Montana, Montana State to face twice on the hardwood this week

Thursday, January 28

Missoula, Mont.

7 PM

Montana

Montana State

Photo by: Tommy Martino

Montana, Montana State to face twice on the hardwood this week

1/26/2021 8:48:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Game Notes (PDF)Schedule Roster

By: Montana Sports Information

MONTANA VS. MONTANA STATE
Thursday / 7 p.m. / Missoula, Montana
Saturday / 2 p.m. / Bozeman, Montana

TV: SWX Montana (both games)
Stream: Pluto TV ch. 1056 (Thursday) | Pluto TV ch 1057 (Saturday)
Listen: KGVO (1290 AM, 98.3 FM) / Worldwide on TuneIn (both games)
Live Stats (Thursday) | Live Stats (Saturday)

When Montana State comes to Missoula this week, things will no doubt look different from a standard Brawl of the Wild. The fans and capacity crowds are part of what make the Montana-Montana State series one of the best rivalries in the nation.

And that's not just us saying that; history backs up the claim.

Consider that in more than 300 all-time meetings, the rivalry has been tightly contested, with the Griz owning a 153-148 advantage.

And speaking of the longevity, the two teams will meet for the 302^nd (and 303^rd) time this week, making the Brawl of the Wild the fifth most-played series in college basketball history. Only between Oregon and Oregon State have in-state schools played each other more times than Montana-Montana State.

Over the past decade, the Griz have dominated the series. Montana has won 19 of the past 20 meetings, but it's the Bobcats who come into this week's matchups on a hot streak, winning seven consecutive games and sitting alone in first place in the Big Sky standings at 6-0.

There won't be the traditional sold-out crowds this week in Missoula and Bozeman, but the same level of passion from both schools, who are separated by just 200 miles, will still be on display.

SCOUTING MONTANA STATE

Montana State enters the week with a 9-3 record, including a spotless 6-0 mark in Big Sky Conference play. The Bobcats sit in first place, having won seven consecutive games overall and holding a perfect 4-0 record on their home court.
Four of MSU's seven wins during its winning streak have come by single digits.
After averaging 80.5 points per game through its first four games of its winning streak, MSU has been held to 63.0 points per game over the past three contests.
MSU has three players averaging double figures for scoring, led by senior guards Xavier Bishop (15.6) and Amin Adamu (15.4). Bishop is adding a team-best 40 assists and 32.7 minutes-per-game average, while Adamu paces the Bobcats with 16 steals, in addition to a .508 shooting percentage.
The tandem both average more than 16.0 points per game during league play, which puts them both in the top eight in the Big Sky. Both also rank in the top 10 in Big Sky play for steals – with Adamu ranking third (1.8 per game) – and field-goal percentage. Bishop ranks fifth for shooting (.515) and second for assists (4.3 per game).
Junior forward Jubrile Belo averages 11.7 points per game while shooting a team-best .595 from the floor. Belo is also MSU's team leader with 6.0 rebounds per game and 15 blocked shots.
Belo's 7.0 rebounding average during Big Sky games ranks fifth in the league, while his 1.5 blocked-shots-per-game average ranks second.
Belo was named the Big Sky Conference Player of the Week on Jan. 18, with Bishop earning the honor the previous week.
MSU ranks high for both offense and defense, ranking in the top 110 (top 30 percent nationally) for scoring offense (74.9 points per game) and scoring defense (67.5). In league play, the Bobcats are surrendering a league-best 62.2 points per game and own a +7.0 scoring margin (second).
Opponents struggle shooting against the Bobcats, connecting on just 39.4 percent of their shot attempts (33rd nationally).
This week's matchup features two elite defensive teams, with Montana State (.392, second) and Montana (.414, third) ranking among the Big Sky leaders for field-goal defense during conference play.
Both Montana and Montana State rank in the top 60 nationally for free-throw shooting, with both teams converting at 75 percent or better from the line.
An interesting matchup will be 3-point shooting. The Grizzlies own the best 3-point shooting percentage in the Big Sky (.391), but only make 5.4 triples per league contest (10th). Montana State owns the league's worst 3-point shooting percentage (.289), but is among the league leaders for 3-point defense (.302).
Danny Sprinkle is in his second season at his alma mater, helping the Bobcats to a 16-15 record a season ago.

SERIES VS. THE BOBCATS
Montana and Montana State will meet on the hardwood twice this week, marking the 302nd and 303rd meetings in series history. To put that history in perspective, only four other series in NCAA history have been played 300 times: Oregon/Oregon State; Oregon/Washington; Oregon State/Washington; Oregon State/Washington State. The Brawl of the Wild series dates back to 1902-03 and has been played at least once in every season since 1960. Dating back to 1912, the two teams have played at least once in all but five seasons.

Montana holds a 153-148 advantage in the series and have had dominated the series over the past decade, winning 19 of the past 20 games – the best 20-game stretch by either team in the series.
Montana State won the first nine games of the series, and into the 1930s held a 45-16 advantage. The Grizzlies took their first lead in series history in 2018.
Montana has won 10 consecutive games in the series in Missoula, last falling at home in February 2010, 73-67.
Montana is 9-1 in Bozeman over the past decade, with the only loss coming in 2017.
Travis DeCuire is 17-3 against Montana State, going 6-2 as a player and 11-1 so far as a coach.

STILL SEARCHING FOR CONSISTENCY
Montana is still looking to find consistency, splitting its third consecutive Big Sky Conference series last week, beating Sacramento State on Thursday (78-66) before falling in double overtime on Saturday (89-83). Interestingly, Montana is 0-4 in Big Sky play on Saturdays, compared to 3-1 on other days of the week.

The Grizzlies haven't lost consecutive games in roughly a month, losing at Arizona on Dec. 22 before falling to Northern Colorado 11 days later, but also haven't been able to string more than three consecutive wins together on the season.

GRIZ BITS

Montana continues to be locked in tight games, with the Grizzlies falling in double overtime last week, 89-83 to Sacramento State. Ironically, it was Montana's largest margin of defeat among its five Big Sky losses. In total, Montana's five league losses have come by an average of 2.8 points, with none by more than two possessions.
Eight of Montana's 12 Division-I games have been decided by single digits, including six of the past eight. Earlier this month vs. Northern Colorado, the two teams went more than 61 consecutive minutes, across parts of two games, without either team leading by more than two possessions.
Montana ranks 10th nationally for free-throw percentage, connecting at a .793 clip.
After using the same starting lineup in 11 consecutive games from Dec. 5-Jan. 16, Montana switched it up last week at Sacramento State, and again in the second game of the series. In total, the Grizzlies have used five different starting lineups this season.
Montana ranks 42nd nationally, allowing just 63.8 points per game – a figure that was roughly 20 spots higher last week, prior to a double-overtime contest. The Grizzlies have played 12 consecutive games without allowed more than 70 points during regulation.
Montana is 0-4 on the season when allowing its opponent to score 70 points, compared to 6-0 when holding opponents under 61 points.
Playing against the nation's fifth-best defense last week, Montana scored 78 points against Sacramento State on Thursday (Montana's season high, at the time, against a Division-I opponent, and the most the Hornets had allowed all year) before scoring 83 in a double-overtime game two days later. Sacramento State entered the game allowing just 58.3 points per game.
Sacramento State entered last week with a +4.6 turnover margin, which ranked 16th nationally. Despite that, the Grizzlies had their two lowest turnover totals of the season, giving the ball up just nine times in Thursday's win, before turning the ball over 10 times in 50 minutes on Saturday.
Montana has led at halftime in five consecutive games (3-2 record).
On the season, the Grizzles have led at halftime in 11 of 15 games (6-5 record).
Montana has out-shot its opponent in five consecutive games (3-2 record). The Grizzlies rank 81st nationally with a .462 shooting percentage.
Montana has recorded a better 3-point shooting percentage than its opponent in three consecutive games (1-2 record). The Grizzlies also rank in the top 100 nationally for 3-point shooting.
Montana has shot better than its opponent from the free-throw line in 11 of 15 games, but more importantly, the Grizzlies are getting to the line with frequency. Montana is 7-2 when shooting more free throws than its opponent, compared to 0-6 when failing to do so.
Prior to Saturday's double-overtime loss, the Grizzlies had made more free throws than its opponent in 11 consecutive games.
Montana is unbeaten when out-rebounding its opponent, but has only done so four times in 15 games (once against Division-I competition, 34 to 30 vs. Northern Arizona on Jan. 14).
Despite consistently recording fewer rebounds than its opponent, the Grizzlies have just a -0.6 rebounding margin over the past seven Division-I games dating back to Dec. 22.
In each of the past three games, Montana has built early leads behind strong first-half runs: 17-0 vs. Northern Arizona (Jan. 16); 16-0 at Sacramento State (Jan. 21); 14-0 at Sacramento State (Jan. 23).
Montana has turned the ball over more times than its opponent nine times this season, including four times in the past five games. In comparison, the Grizzlies only turned the ball over more times than their opponent six times in 31 games a season ago.
With that said, Montana averaged 9.5 turnovers per game in two games at Sacramento State last week, its two lowest totals of the season.
From 2018-20, Montana recorded fewer turnovers than its opponent in 74 of 100 contests, and posted a 77-percent winning percentage when doing so.
A Montana player has scored 20 points in three consecutive games, after a Grizzly reached that threshold just once through the season's first 12 contests. Freshman Brandon Whitney scored 22 points vs. Northern Arizona (Jan. 16), sophomore Kyle Owens scored a career-high 22 at Sacramento State (Jan. 21), and both Whitney (28) and junior Cameron Parker (20) eclipsed 20 points in the second game against the Hornets (Jan. 23).
Sophomore Kyle Owens caught fire from 3-point range against Sacramento State, connecting on five triples on just seven attempts. In four career games vs. Sacramento State, Owens has made nine 3-pointers; in the other 42 games, the sophomore has 10. Even more impressive, he has made eight 3-pointers in three games on Sacramento State's home court.
Six different Grizzlies have led Montana for scoring in a game, with none doing so more than four times.

DOWN TO THE WIRE
Six of Montana's eight Big Sky Conference games have been decided by six points or fewer, with the winning basket coming in the closing seconds or overtime. The Grizzlies have been on the losing end of five of the six tight games:

Dec. 3 at Southern Utah – Montana led for 31:35, by as many as eight points. The Grizzlies tied the game with a 3-pointer with 31 seconds to play, before losing at the free-throw line with 2.6 seconds remaining.
Dec. 5 at Southern Utah – Montana led for 20:37, by as many as 13 points. The Grizzlies tied the game with a 3-pointer with 9.7 seconds to play, before losing at the free-throw line with 1.3 seconds remaining.
Jan. 2 vs. Northern Colorado – Montana led for 7:47, by as many as five points. The Grizzlies tied the game with three free throws with 15.4 seconds to play, before losing on a layup with 1.0 seconds remaining.
Jan. 4 vs. Northern Colorado – Northern Colorado used an 8-0 run to take a 54-53 lead, but over the final 7 seconds, Montana forced two turnovers and scored four points to earn the win. Down one and needing to foul, the Grizzlies got the ball back when UNC was whistled for an in-bound violation on the pass. On Montana's in-bound pass, Josh Bannan connected on an elbow jumper to give the Grizzlies the lead with 4.9 seconds to play. Freshman Brandon Whitney then forced a steal at midcourt and made both free throws to ice the game.
Jan. 16 vs. Northern Arizona – Montana led for more than 33 minutes and by eight, 58-50, with 5:32 to play, but the Grizzlies couldn't score again. Northern Arizona closed the game on a 12-0 run, holding the Griz to 0-of-5 shooting and two turnovers.
Jan. 23 at Sacramento State – Montana overcame a 5-point deficit with under 4 minutes to play, tying the game at 65-65 with 87 seconds remaining, before Cameron Parker gave the Grizzlies a 68-65 lead with under 1 minute remaining. Sacramento State tied the game with 12 seconds on the clock, however, with Montana eventually losing in double overtime.

MONEY FROM THE LINE
Montana owns the nation's 10th-best free-throw percentage, connecting on 79.3 percent of its attempts from the charity stripe. That number is even more impressive considering the Grizzlies shot .581 during their first two games (both losses). Since then, Montana is shooting at a clip better than 80 percent.

Not only is Montana making its shots, though, it is also getting to the line at a greater frequency. The Grizzlies have made more free throws than their opponents in nine of the past 10 games, and on the season rank 42nd nationally for total free throws made; a season ago, they ranked 313th.

KEEP IT ROLLING
The COVID-19 pandemic has wiped out games on a daily basis throughout the country, and nearly no team has been immune. Except for Montana (knocks on wood). Entering the week, Montana has been able to play all of its scheduled games (and even added three competitions).

Auburn, Louisiana Tech, Mississippi State, South Alabama and Toledo are believed to be the only other schools who have also been able to play their respective seasons, so far, without interruption.

GROWING UP FAST
Montana's freshman class set a school record with 40 combined starts in 2019-20, and this year's trio is looking to eclipse that mark, already making a combined 26 starts. Montana's freshmen and sophomores account for the majority of the team's production this season, totaling more than 70 percent of the Grizzlies' minutes played and points.

STARTING THEM YOUNG
True freshmen Josh Bannan (14) and Brandon Whitney (14) have combined to accumulate 28 total starts already this season, which ranks fifth in the country. Only Kentucky, Kansas State, North Carolina and Washington State have more combined starts from true freshmen.

A season ago, Montana's trio of true freshmen (Derrick Carter-Hollinger, Kyle Owens and Josh Vazquez) started a combined 40 games – a school record.

Complete Game Notes in PDF format, including additional notes, stats, charts and player pages