Weber State University Athletics
Weber State hosts Air Force in CIT Saturday
3/22/2013 4:52:00 PM | Men's Basketball
2013 CollegeInsider.com Tournament - Second Round
Air Force (18-13) at Weber State (27-6)
Saturday, March 23, 2013 • 7:00 p.m.
Ogden, Utah • Dee Events Center (11,500)
online video: watchcollegeinsider.com
Radio: AM 1280 “The Zone”
Live stats: WeberStateSports.com
Series: series tied 1-1
Last meeting: 02/16/76 - Ogden - WSC 82, AFA 67
QUICK HITS
• Weber State looks to make history when the Wildcats host Air Force in the second round of the CollegeInsider.com Tournament Saturday night.
• The Wildcats are 27-6 overall following Wednesday's 85-43 dominating win over Cal Poly in the first round of the CIT.
• With a victory Weber State will set a new school and Big Sky record for most wins in a season.
• Air Force is 18-13 on the season and won 69-65 at Hawaii Wednesday night in the first round of the CIT. The Falcons were 8-8 in the Mountain West.
• After seven threes Wednesday WSU senior Scott Bamforth is five three-pointers away from becoming the school's all-time leader.
• This will be just the third meeting ever between the two schools and the first in 37 years.
MEDIA INFORMATION
Saturday's CIT game will begin at 7:00 p.m. at the Dee Events Center and will be broadcast live on 1280 AM “The Zone” with Carl Arky, the 2011 Utah Sportscaster of the Year, and Dutch Belnap calling all the action. It can also be heard online at 1280thezone.com. Live stats will be at WeberStateSports.com.
The game will also be streamed online for free at watchcollegeinsider.com.
ABOUT THE COLLEGEINSIDER.COM TOURNAMENT
This is the fifth annual Collegeinsider.com Tournament (CIT), a tournament featuring 32 mid-major teams from across the country.
Second round games will be held this weekend with quarterfinals March 26-27, semifinals March 29-30 and the championship game April 2. The championship game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network. The CIT is not bracketed and uses the old NIT model where future round matchups are determined by the results of the previous rounds, maintaining regional matchups.
Weber State has the best record of any team in the CIT, including the most wins and the fewest losses. WSU also has the fourth highest RPI of any team in the tournament. This is Weber State second-straight year in the CIT.
SECOND ROUND
SATURDAY MARCH 23
Eastern Kentucky (25-9) @ Evansville (19-14) 11:30 am
Rider (19-14) @ East Carolina (19-12) 3:00 pm
Canisius (19-13) @ Youngstown State (18-15) 5:00 pm
Tulane (20-14) @ Bradley (17-16) 6:00 pm
Illinois-Chicago (18-15) @ Northern Iowa (19-14) 6:00 pm
Air Force (18-13) @ Weber State (27-6) 7:00 pm
SUNDAY MARCH 24
Kent State (21-13) @ Loyola MD (22-11) 1:00 pm
SUNDAY MARCH 24
UC Irvine (21-15) at Oral Roberts (19-14) 6:00 pm
FIRST ROUND
TUESDAY, MARCH 19
Eastern Kentucky 69, Gardner Webb 62
East Carolina 66, Savannah State 65
Rider 63, Hartford 54
Youngstown State 99, Oakland 87
Loyola MD 70, Boston University 63
Evansville 84, Tennessee State 72
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 20
Kent State 73, Fairfield 71 Canisius 69, Elon 53
Northern Iowa 77, North Dakota 66 Bradley 75, Green Bay 69
Tulane 84, South Alabama 73 Illinois-Chicago 80, Chicago St. 69
Oral Roberts 84, UT Arlington 76 Weber State 85, Cal Poly 43
UC Irvine 80, High Point 71 Air Force 69, Hawaii 65
WILDCATS ROLL TO FIRST ROUND CIT WIN Weber State never trailed in route to a dominating 85-43 win over Cal Poly Wednesday night in the first round of the CIT. The 'Cats shot 60 percent from the field and held the Mustangs to just 30 percent shooting. WSU was also 10-22 from the three-point line and 9-11 from the free throw line and had 18 assists in the game.
Weber State senior Scott Bamforth had a season-high 23 points and tied his career-high with seven three-pointers in Wednesday's blowout win over Cal Poly. Bamforth was 8-10 from the field, including 7-9 from three-point range. He also added five rebounds and four assists. It marked the fourth time this season and the 12th time in his career he has reached 20 or more points in a game. He has scored in double figures 26 times this season he has reached double figures, the most of any Wildcat.
The Albuquerque, N.M. native continues to move up the Weber State records lists. With his seven threes Bamforth moved past John Hamilton into second in Weber State history and seventh in Big Sky history in career three-pointers. He now has 242 for his career and needs just five more to pass Damian Lillard and become the school's all-time leader. His 87 three-pointers this season is the second most in a season in WSU history. Bamforth is currently 11th in scoring in school history.
He was named to the Big Sky All-Conference first team this season, earning All-Conference honors for the third time in his three years at Weber State. This season Bamforth ranks 11th in the Big Sky in scoring at 13.5 points per game, and averaged 13.9 per game in conference games. He leads the Big Sky in free throw percentage at 87.5 percent. He also ranks third in three-pointers per game and is third in the conference and fifth in the nation three-point field goal percentage.
BIG GAME FOR KYLE TRESNAK
WSU junior center Kyle Tresnak has a big game in Wednesday's win, finishing with 20 points, the fifth time this season he has reached 20 or more in a game. Tresnak was 10-11 from the field, just missing the WSU single-game record for field goal percentage of 10-10 from the field, set by Jermaine Boyette in 2001. Tresnak also added five rebounds and two blocks in the win.
The Scottsdale, Ariz., native is averaging 11.5 points and 5.4 rebounds per game this season. He ranks fourth in the Big Sky in field goal percentage at 55.6 percent and is sixth in the league in blocked shots at 1.3 per game. He now has 40 blocks on the season, the eight most in WSU single-season history. Tresnak has 800 career points in 96 career games at Weber State.
'CATS LOOK TO SET SINGLE-SEASON WIN RECORD
Weber State has tied the school and Big Sky record with 27 wins this season and one more victory will be the most wins by a team in a season in Big Sky history. The 1968-69 Weber State team coached by Phil Johnson and led by Willie Sojourner finished 27-3, the best winning percentage in school history. Idaho in 1981-82 and Montana in 1991-92 also won 27 games but the 'Cats will be the first to win 28 in a season.
The game will also tie the Big Sky record for most games played in a season at 34.
LATEST DATE EVER PLAYED
Saturday's game will be played on March 23rd which will be the latest date Weber State has ever played. Wednesday's game on March 20th tied for the latest date ever played but Saturday's game will be the first game played past March 20th.
WILDCATS BACK TO FIRST IN THE COUNTRY IN FIELD GOAL SHOOTING
After shooting 60 percent from the field in Wednesday's win, Weber State is once again the top field goal shooting team in the nation. The Wildcats are first in the country in field goal percentage at 50.8 percent. Weber State, Creighton and Gonzaga are the only teams in the nation shooting better than 50 percent.
The Wildcats also rank in the top five in the country in three other categories. WSU is second in the nation in three-point field goal percentage at 42 percent. The 'Cats are also third in the country in three-point field goal percentage defense and fifth in scoring margin.
ABOUT AIR FORCE
The United State Air Force Academy comes into Saturday's game with a 18-13 record and defeated Hawaii 69-65 Wednesday night in the first round of the CIT in Honolulu. The Falcons finished sixth in the Mountain West Conference this season with an 8-8 record. Air Force had home wins over New Mexico, UNLV and San Diego State, all teams that have been nationally ranked this season and they also defeated Boise State, an NCAA Tournament team. Air Force is making its seventh postseason appearance in school history and its second trip to the CIT in the last three years.
Weber State and Air Force had just one common opponent this season in Montana State. The Falcons beat the Bobcats 86-72 on Nov. 21 in Colorado Springs. WSU was 1-1 against Montana State this season.
Air Force is ninth in the nation in three-pointers made per game, averaging 8.6 threes a game. They knocked down 15 three-pointers in the win at Hawaii Wednesday. The Falcons are also 18th in the country in three-point field goal percentage at 38.6 percent and are 14th in the nation in assists per game.
This season Air Force had been led by senior guard Michael Lyons who earned first team Mountain West Conference honors after leading the Mountain West in scoring at 17.7 points per game. He is fourth in school history in career scoring. Lyons tore the meniscus in his right knee in the Mountain West Tournament loss to UNLV last week and will miss the rest of the season.
Mike Fitzgerald is averaging 10.2 points and 4.0 rebounds per game and Todd Fletcher is averaging 9.5 a game. Taylor Broekhuis leads the team in rebounding at 3.9 per game and is scoring 8.1 points a game.
HEAD COACH DAVE PILIPOVICH
The Falcons are coached by Dave Pilipovich who is in his first full season as head coach at Air Force. Pilipovich is the eighth head coach in the Air Force history and is in his sixth season with the Falcons. Pilipovich is 20-19 overall at Air Force. Before joining the AFA Pilipovich spent two seasons as an assistant at Michigan under Tommy Amaker. He has 25 years of coaching experience including stints as an assistant coach at Eastern Michigan, Robert Morris, Georgia State and Florida Atlantic.
This will be just the third meeting ever between the two teams and the first in 37 years. Air Force beat Weber State 56-49 in December 1974 in Colorado Springs. The Wildcats beat the Falcons 82-67 in February 1976 in Ogden. The Wildcats are 75-60 all-time in games against current members of the Mountain West Conference.
SEASON TRENDS
Weber State improved to 26-1 this season when outrebounding its opponent and is 25-2 when outshooting its opponent. The Wildcats are now 18-0 in games decided by 11 or more points and have now won four games by 30 or more points this season. WSU is 12-0 when scoring 80 or more points in a game and 20-2 when scoring 70 or more. The 'Cats are 16-0 when holding its opponents under 60 points.
The Wildcats have used the same starting lineup in all but one game this season. Jordan Richardson, Scott Bamforth, Davion Berry and Frank Otis has all started in all 33 games this season, while Kyle Tresnak has started in 32 games. Tresnak missed the Dec. 29 game against Southwest with an ankle injury, the only game WSU has not used the same starting lineup.
HOME SWEET HOME
Weber State won its 12th straight home game Wednesday night and improved to 15-1 at home this season. WSU has also won 32 of the last 33 and 39 of the last 42 games at home and has an 18-game home winning streak in Big Sky games. Over the last three seasons the Wildcats are 42-3 at the Dee Events Center. In the seven seasons under Coach Randy Rahe the Wildcats are 90-12 in home games, including a 54-4 home record in Big Sky regular season games.
The Wildcats lead the Big Sky in 11 statistical categories. WSU is first in scoring offense, scoring defense, scoring margin, field goal percentage, field goal percentage defense, three-point field goal percentage, three-point field goal percentage defense, rebounding defense, rebounding margin, assists and defensive rebounds.
Individually, Davion Berry ranks fifth in the league in scoring at 15.2 per game with Scott Bamforth 12th at 13.2. Joel Bolomboy is third in rebounding at 7.5 and is fourth in blocks at 1.9 per game. Frank Otis leads the Big Sky in field goal percentage at .628. Bamforth leads in free throw percentage at 87.6 percent and is third in the league in 3-point field goal percentage.
ANOTHER 20-WIN SEASON FOR THE WILDCATS
For the fifth time in the last seven years Weber State has won 20 or more wins. The Wildcats have now won 20 or more games in 26 of 51 seasons as a Division I school. WSU has had just eight losing seasons in 51 years of basketball.
