Bobcat basketball returns to the Brick

The MSU Women’s Basketball Team had their first ever sell-out game in the history of the program on Nov. 6 in what was their 2018-19 season opener. The Cats took on cross-state competitor Carroll College for an afternoon game. Only trailing by six at the half, the Saints hung tough through the first two quarters. During the second half, the Cats found their stride and blew the score open, resulting in a 64-48 victory to start the season. The Bobcats shot a cool 46.3 percent from the field during the contest. Transfer senior Claire Lundberg led the way for MSU with an impressive 25 points.

The Bobcats will play again Friday, Nov. 9 at 6 p.m. against Marquette, a preseason top-25 team, in the Preseason Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) in Milwaukee. The WNIT website states that, “Teams are selected for the Preseason WNIT based on their program’s expected success for that season, their relevant past, their conference standings, fan base and geographical location, to name a few criteria.” The event consists of 16 Division I women’s basketball programs around the country, including teams such as Auburn, Miami, and New Mexico.

The men’s basketball team opened their season on Nov. 6 as well. They squared off against Utah State, a Mountain West Conference team. Both the Bobcat and Aggie offenses started off the game flat, with only a combined 16 points scored in the first five minutes of play. While the Aggies were able to break the scoring slump, unfortunately the Cats were not. Over the course of the game the Cats shot a mere 37.7 percent from the field, compared to the Aggies 49.3. The final score ended in a 101-71 Bobcat defeat. Junior guard Sam Merrill of Utah State proved to be a problem all night for the Bobcats as he dropped a remarkable 37 points. MSU’s senior guard Tyler Hall led the Cats scoring with 15 points, a far cry from his 23.6 ppg average two years ago. Next, the Cats travel to battle Indiana on Friday, Nov. 9 at 6 p.m. They will return home on Sunday, Nov. 7 at 7 p.m. to take on Presentation.