Griz take winning streak on the road

The Montana men's basketball team will take a four-game winning streak on the road with them as they head to St. Paul, Minn. for the final game of the Big Sky-Summit Challenge. The Grizzlies play against St. Thomas at 1:00 p.m. (MT) on Saturday.

The 6-3 start to the season for Montana matches its best since the 2018-19 Big Sky Championship team also started 6-3. This year's team has won all six of its home games, but is still searching for the first road win.

This will be game number four on the road. The first three came against teams that are a combined 24-0. This won't be the same level, but the Tommies have started the season incredibly well.

St. Thomas is ranked 103^rd in the latest NCAA NET Rankings having defeated Northern Colorado on Wednesday night. The Tommies are 2-0 against Big Sky opponents this year having also defeated Portland State 91-65 in a neutral site game on Nov. 23.

The Tommies are 3-0 at home this year and have won seven straight home games dating back to last season. This is the fourth season at the D-1 level after reclassifying from the D-III level.

Last season, they won 20 games and reached the Summit League semifinals.

This will be the second ever meeting between the two schools. Montana won the first meeting 78-59 on Nov. 17, 2022.

The Big Sky Conference went 4-5 against the Summit League on day one of the Big Sky-Summit Challenge. Montana is looking to finish off the yearly event perfect for the second straight time.

Last season, the Grizzlies defeated North Dakota State on the road and South Dakota at home.

The game will not be available on its normal radio channel as Montana football's playoff game against South Dakota State will be live on KGVO. The game can be heard on the Varsity Network with Ace Sauerwein on the call.

SCORCHING START
Montana typically loads the schedule with difficult games in the first month, and this year is no exception. The three road games Montana has played are against undefeated teams that are still within the top 21 in the NET Rankings. The schedule is the 11^th strongest, according to the NET.

The Grizzlies have handled business at home, however, starting the year with six straight home wins. It's the most home wins to open a year since going 12-0 to start the home slate in 2021-22.

Overall, the 6-3 start matches the best open to a season under DeCuire. The 2018-19 team also started 6-3 before finishing the season 26-9 and Big Sky Champions.

If Montana were to win on Saturday, the 7-3 start would be the best for the program since the 2005-06 team. That year, the Grizzlies opened the year 9-1. They went on to finish 24-7, conference champions, and the last Big Sky team to win an NCAA Tournament game.

BIG SKY-SUMMIT CHALLENGE
This is the final day of the Big Sky-Summit Challenge. The series is tied at 10.5-10.5 heading into Saturday's contests. The men's teams in the league went 4-5 on the first day, picking up two road wins to get 5.0 overall challenge points.

Montana won their home contest to improve to 3-0 in the contest over the last two years. Montana State, Eastern Washington, and Idaho also picked up wins on Wednesday night. The Big Sky's women's teams were 5-4 on Wednesday.

SCOUTING ST. THOMAS (6-4)

The Tommies have won two straight games entering Saturday's contest, most recently defeating Northern Colorado on the first night of the Big Sky-Summit Challenge.
Head coach John Tauer is in his 14^th season at St. Thomas, guiding them from D-III power to D-I contender. He has won 273 total games while leading the Tommies, 55 of which have come at the D-I level.
St. Thomas won 20 games last year, going 9-7 in Summit League play to get the No. 4 seed at the conference tournament. They were eliminated in the semifinals by eventual champion South Dakota State.
They play fast and like to score the ball, averaging 83.9 points per game. The Tommies have made 106 three-pointers through 10 games, connecting on 39.1 percent of their attempts.
They have a 57.5 effective field goal percentage, which ranks 23^rd in the NCAA this season. They are also in the top 60 in three-point, two-point, and free throw percentages.
The bench unit is used frequently as they rank 39^th in the NCAA in bench minutes, according to KenPom. They average 34.0 points per game off the bench, the 20^th most in the NCAA.
The scoring has been balanced for the Tommies. They have 9 players that have appeared in all 10 games, and they all average between 4.8 and 13.1 points per game.
Miles Barnstable is the leading scorer on the team at 13.1 points per game. He's made 19 three-pointers, second most on the roster, and is a 90.0 percent free throw shooter.
Kendal Blue averages 10.8 points per game and is the team's leading rebounder at 4.4 per game.

MONTANA NOTES

The Grizzlies have started the season 6-3 for just the second time under head coach Travis DeCuire. A win on Saturday would match the best 10-game start for Montana since the 2005-06 season (9-1).
Montana moved up 18 spots in the latest NET Rankings to 137. Montana is still the 3^rd ranked team in the Big Sky behind Montana St. (111) and Northern Colorado (133).
Malik Moore has led Montana in scoring in back-to-back games. Since entering the starting lineup, Moore is averaging 13.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.
Montana outscored South Dakota State 19-0 in transition on Wednesday night. It's the most fastbreak points this season for the Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies used the same starting lineup for the third straight game on Wednesday. The unit of Williams, Whitney, Moore, Pridgen, and Sawyer is 3-0 this season.
The Grizzlies are 6-0 when holding opponents under 45.0 percent shooting.
Montana is 9-47 on the road in non-conference games under DeCuire. The Grizzlies have started this season 0-3, but they have played three teams that rank in the top 21 of the NCAA NET Rankings.
Inside the arc, Montana is making 57.4 percent of its shot attempts, which is the 59^th best mark in the country. The Griz have struggled from three-point range, however, making just 28.2 percent of their tries to rank 340^th. They also barely crack the top 300 in threes made per game with 6.6.
The defense has limited opponents to just 26.8 percent shooting from three-point range, the top mark among Big Sky teams and the 20^th best in the country. Montana's three-point defense will need to be locked in against a St. Thomas team that makes 10.6 per game on 39.1 percent shooting.

GRIZ ON ESPN2
Montana's regular season finale against Eastern Washington has been picked up by ESPN2 and will be aired on the national network. The game tips off at 9:00 PM (MT). It features the Big Sky's two winningest teams of the last decade in the Griz and Eagles.

This is the first time that Montana has been on a primary ESPN channel since the 2022 Brawl of the Wild game in Missoula.

JOE PRIDGEN

Pridgen has led Montana in rebounding in six straight games and eight of the nine total games this season. He's been the top Grizzly rebounder in every D-1 game.
He's reached at least eight rebounds in six of Montana's nine games this year, and is averaging 8.1 on the season.
His 73 total rebounds rank 43^rd in the country and second in the Big Sky.
Pridgen is now Montana's leading scorer on the year at 13.3 points per game. He's shooting 64.9 percent from the floor, which ranks 20^th in the NCAA and leads the Big Sky.
He has shot at least 50 percent from the floor in eight of Montana's nine games this season.
Pridgen also leads Montana in blocks and steals. His 13 steals are 9^th in the league and his 8 blocks rank 5^th in the Big Sky.
He's had at least one steal in seven different games this season.
Pridgen was named the MVP of the Stew Morrill Classic this year, averaging 17.3 points and 8.7 rebounds across Montana's three wins. He was also named the Big Sky Player of the Week following his performance.

BRANDON WHITNEY

Whitney scored in double figures for the third consecutive game on Wednesday. He's now up to 8.3 points per game on the season in his quest for five straight seasons of 10.0+ points per game.
He's played at least 30 minutes in five straight games and leads the Grizzlies with 31.6 minutes per game. He's averaging the second-most minutes of any Big Sky player.
The 5^th year guard moved into a tie with Marc Glass for 7^th in program history in career assists with 369. He needs four more to pass NBA All-Star Michael Ray Richardson on the all-time list.

GRIZ TRENDS

Money Williams has scored at least eight points in eight straight games.
Malik Moore is averaging 19.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game over the last two contests, making 6-of-16 (.375) three-pointers.
Amari Jedkins scored four points on Wednesday, reaching that total for the third time this season.
Austin Patterson went 3-for-5 from three-point range on Wednesday, matching his season high in makes. He's had at least one three in eight of the nine games this season.
Patterson also scored in double figures for the third time this year with 13 points against the Jackrabbits.

MILESTONES TO WATCH

Malik Moore needs 8 more points to reach 500 in his career. He's also 3 rebounds away from 150.
Kai Johnson needs 6 more assists for 250 in his career.

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Players Mentioned

Amari Jedkins

Kai Johnson

Malik Moore

Austin Patterson

Money Williams

University of Montana Athletics