Wildcats take on Montana in Big Sky Quarterfinals Thursday

2021 BIG SKY TOURNAMENT
Weber State begins play in the 2021 Big Sky Conference Tournament this Thursday in Boise, Idaho when the No. 3 seed Weber State Wildcats take on the No. 6 Montana Grizzlies. The game at Idaho Central Arena will tipoff at 8 p.m. and will be streamed online on Pluto TV 1050 and WatchBigSky.com with Jon Oglesby and former Weber State head coach Joe Cravens on the call.
It will also be broadcast on 103.1 FM "The Wave" with Steve Klauke on the call.
   Live stats at WeberStateSports.com.

ABOUT WEBER STATE
After a wild year during a worldwide pandemic, Weber State will head to postseason play. The Wildcats finished the regular season with a 17-5 overall record and finished in a tie for second in the Big Sky standings at 12-3. Weber State is the No. 3 seed for the tournament and will take on No. 6 Montana in the quarterfinals. The Grizzlies beat No. 11 Idaho 69-64 on Wednesday in the first round.
   The Wildcats have won six-straight and 10 of the last 11 games heading into the tournament.

NATIONAL RANKINGS
   Weber State ranks high in the nation in several offensive categories. The Wildcats are third in the nation in field goal percentage, shooting 50.8 percent from the field. WSU has shot 50 percent or better 10 times this season and is a perfect 10-0 in those games. The Wildcats are also fifth in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage at 39.3 percent.
   In addition, the Wildcats rank 10th in the country in scoring offense at 82.1 points per game, 10th in free throw percentage at 78.5 percent and 13th in scoring margin at +13.3.

ISIAH BROWN EARNS FIRST-TEAM HONORS AND NAMED NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
   Weber State senior Isiah Brown has been named to the All-Big Sky first team and has been honored as the conference newcomer of the year. He is one of five players named to the all-conference first team and is just the eighth player in Weber State history to be named the Big Sky Newcomer of the Year.
   The Seattle native joined WSU in the summer of 2020 as a senior transfer and made an immediate impact. He started all 22 games during the regular season and ranks third in the Big Sky in scoring at 18 points per game. He scored in double figures in all but one game and reached 20 or more points seven times. Brown also is fourth in the league in field goal percentage, fifth in free throw percentage and ninth in assists and 10th in steals.

SECOND TEAM HONORS FOR SEIKOU SISOHO JAWARA
   Another Wildcat also earned All-Big Sky honors as sophomore Seikou Sisoho Jawara was named to the second team. He transferred to WSU last summer from Loyola Marymount. The sophomore from Mataro, Spain, has started all 22 games for the Wildcats this season and scored in double figures 13 times. He averaged 12 points per game during the regular season and shot 50 percent from the field, including 41 percent from 3-point range. He also ranks seventh in the conference in assists at 3.2 per game.

DILLON JONES NAMED BIG SKY FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
   Weber State freshman Dillon Jones was honored as the Big Sky Conference Freshman of the Year. The only freshman on the Wildcat roster this season, Jones became the sixth player in WSU history to be named the Big Sky Freshman of the Year.
   He has played in all 22 games for the Wildcats and averaged 8.0 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, while shooting 57 percent from the field. He scored in double figures nine times, including six of the last seven games and had a career-high 18 points in the final regular season game of the year against Northern Colorado.
   The Columbia, South Carolina native, finished the regular season ranked second in the Big Sky in steals at 1.5 per game, ninth in rebounds and 11th in free throw percentage.

SEASON TRENDS
   So far this season, the Wildcats are 17-1 when leading their opponent in field goal percentage and 0-4 when trailing. The 'Cats are also 11-1 when leading in rebounding and 12-1 when leading in assists.
   Weber State is 13-0 this season when scoring 80 or more points and just 4-5 when scoring less than 80. In the 15 years under coach Randy Rahe, Weber State is 137-9 when scoring 80 or more points in a game. WSU is also 10-0 this season when holding opponents under 70 points and 7-5 when opponents score 70 or more. The 'Cats are also 14-0 when leading at halftime and 11-2 when leading in blocked shots.

2021 BIG SKY TOURNAMENT
For the third-straight year, the Big Sky Tournament will be held in Boise, Idaho at the newly named Idaho Central Arena. All games except the championship game will be on Pluto TV 1050. The championship game will be on ESPNU.

WEBER STATE BIG SKY TOURNAMENT HISTORY
   This week marks the 46th Big Sky Conference postseason tournament. Weber State has participated in 44 of the 46 tournaments, the most of any team in conference history. The Wildcats have won the postseason tournament 10 times, the second most in conference history and have advanced to the championship 17 times.
   WSU is 47-33 all-time in the tournament and is 33-10 in its first game of the tournament.

ABOUT MONTANA
   Montana is 14-12 overall and the Grizzlies finished sixth in the Big Sky standings at 7-9. They opened the Big Sky Tournament with a 69-64 win over No. 11 Idaho on Wednesday and have now won five-straight games.
   Montana ranks eighth in the nation in free throw percentage at 78.9 percent. Kyle Owens leads the team in scoring at 10.8 points per game and earned honorable mention All-Big Sky honors. Cameron Parker is first in the conference in assists at 4.9 per game and Robby Beasley leads the league in free throw percentage.

SERIES AND BIG SKY TOURNAMENT HISTORY
   Weber State and Montana have met 134 times all-time with WSU holding a 72-62 series lead. This will be the 16th all-time meeting between the two schools in the Big Sky Tournament and will mark the eighth time in the last 12 conference tournaments that the two teams have faced each other. Montana is 6-9 all-time in the tournament against WSU.

Wildcats take on Montana in Big Sky Quarterfinals Thursday

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Players Mentioned

Isiah Brown

Dillon Jones

Seikou Sisoho Jawara

Weber State University Athletics