Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
Eastern Washington
Wildcats hit the road at Eastern Washington Thursday
2/8/2022 4:03:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Weber State is 11-2 and in first place in the Big Sky.
• Weber State returns to the road in the Big Sky for two games this week, beginning Thursday night at Eastern Washington. The Wildcats and Eagles will tipoff at 6 p.m. Pacific time (7 p.m. Mountain time) from Reese Court in Cheney, Washington. The game will be televised on ESPN+ with the Weber State radio broadcast will be on 103.1 FM "The Wave". Live stats at WeberStateSports.com.
• The Wildcats are 18-6 overall and still in first place in the Big Sky standings at 11-2. Weber State saw its eight-game winning streak snapped with a 78-57 loss to Montana State on Saturday night in Ogden.
• Eastern Washington is 11-12 overall and 5-7 in Big Sky play, currently seventh in the conference standings. The Eagles have lost four straight but have played their last five games on the road. This will be their first home game since January 22.
• Weber State and Eastern Washington met just a week and a half ago in Ogden. Weber State beat Eastern Washington 90-84 on Jan. 31, as the Wildcats shot 53 percent from the field and outrebounded the Eagles 30-28. Weber State had three players scored 20 or more points with Koby McEwen scoring 24, and JJ Overton and Seikou Sisoho Jawara each scoring 20. Dontay Bassett added 13 points and Dillon Jones had nine points and 16 rebounds.
• Saturday's game against Montana State in Ogden was Weber State's sixth game over a 13-day span. The Wildcats shot just 36 percent from the field and allowed the Bobcats to shoot 54 percent. Weber State is still first in the Big Sky and 33rd in the nation in field goal percentage at 47.5 percent. The Wildcats are 17-0 this season when outshooting their opponents and just 1-6 when shooting worse. Weber State is 11-0 this season when shooting 50 percent or better from the field.
• Senior transfer Koby McEwen continues to lead the Wildcats and ranks third in the Big Sky in scoring at 17.9 points per game. He is averaging 19.1 points per game in Big Sky games. He has scored in double figures in all but one game and has reached 20 or more nine times. McEwen is also seventh in the Big Sky in field goal percentage and ninth in 3-point percentage and 3-pointers per game. He also ranks second in the nation in free throws with 130 and is third in the country in free throw attempts with 160. He is averaging 5.4 free throws made and 6.7 free throws attempted per game this season. Earlier this year, McEwen was named to the watch list for the Lou Henson Award, given annually to the top mid-major player in the nation.
• As a team, Weber State is first in the nation in free throws made this season with 399, an average of 16.7 per game. The Wildcats are also third in the country in free throw attempts with 535, for an average of 22.3 attempts per game.
• Dillon Jones pulled down 11 rebounds in Saturday's game and has now recorded double figures in rebounds in six-straight games. He leads the Big Sky and is 10th in the country in rebounds at 10.7 per game. He also has 12 double-doubles on the year, tied for the ninth-most of any player in the nation this season. Jones is averaging 12.6 points per game and ranks fifth in the Big Sky in steals and is shooting 53.5 percent from the field.
• WSU has three of the top five players in the conference in minutes per game. Jones is third at 33.8 minutes per game, while McEwen had Seikou Sisoho Jawara are tied for fourth at 33.7 minutes per game. Sisoho Jawara is now fourth in the conference in 3-point field goal percentage at 41.7 percent.
• Eastern Washington returns home for Thursday's game after playing the last five games on the road. The Eagles are 11-12 overall and 5-7 in Big Sky play. Their last home game was on January 22 and since then they have played at Idaho State, at Montana State, at Montana, at Weber State and at Southern Utah. They have lost their last four games, including the loss in Ogden and an 84-72 loss at Southern Utah last Saturday. EWU is 4-3 at home this season. The Eagles are coached by David Riley who is in his first season as head coach, after spending 10 years as an assistant coach at Eastern Washington.
• The Eagles lead the Big Sky in 3-point percentage defense, holding opponents to 31.6 percent. They are also first in the conference and 26th in the nation in assists at 16.3 per game and rank second in the Big Sky in field goal defense, free throw percentage and rebounding. Steele Venters is fifth in the Big Sky in scoring at 16.6 per game and ranks ninth in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage at 45.5 percent.
• Weber State holds a 50-27 all-time series lead over Eastern Washington. The Weber State win last week snapped a three-game Eagle winning streak in the series. In games in Cheney, Weber State is 18-17 all-time. The last game in Cheney was a 78-69 Eastern Washington win on March 7, 2020.
• Senior forward Michal Kozak has now played in 130 career games at Weber State, which ranks for the third-most games ever played. He needs three more games to become WSU's all-time leader in games played. Kozak is also fifth in school history in career blocks with 104 and is 17th in career rebounds with 575.
• After Thursday's game, the Wildcats head to Moscow to take on the University of Idaho Saturday at 3 p.m. Mountain time. Saturday's game in Moscow will be the 500th career game for Randy Rahe as head coach at Weber State.
