Montana set for final road game of season

The Montana Grizzlies will play their final road game of the season on Monday night in Moscow, Idaho against the last-place Idaho Vandals. The Griz have won six of their previous seven games and have locked up the No. 4 seed at the Big Sky tournament, but are trying to build momentum as they head into March.

The two teams haven't met in nearly two full months as they started the league schedule off against each other back on New Year's Eve. Montana picked up the win in that game, and will look to repeat the result on Monday.

There is a bit of a mystery surrounding the close of the season for the Griz, as they await word on whether or not the postponed game against Portland State will be rescheduled. All 10 Big Sky teams will be in action on Monday and there are plenty of close races for postseason seeding. The full breakdown of whether or not Montana will play is listed below.

Montana has put together its best stretch of the season to close out league play, and is currently looking like one of the most dangerous teams in the league. They continued the stellar run with a close win over Sacramento State on Saturday night, improving to 3-3 in games decided by three or less points in league play.

The Big Sky has been remarkably tight this season with close games being played around the league every time two teams hit the court. For Montana, the confidence of pulling out victories in these close games has been building. Sacramento State was just the latest example. The Griz trailed 68-67 late, but made some big plays down the stretch to close out the win.

It's a team that has come together, and feels prepared to make a run at a Big Sky Conference title next week in Boise.

WEDNESDAY NIGHT SCENARIOS
Montana and Portland State may not need to play the postponed game, depending on how Monday night's games shake out. The below scenarios show whether or not a game will be needed. If it is played, the game will be held in Missoula on Wednesday, March 1 at 7:00 p.m.

GAME NEEDED

If PSU wins vs SAC AND ISU loses at UNC
If PSU loses AND UNC wins vs ISU

PSU loses vs SAC AND UNC wins vs ISU AND NAU wins vs WSU

GAME NOT NEEDED

PSU wins vs SAC AND ISU wins at UNC
PSU loses vs SAC AND ISU wins at UNC
PSU loses vs SAC AND ISU wins vs UNC AND WSU wins vs NAU
PSU loses vs SAC AND ISU wins at UNC AND NAU wins vs WSU
PSU loses vs SAC AND UNC wins vs ISU AND NAU wins vs WSU

SCOUTING IDAHO (10-20, 4-13 Big Sky)

The Vandals enter the final game of the season in last place in the Big Sky conference at 4-13. They have lost three consecutive games with the last win coming against Northern Colorado on Feb. 16.
It has been a while since the Grizzlies have seen the Vandals on the court. The two teams played on the opening weekend of the Big Sky season, a New Year's Eve matinee won by Montana. Now, they play what could possibly be the final game of the regular season depending on results around the league.
Idaho are in the bottom three of the league in both scoring offense (68.8 points per game) and scoring defense (75.9). It leads to what is easily the worst scoring margin in the league at -7.1 across their 17 league games. The next closest is Portland State at -3.7.
A lot of the production has come from inside for Idaho. Montana should have a match-up advantage behind the arc, as the Vandals are last in the league in three-point percentage and allow their opponents to shoot the second-best percentage from the arc.
The glass could also be a key area in this game. Idaho are the only team below Montana in the league leaderboards in total rebounds per game. They average 29.4 rebounds per game and are last in the league with only 6.0 offensive rebounds.
The duo of Isaac Jones and Divant'e Moffitt are among the best pairings in the league. They are both in the top four in the conference in scoring with Jones at 19.8 points per game and Moffitt at 19.4.
Jones has been a force in the paint as well. He ranks fourth in the league in rebounding at 8.0 per game. He blocks 1.2 shots per game which is also the second best mark in league play.
He also leads the entire Big Sky in field goal percentage, connecting on 59.9 percent of his shots in conference play.
The two have great chemistry on the floor and work well in two-man sets. Moffitt is second in the Big Sky in assists as a result with 4.6 per game. He has been prone to give it away under pressure, however, as he falls all the way to seventh in the conference in assist/turnover ratio.

MONTANA'S RECENT FORM
After a trying start to the Big Sky season, Montana have completely turned things around in the back half of league play. At the midway point, the Griz were 3-6 and in seventh place in the league standings. In the second half of the season, Montana are now 6-1 and have secured the No. 4 seed at next week's Big Sky Tournament in Boise.

Thursday's game against Portland State was postponed due to travel issues as a massive snowstorm cancelled flights out of Portland. It left the Grizzlies with just one game this week, a 74-72 thriller against Sacramento State. Aanen Moody continued his stellar run of play to lead four Grizzlies in double-figures in the win.

FRESH START FEBRUARY
The Grizzlies have been a new team in February, going 5-1 so far with one game to play. It's the most wins in a single calendar month all year for Montana, and has turned the season around. The emergence of Aanen Moody has been a key aspect, as the guard has scored 20-plus points in five of the six games. He is also 21-of-36 (58.3 percent) from the three-point line this month.

BEYOND THE ARC
The three-point line has been a crucial component to Montana's successful run over the last month. The Grizzlies have been very good from the arc on both sides of the ball, leading the Big Sky in three-point percentage (39.6) with the second-most makes per game (8.7) in league play. On the defensive side, the Griz allow the third-lowest percentage (33.0) in the league.

In addition to leading the league, the Grizzlies also rank in the top 55 nationally in a couple of categories based on season-long stats. They are 26th in the nation in three-point percentage (37.5) and 62nd in three-point percentage defense (31.8).

MONTANA'S MAGIC NUMBER
The 67-point mark has been a significant number for Montana men's basketball this year. The Grizzlies allow 67.4 points per game this year to rank as the fourth-best defense in the Big Sky, and holding teams under that number has been crucial to winning.

The race to 67 is typically a telling factor in the outcome of Griz games. The first team to 67 has won 13 of 14 league games this year. Montana is 9-1 when beating their opponent to the number after Saturday's win against Sacramento State. They are 0-4 when the opponent reaches 67 first. There have been two games where neither side has reached 67 points, both Griz losses.

It's also a number that has appeared often. Montana held four consecutive opponents to 67 points in late January, and the Grizzlies have scored exactly 67 points on two occasions as well.

THE .500 STREAK
The Grizzlies entered the season as one of just 18 schools in the country to finish at or above .500 in 14 straight seasons. The streak appeared to be in jeopardy after the first meeting with Sacramento State when Montana dropped to 9-12, but the Griz have bounced back well. They are currently two games over .500.

The mystery of the Portland State game means Montana haven't technically guaranteed that the streak will continue, but one more win would clinch another winning record for Montana. Florida State, Louisville and Ohio State will all lose their streaks this season, which would make the Griz one of just 15 schools in the country with a 15-year streak if they can close strong.

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Players Mentioned

Aanen Moody

University of Montana Athletics