists of an 18-game, double-round robin format, in which all teams play each other twice. Throughout these games, Montana State will look to defend its regular-season and eventually its Big Sky Tournament title this season in Boise, Idaho at the Big Sky Championships on March 4-8. All Big Sky Conference games will be livestreamed on ESPN+ and broadcasted on the Bobcat Sports Radio Network.
Coming into Thursday's game, the Bobcats (7-6) have a 13-game home win streak, which ties the second-longest in program history. Should MSU win against Idaho and Eastern Washington this Saturday, it will tie the all-time record of 15-straight home wins at Worthington Arena. The Bobcats also have a 4-1 record in their last five Big Sky Conference home openers, and are 5-1 against Idaho under current head coach Danny Sprinkle.
Despite playing a difficult non-conference schedule, the Bobcats are among the Big Sky's best in the stat sheet. Montana State leads the Big Sky in win percentage (.538), opponent field goal percentage (41.8%) and rebounding margin (+5.4). The Bobcats also rank third in offense (77.7 points per game) and fourth in scoring defense (69.1 points per game allowed). Advanced metrics favor the Bobcats too, as MSU was the top Big Sky team in the NET rankings (124th) and in KenPom (148th).
Several Bobcat individuals are also among the Big Sky's most productive players. Although his scoring turned heads early on, junior guard RaeQuan Battle has put together an all-around showing in the non-conference slate by setting career-highs in scoring (30 vs. North Dakota), rebounding (9 vs. Omaha), assists (5 vs. St. Thomas) and steals (4 vs. Middle Tennessee State). Battle is the Big Sky's fifth leading-scorer at 17.2 PPG and the sixth-most accurate shooter by making 47.7% of his field goals.
Complimenting Battle inside is senior forward Jubrile Belo, who has shown gradual improvement in every game after enduring offseason knee surgery. The reigning outright Big Sky MVP has averaged 12.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 0.6 blocks per game — the latter two figures rank among the top 10 in the conference. Additionally, redshirt junior guard Darius Brown II leads the conference with his 2.7 assist-to-turnover ratio while ranking third with 5.2 assists per game.
The 6-7 Vandals, meanwhile, have been a surprise team in the Big Sky this year.
Needing to replace three starters from last year's team, four of the Vandals' top five scorers are newcomers — including two of the league's best high-volume scorers in Isaac Jones (18.9 points per game) and Divant'e Moffit (16.8 PPG). Jones is one of the most efficient big men in college basketball, averaging 18.9 points per game on 71.9% shooting, while also adding a Big Sky-best 1.1 blocks per game on defense. Moffitt, meanwhile, is an experienced, Division II All-American from Seattle Pacific University who leads the conference with 5.6 assists per game while averaging 16.8 points per game.
The offensive-minded Vandals, who lead the Big Sky by shooting 50.2% from the field and 37.5% from three, are only four wins away from surpassing last year's win total. Idaho has only won three conference road games under fourth-year head coach Zac Claus.
Montana State is coming off a nine-day break from competition after playing at No. 5 Arizona on Dec. 20. The Bobcats shot 48.4% in the first half against the Wildcats and were within single digits in the second half before a pair of 12-2 runs handed MSU the 85-64 road loss. Jubrile Belo led the way with 18 points on 7-for-8 shooting, while the Bobcat defense held Arizona's vaunted frontcourt of Oumar Ballo (17.8 PPG) and Azuolas Tubelis (20.1 PPG) to a mere 25 points.
Following Thursday's game, the men's basketball team hosts Eastern Washington on Dec. 31 at 2 p.m. At the game, Montana State will host a New Year's Eve party with food, games, and a myriad of activities.
Season tickets and single-game tickets for all remaining home games can be found on msubobcats.info/tickets.
With the departure of Southern Utah to the Western Athletic Conference, the Big Sky Conference schedule consists of an 18-game, double-round robin format, in which all teams play each other twice. Throughout these games, Montana State will look to defend its regular-season and eventually its Big Sky Tournament title this season in Boise, Idaho at the Big Sky Championships on March 4-8. All Big Sky Conference games will be livestreamed on ESPN+ and broadcasted on the Bobcat Sports Radio Network.
Coming into Thursday's game, the Bobcats (7-6) have a 13-game home win streak, which ties the second-longest in program history. Should MSU win against Idaho and Eastern Washington this Saturday, it will tie the all-time record of 15-straight home wins at Worthington Arena. The Bobcats also have a 4-1 record in their last five Big Sky Conference home openers, and are 5-1 against Idaho under current head coach Danny Sprinkle.
Despite playing a difficult non-conference schedule, the Bobcats are among the Big Sky's best in the stat sheet. Montana State leads the Big Sky in win percentage (.538), opponent field goal percentage (41.8%) and rebounding margin (+5.4). The Bobcats also rank third in offense (77.7 points per game) and fourth in scoring defense (69.1 points per game allowed). Advanced metrics favor the Bobcats too, as MSU was the top Big Sky team in the NET rankings (124th) and in KenPom (148th).
Several Bobcat individuals are also among the Big Sky's most productive players. Although his scoring turned heads early on, junior guard RaeQuan Battle has put together an all-around showing in the non-conference slate by setting career-highs in scoring (30 vs. North Dakota), rebounding (9 vs. Omaha), assists (5 vs. St. Thomas) and steals (4 vs. Middle Tennessee State). Battle is the Big Sky's fifth leading-scorer at 17.2 PPG and the sixth-most accurate shooter by making 47.7% of his field goals.
Complimenting Battle inside is senior forward Jubrile Belo, who has shown gradual improvement in every game after enduring offseason knee surgery. The reigning outright Big Sky MVP has averaged 12.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 0.6 blocks per game — the latter two figures rank among the top 10 in the conference. Additionally, redshirt junior guard Darius Brown II leads the conference with his 2.7 assist-to-turnover ratio while ranking third with 5.2 assists per game.
The 6-7 Vandals, meanwhile, have been a surprise team in the Big Sky this year.
Needing to replace three starters from last year's team, four of the Vandals' top five scorers are newcomers — including two of the league's best high-volume scorers in Isaac Jones (18.9 points per game) and Divant'e Moffit (16.8 PPG). Jones is one of the most efficient big men in college basketball, averaging 18.9 points per game on 71.9% shooting, while also adding a Big Sky-best 1.1 blocks per game on defense. Moffitt, meanwhile, is an experienced, Division II All-American from Seattle Pacific University who leads the conference with 5.6 assists per game while averaging 16.8 points per game.
The offensive-minded Vandals, who lead the Big Sky by shooting 50.2% from the field and 37.5% from three, are only four wins away from surpassing last year's win total. Idaho has only won three conference road games under fourth-year head coach Zac Claus.
Montana State is coming off a nine-day break from competition after playing at No. 5 Arizona on Dec. 20. The Bobcats shot 48.4% in the first half against the Wildcats and were within single digits in the second half before a pair of 12-2 runs handed MSU the 85-64 road loss. Jubrile Belo led the way with 18 points on 7-for-8 shooting, while the Bobcat defense held Arizona's vaunted frontcourt of Oumar Ballo (17.8 PPG) and Azuolas Tubelis (20.1 PPG) to a mere 25 points.
Following Thursday's game, the men's basketball team hosts Eastern Washington on Dec. 31 at 2 p.m. At the game, Montana State will host a New Year's Eve party with food, games, and a myriad of activities.
Season tickets and single-game tickets for all remaining home games can be found on msubobcats.info/tickets.
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