Griz look to snap streak against Idaho Saturday

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The good news: The Montana Grizzlies take the court against the long-time rival Idaho Vandals on Saturday with the hometown crowd behind them in Dahlberg Arena for the second of a three-game homestand.

The bad news: The Griz enter the game suffering through the first three-game losing streak the team has endured since the 2003-04 season, giving the matchup a "must-win" feel for the Griz. With only nine games to play before the league convenes in Reno for the conference championship, Montana's mettle will be tested in the coming weeks.

More good news: Montana's next test comes against an Idaho squad the Grizzlies have already beaten once this season, 70-57 in Moscow on Jan. 5.

THE GAME: The Griz seek to get back in the win column after a disappointing road trip to the west coast where lackluster defense led to losses against Portland State and Sacramento State, and a sloppy loss to Eastern Washington where the Griz were without their top two scorers.

Idaho is also looking to get back in the "W" column after suffering a 94-91 double-overtime loss to Montana State on Thursday to snap their three-game win streak over the bottom three teams on the Big Sky table.

Montana and Idaho are set to tip off at 7:05 on Fan Appreciation Night at Dahlberg Arena.

WATCH/LISTEN: Saturday's game will be televised LIVE on SWX Montana. In Missoula, SWX is available on Charter cable channel 199 in Missoula and Charter channel 503 in Billings. The game can also be seen on SWX in Spokane, Eastern Washington, and Northern Idaho. Check local cable listings to see if SWX is available in your part of the state.

Former Griz head coach Don Holst will provide the color commentary, and Carl Arky will call the play-by-play. Shaun Rainey will have sideline updates as well, including a halftime interview with Griz football head coach Bob Stitt.

Fans nationwide can watch the game via live stream at WatchBigSky.com, and the Montana Grizzlies Radio Network will provide the statewide radio broadcast featuring the "Voice of the Griz" Riley Corcoran. Live stats are available at GrizStats.com for fans who like to follow the numbers, and live Tweets are available at @UMGRIZZLIES_BB.

FUN STUFF: Fans of all ages are invited to attend the 9th Annual Montana Grizzlies Fan Appreciation Tailgate sponsored by the Grizzly Scholarship Association on Saturday from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

With a ticket to the game against Idaho, fans will be able to take part in this great event to celebrate and thank Griz nation, located in the East Auxiliary Gym of the Adams Center.

Hot dogs and chips are available to purchase for $1, and for those over the age of 21, beer will also be sold. Music, prizes, and appearances by Monte and the UM Spirit Squad will round out the festivities.

SERIES HISTORY: Idaho leads the all-time series with the Griz 86-108, dating back to the first meeting between the two schools in the 1915-16 season. Montana has a 3-2 advantage over the Vandals overall and is 1-1 in Missoula since they rejoined the Big Sky Conference in the 2014-15.

LAST MATCHUP: Montana used an early momentum boost to fend off a second half Idaho comeback, thanks-in-part to 14 points from Brandon Gfeller, and beat the Vandals 70-57 in Moscow just three weeks ago on Jan. 5.

The Griz had four players score in double figures that night, led by Ahmaad Rorie with 19. Michael Oguine also chipped in 14 along with nine rebounds, and Bobby Moorehead added 10 points.

The Vandals were without the services of junior forward Brayon Blake, at the time the Big Sky's top rebounder, and currently listed at No. 7 on the list with an average of 6.8 boards per game. Despite Blake's absence, the Vandals beat the Griz on the boards 39-31. Blake is now back for UI, scoring 20 points and pulling down six rebounds in Thursday's loss to the Cats.

IMPLICATIONS: After its string of three losses, the Griz currently sit at No. 5 in the Big Sky standings, tied with Montana State at 5-4 in league play. If the Big Sky tournament started tomorrow, UM would take the last first-round bye in Reno, giving them a second-round rematch with Portland State on Thursday, March 9, and place them on the same side of the bracket as Weber State.

Idaho would take the No. 7 seed and face No. 10 Southern Utah in the first round (with Northern Colorado not making the trip). The winner of that game would advance on to face the No. 2 seed, currently belonging to North Dakota.

GRIZ TRACKS: Seventy remains the magic number defensively for the Griz. Montana is undefeated this season when holding opponents to 70 or less. Coach Travis DeCuire said he felt the Griz played good enough defense to win in Thursday's loss to EWU. The Eagles crossed the 70-point mark with 1:51 to play, and finished with a pair of free throws from Sir Washington to score 72.

Montana is committing the fewest turnovers in the Big Sky, averaging 11.1 giveaways per game. That puts them at No. 24 nationally in holding onto possession.

The loss to EWU was the first game Montana has dropped when shooting more free throws than its opponent. The Griz went 16-for-24 from the line while EWU went 14-20. Montana is now 7-1 when outshooting its opponent at the charity stripe and 3-7 when shooting less free throws. The Eagles and Griz are No. 1 and 2, respectively, in the Big Sky in shots from the line, with the Griz making an average of 73.4 percent of their attempts. Idaho is making 70.6 percent from the line.

The Griz are 4-4 in games played on Saturdays so far this season and will look to climb above that .500 mark against Idaho. UM is 2-2 on Saturday games in Big Sky play and 2-1 on Saturday games in Dahlberg Arena.

SCOUTING IDAHO: Idaho comes to Missoula after splitting the season series with Montana State in a 94-91 2OT loss to the Bobcats on Thursday. They needed extra time to decide the winner in the first matchup between the two back on 1/7 in Moscow, with the Vandals coming out winners of that game 83-81 in OT.

The Vandals currently have the best rebounding margin in the Big Sky, pulling down nearly four more rebounds per game than its opponents with a 37.2 per-game average.

Idaho also has the league's best field goal percentage defense, holding its opponents to 40.7 percent from the floor, the No. 53 best average in the nation.

Vandal head coach Don Verlin is on the verge of a somewhat dubious milestone in Missoula. A loss for UI would put Verlin at .500 all-time in league play with a 71-71 Big Sky conference record.

ON DECK: The first round of the annual Brawl of the Wild series between Montana and Montana State goes down on Feb. 4 at Dahlberg Arena. With the Griz and Cats currently neck-and-neck at No. 5 and No. 6 on the league table, a top-five finish could potentially be on the line when the state's biggest rivalry hits the hardwood.

Montana State currently leads this year's overall Brawl of the Wild series 4-2 with 11 points still yet to be determined. Montana has won all three Brawl of the Wild series' since its inception in 2013, taking last year's contest 12-5.

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Players Mentioned

Brandon Gfeller

Bobby Moorehead

Michael Oguine

Ahmaad Rorie

University of Montana Athletics