Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
Northern Colorado
Big Sky opener Thursday night against Bears
12/27/2022 11:46:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Weber State will open conference play with five of the first seven games at home.
• The non-conference season is over and it's time for Big Sky play. The Weber State Wildcats open Big Sky Conference action on Thursday night with a home game against Northern Colorado. The Wildcats and Bears will tipoff at 7 p.m. at the Dee Events Center in the first of 18 regular season conference games. The game will be televised on ESPN+ with Tony Parks and former Weber State head coach Joe Cravens on the call. WSU radio coverage with Steve Klauke and former Wildcat standout and Big Sky MVP David Patten will be on 103.1 FM "The Wave".
• Weber State concluded the non-conference season last Thursday with a 63-57 loss at BYU. The Wildcats finished at 5-8 and won three of their final four games, including a win at Utah State.
• Northern Colorado finished the non-conference season at 5-7, including a win over Colorado State. The Bears have two of the top four individual scorers in the Big Sky.
• After leading the nation for much of the year, Weber State currently ranks third in the country in free throw percentage at 80.5 percent. The Wildcats have shot 80 percent or better from the line eight ties and have shot 90 percent or better three times.
• Dillon Jones, a preseason All-Big Sky selection, has led the Wildcats in scoring six times this season and has led the team in rebounding 11 times. Jones is 13th in the Big Sky in scoring at 14.4 points per game and ranks second in rebounding at 9.1 per game. He is also seventh in the conference in assists at 3.5 per game, and second in steals at 1.5. Jones scored 18 points in Thursday's game at BYU. He has six double-doubles this season, 10th most in the nation, and ranks fourth in the country in defensive rebounds at 8.5 per game. Jones ranks in a tie for 14th in career rebounding with 592 and needs eight more to become the 14th player in WSU history with 600 career rebounds.
• Steven Verplancken Jr. is Weber State's second-leading scorer at 12 points per game and his shooting 46 percent from 3-point range. Verplancken has scored in double figures in nine of 13 games and has made 30 3-pointers. Thursday's game against Northern Colorado will be the 100th career-game for Verplancken who played at Division II Glenville and Southern Illinois, before transferring to Weber State. He is the only player to start all 13 games for the Wildcats this season.
• KJ Cunningham has started the last two games after Keith Dinwiddie has not played with an ankle injury. Cunningham scored a career-high 11 points with three 3-pointers in the win at Utah State and added eight points at BYU. Cunningham is averaging 6.4 points and 1.5 assists per game and has played in 88 career games at Weber State.
• Weber State has made 10 or more 3-pointers four times this season, including three of the last four games. For the season, the 'Cats are 8th in the conference in 3-pointers per game at 7.4.
• The Wildcats are being outscored by an average of more than five points in the first half, but outscoring their opponents by an average of more than three points in the second half. Through 13 games, Weber State is being outscored an average of 35.8 to 30.4 in the first half, but is outscoring its opponents 36.1 to 32.8 in the second half. The Wildcats are 3-0 when leading at halftime this season and 1-8 when trailing at halftime.
• Weber State is led by new head coach Eric Duft who was named the 10th head coach in Weber State history in May. Duft replaced Randy Rahe who retired after 16 seasons as the head coach as the Big Sky Conference's all-time leader in career wins and led the Wildcats to five Big Sky titles and three trips to the NCAA Tournament. Duft spent all 16 seasons as an assistant coach under Rahe.
• Northern Colorado started the season 1-4, including two games against top five teams in the nation in Houston and Baylor. They then won four of their next five games, including a 88-83 win at Colorado State. Northern Colorado leads the Big Sky in 3-pointers per game at 9.1. They are also second in the conference in 3-point percentage and third in free throw percentage. UNC is 10th in the league in scoring defense, scoring margin and field goal percentage defense. The Bears have two of the top four scorers in the Big Sky so far this season. Dalton Knecht and Daylen Kountz both rank in a tie for third in scoring at 17.8 points per game.
• Northern Colorado is coached by Steve Smiley who is in his third season as head coach at Northern Colorado. He is 38-34 overall and 19-15 in Big Sky games at UNC and led the Bears to a third-place finish last season and a trip to the semifinals of the CBI Tournament. Smiley spent two seasons (2014-16) as an assistant coach at Weber State, alongside Eric Duft, under Randy Rahe and helped lead the Wildcats to the 2016 Big Sky title and a trip to the NCAA Tournament.
• The Wildcats hold a 22-10 series lead over Northern Colorado, all coming since UNC joined the Big Sky in 2006. The Bears have won four of the last six meetings against the Wildcats. In games in Ogden, Weber State is 14-2 all-time but Northern Colorado has won two of the last three games at the Dee Events Center, including an 83-79 overtime win last season in Ogden.
• After playing 10 of the first 13 games on the road, Weber State will begin Big Sky play with five of the first seven games at home, including three-straight.
• The Wildcats will continue the homestand hosting Northern Arizona in a New Year's Eve afternoon game on Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Dee Events Center. Weber State will open the new year on January 7 against Idaho State.
