Men’s basketball builds momentum with back-to-back home wins

Men’s basketball defended home court last week, picking up a 74-66 win over the Weber State University (WSU) Wildcats on Thursday, Feb. 13 and defeating the Idaho State University (ISU) Bengals 74-69 on Saturday, Feb. 15.

The pair of victories propelled the ‘Cats into the thick of the Big Sky Conference (BSC) standings, as they sit in fourth place with just four games remaining in the regular season. With the March 8 BSC Tournament looming, the wins are helping this ‘Cats squad hit their stride.

MSU faced a much different Wildcat squad than they did earlier this year on Jan 18. While WSU had their top scorer Blaise Threatt (19.2 points per game), the team was without their second and third leading scorers, Miguel Tomley (11.2 points per game) and Dyson Koehler (10.1 points per game). Threatt also leads WSU in rebounds (5.7 per game) and assists (4.2 per game) this season.

“It’s tough,” Head Coach Matt Logie said when asked about the challenge of defending a high-usage player like Threatt. “One of the things that’s hard about when you have such a focal point of your offense is sometimes the other guys aren’t in rhythm as much, and so when their opportunities come we’re able to hold some of those other guys down.”

Logie’s thinking had the Bobcats in a good position as they managed to hold Threatt to just nine points in the first half while building up a 13-point lead. The Wildcat offense sputtered throughout the first 20 minutes, shooting 34.6% from the field and 12.5% from deep compared to MSU’s 44.8% and 38.9%, respectively.

However, the ‘Cats couldn’t keep Threatt down for long and he finished with 32 points, seven rebounds and six assists in the Wildcats’ losing effort Thursday night.

The game drew close at one point in the second half, with MSU’s lead narrowing to just three points after a Threatt layup with 2:56 remaining. However, guards Jabe Mullins and Tyler Patterson made key plays to keep the Bobcats ahead for good.

“It’s always a great sign when we get in these close games, and we would have liked to keep it at a 10 or 12 [point lead] the whole time, but it just shows our growth that we can get in close games and win,” Patterson said. “That’s what it comes down to at the end of the day.”

MSU faced another defensive challenge Saturday night against ISU as the team would have to solve the puzzle of defending redshirt sophomore Dylan Darling, who leads the Bengals in points per game this season with 19.3.

ISU also averages the second most rebounds per game in the BSC and gives up the fewest to opponents per game, according to Big Sky Conference website. The Bobcats faced an even greater obstacle on the glass Saturday, as they only average the eighth most rebounds per game and have given up more than any other team in the BSC this season.

Saturday’s game started off strong for MSU with the ‘Cats racing out to an early 16-5 advantage through the first nine minutes of action.

Their fortune would not hold for long. A lead that grew as large as 14 points in favor of the ‘Cats eventually became a two-point deficit, 62-60, on a Darling three-point jumper with 4:11 remaining in the second half.

However, the Bengals would not lead again as the Bobcats maintained composure and closed the game on a 14-7 run.

Although the ‘Cats lost the battle of the boards 36-26, they equaled a season-high in blocks with a total of seven, the prior occurrence also happening against ISU on Jan 16.

During a key timeout late in the contest, forward Sam Lecholat told the team to eliminate second and third chances to score. “That’s why they got back in the game, and so that last 5:30, I was just telling the guys: just get rebounds, be physical and just keep them off the glass,” he said.

MSU will look to carry this momentum into the “Brawl of the Wild” matchup against the University of Montana on Feb. 22, hoping to avenge a seven-point defeat that took place earlier this season.

“We just gotta stay locked in and stay consistent,” Mullins said. “That game is gonna be packed and [we’ll] definitely have the advantage with the home court, so [just] staying locked in this week and not taking it easy.”

To stay up to date on men’s basketball or find information about attending games, visit its website https://msubobcats.com/sports/mens-basketball.