Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
Montana
Wildcats open 2022 with New Year's Day game at Montana
12/31/2021 12:06:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Weber State is coming off a road win at Montana State Thursday. Wildcats and Grizzlies will play Saturday at 7 p.m. in Missoula on ESPN+.
• Fresh off a win to close out 2021, Weber State will ring in 2022 with a road game at Big Sky rival Montana Saturday night in Missoula. The Wildcats and Grizzlies will tipoff at 7 p.m. at Dahlberg Arena. The game will be televised on ESPN+ with WSU radio coverage on 103.1 FM "The Wave".
• The Wildcats are 10-4 overall and 3-0 in Big Sky play, following an 85-75 win at Montana State Thursday night in Bozeman, that snapped a three-game losing streak for Weber State. WSU shot 50 percent from the field and was 8 of 12 from 3-point range in the win. Weber State was also 29 of 38 from the free throw line. The 'Cats are fourth in the nation in free throws made and fifth in free throws attempted.
• Montana is 9-5 overall and 2-1 in Big Sky play following a 78-54 win over Idaho State Thursday night. The Grizzlies lead the Big Sky in scoring defense, scoring margin, free throw percentage and turnover margin. They are fifth in the nation in free throw percentage and ninth in turnovers per game.
• Senior transfer Koby McEwen had a WSU career-high 31 points with five 3-pointers in Thursday's win. McEwen was 9 of 15 from the field, including 5 of 7 from 3-point range and 8 of 10 from the free throw line. He also added four rebounds, three steals and two assists in 38 minutes. McEwen, a transfer from Utah State and Marquette, has scored in double figures in 13 of 14 games this season and has reached 20 or more points four times. He ranks fourth in the Big Sky in scoring at 17 points per game and is sixth in field goal percentage, sixth in 3-pointers per game and ninth in 3-point percentage.
• Dillon Jones added 19 points and a team-high six rebounds on Thursday. He leads the Big Sky and ranks 16th in the nation in rebounding at 10.1 per game. Jones is also shooting 57 percent from the field and has eight double-doubles on the year, which is tied for the fifth most of any player in the country.
• This will be the 136th meeting between the two schools and Weber State has played Montana more than any opponent in its history. The Wildcats lead the series 72-63 all-time but Montana has won four straight and nine of the last 10 games, including all three meetings last year, two in Missoula and one at the Big Sky Tournament in Boise. In games in Missoula, Montana is 40-24 and has won five straight.
• This is just the fourth game ever for Weber State on New Year's Day with the last game in 2015.
• After Saturday, WSU will have just one game next week, playing at Idaho State on Saturday, Jan. 8.
