Confident Griz set to face Gonzaga

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The Montana Grizzlies (3-3) are riding the momentum of a dominant 82-50 win over the University of San Francisco last Friday into a matchup against the Gonzaga Bulldogs (5-2), the current No. 17 team in the nation.

Tipoff at the McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane, Wash. is set for 7 p.m. MT on Tuesday, Dec. 8. The game is available to watch regionally on ROOT Sports, and locally in Spokane on KHQ. Fans can also watch online on ESPN3 and TheW.tv.

The Grizzlies battled back into the win column in a big way against USF last week following two losses on the road. Senior forward Martin Breunig and junior guard Walter Wright combined for more than half of Montana's 82 points (44), and the Griz as a whole shot a hot 54 percent from the field.

The Zags are coming off a rare home loss at the MAC, falling to the Arizona Wildcats 68-63 this past Saturday, despite 33 points from senior forward Kyle Wiltjer.

The game is the third is a series of four games against 2015 conference champions for the Griz, in one of Montana's most challenging nonconference schedules in team history. It's also the third game in a row for the Griz against a West Coast Conference opponent.

"We're confident, excited. It's another opportunity. As we've talked throughout our schedule, each game is a new opportunity that presents a new obstacle," said second year Montana head coach Travis DeCuire.

"Once again we're playing another NCAA tournament team, and the goal for us is to go out and play better basketball than we did Friday night."

Against the San Francisco Dons, Breunig was a single rebound away from his third-straight double-double. The German giant has let the Grizzlies in scoring in four of the team's six contests so far this year, with two, 28-point performances in a row against NDSU and Pepperdine, followed up by a 24 point game against USF.

Breunig now leads the Big Sky Conference in scoring, averaging 20.7 points per game and is also second in the Big Sky in rebounds, averaging 9.8, living up to his preseason all-conference selection.

With a 20 point, seven assist performance against USF, Walter Wright provided the spark the Grizzlies had been seeking in a second shooter. He now enters the Big Sky's top 30 scorers list with a 10.5 point per game average.

The Grizzly defense has held opponents to just over 64 points per game, the third-best in the Big Sky Conference so far this season.

SERIES HISTORY: Two former Big Sky opponents, the Griz and Zags have deep shared history, but haven't faced each other since 2007, when the Wayne Tinkle led Griz fell to the Zags 77-54 in Spokane. Montana leads the all-time series with Gonzaga however, 86-63.

SCOUTING THE ZAGS: Kyle Wiltjer and Domantas Sabonis have been lethal for GU, combining for 51 points against Arizona, including all of the Zags' first 26 points.

Wiltjer is averaging more than 21 points per game, followed by Sabonis with just over 14. Josh Perkins is averaging just shy of 10 per game, but on the flip side is shooting .434 from the field and nearly 40 percent from the three point line.

The battle of the boards will be a key for the Griz, with the 6-11, 240 pound Sabonis averaging a team-best 10.4 rebounds per game as well for GU, including a career high 16 against the Wildcats. Martin Breunig is right there with Sabonis though, averaging 9.8 boards per game this season.

The Zags also bring a pair of talented ball handlers to the court in senior guard Kyle Dranginis who has dished out 30 assists this season, followed by freshman guard Josh Perkins who has 24.

NEXT UP: The tough Grizzly nonconference season continues in Seattle as Montana faces the Washington Huskies of the Pac-12 on December 12.

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Players Mentioned

Martin Breunig

Walter Wright

University of Montana Athletics