Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
at Sacramento State
Wildcats Win Big Sky Opener 80-65 at Sacramento State
12/6/2009 5:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
A big second half lifted Weber State to an 80-65 win at Sacramento State Saturday night in the Big Sky Conference opener for both teams. The Wildcats improved to 3-4 on the season with their second-straight win.
WSU trailed 32-30 at halftime and the Hornets led again at 45-42 with 13:52 to play. That's when the Wildcats went on a 10-0 run over the next four minutes. They totaled a 17-5 run and took a 59-48 lead with 6:26 to play. The Hornets would not get closer than eight points the rest of the way. The 'Cats outscored Sacramento State 50-33 in the second half.
The Wildcats were led once again by sophomore point guard Damian Lillard who finished with a game-high 27 points. Lillard was 8-16 from the field, including three three-pointers and was 8-9 from the free throw line.
The Oakland, California native has now scored 20 or more points in five of WSU's seven games this season, including each of the last four games. He leads the Big Sky in scoring at 21.7 points per game.
Senior Nick Hansen added a season-high 17 points for the Wildcats, including knocking down three three-pointers.
Another of the stars for the Wildcats was junior Franklin Session who had five season and career-highs in the win. He scored 14 points and grabbed 18 rebounds in the contest. The 18 boards is the most by a Wildcat this season and the second most by any player in the Big Sky this year. Seven of those 18 rebounds came on the offensive end. Session also had team-highs of six assists and four steals, while playing 36 minutes, including the entire second half.
Weber State shot 40 percent from the field and was 19-23 from the free throw line and out-rebounded the Hornets 42-37. For the second straight game the 'Cats committed less than ten turnovers as they posted just seven on the night.
"We responded well to being down early and bounced back in the second half," said WSU head coach Randy Rahe. "We had a lot of energy and I was pleased with our effort in the second half. It was a team win and good to get that first conference road victory."
The win was WSU's tenth straight Big Sky road victory. The 'Cats were a perfect 8-0 away from home in conference games last season.
The Wildcats will now return home and back to non-conference action. WSU will host Montana Tech next Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at the Dee Events Center. The 'Cats will also take on Southern Utah next Saturday before hitting the road for four straight away from home.
