Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
Montana State
Wildcats and Bobcats in Big Sky Semifinals Friday
3/11/2022 8:38:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Weber State will take on No. 1 seed Montana State Friday at 5:30 p.m. in the semifinals of the Big Sky Tournament.
• After a quarterfinal win, it's on to the semifinals for the Weber State men's basketball team as the Wildcats take on No. 1 seed Montana State on Friday. The Wildcats and Bobcats will tipoff at 5:30 p.m. Friday from Idaho Central Arena in Boise, Idaho. The game will be televised on ESPN+ and the ESPN app with Tony Parks and former Wildcat head coach Joe Cravens on the call. Steve Klauke will have the call on the WSU radio broadcast on 103.1 FM "The Wave". Live stats at WeberStateSports.com.
• The Wildcats are 21-11 and coming off a 68-56 win over longtime rival Montana in the quarterfinals of the tournament Thursday in Boise. Weber State shot 54 percent from the field and held Montana to 41 percent shooting. The Wildcats also outrebounded the Grizzlies 27-22 and forced 16 Montana turnovers.
• Weber State finished the Big Sky season at 13-7, tied for third in the league standings. The Wildcats earned the No. 4 seed in the tournament.
• Montana State is 25-7 overall and is the No. 1 seed in the tournament after winning the Big Sky regular season title for the first time in 20 years with a 16-4 conference record. The Bobcats opened the conference tournament with an 83-61 win over Sacramento State in the quarterfinals Thursday. MSU's Jubrile Belo is the Big Sky MVP and Defensive Player of the Year and Danny Sprinkle is the Coach of the Year.
• This is first meeting between the two schools in the Big Sky Tournament since 2009. This is the 12th time in 16 years under coach Randy Rahe that the Wildcats have advanced to the semifinals of the Big Sky Tournament and the first time since 2019.
• The two teams split the season series this year with each team winning at on the road. The Wildcats won 85-75 on December 30 in Bozeman and the Bobcats won 78-57 on February 5 in Ogden. In the game in Bozeman, Weber State shot 50 percent from the field and held the Bobcats to 37 percent. WSU knocked down 12 3-pointers, and held MSU to just three 3-pointers. Koby McEwen had 31 points and made five 3-pointers. In the game in Ogden, the Bobcats shot 54 percent, compared to 36 percent for the Wildcats and the Bobcats won the rebounding margin 38-24.
• Three Wildcats earned All-Big Sky honors, the league announced Tuesday. Senior transfer Koby McEwen was named the Big Sky Newcomer of the Year and earned first-team honors. Freshman Dillon Jones earned second-team honors and Seikou Sisoho Jawara was named to the third team.
• Dillon Jones was named to an all-conference team for the first time in his career after earning Big Sky Freshman of the Year honors last year. In Thursday's game, Jones led the Wildcats with 23 points and pulled down 11 rebounds for his 17th double-double of the season. He is now tied for eighth-most in the nation in double-doubles. He is also seventh in the country in rebounding at 10.6 per game. Jones has 341 rebounds this season, which currently ranks as the seventh-most in a season in Weber State history. Jones also ranks third in the Big Sky in steals and fifth in minutes played.
• Koby McEwen is the second-straight Wildcat to earn Big Sky Newcomer of the Year honors and he was a unanimous selection for Newcomer and first-team honors. McEwen is the ninth player in Weber State history to be named Big Sky Newcomer of the Year, including Isiah Brown who earned the honor last season. McEwen has scored in double figures in all but one game this season and has reached 20 or more points 13 times and 30 or more three times. McEwen ranks fourth in the Big Sky in scoring at 18.2 points per game. He is also fourth in the league in free throw percentage, sixth in field goal percentage, and seventh in steals. He is sixth in the nation in free throws made with 164, which is the now the 10th most in season in WSU history.
• This is the second-straight year earning All-Big Sky honors for sophomore Seikou Sisoho Jawara, who earned second-team honors last season. Sisoho Jawara is second on the Wildcat team in scoring at 12.3 points per game. He has started all 32 games and has scored in double figures 17 times. He is also fourth in the conference in 3-point field goal percentage and 10th in assists.
• Weber State is eighth in the country in free throws made and 16th in attempts.
• Weber State has reached 20 wins again this season, marking the eighth time in 16 years under Randy Rahe the Wildcats have won at least 20 games in a season, and the first since 2017-18. Senior Michal Kozak broke the WSU school record for career games played and has now played in 134 career games.
• In Thursday's win, the Wildcats improved to 20-0 when leading their opponent in field goal percentage and are 1-11 when trailing. The Wildcats are also 14-0 when shooting 50 percent or better from the field. WSU is also 14-1 when leading its opponent in 3-point field goal percentage. Weber State is 16-3 when leading at halftime and the Wildcats are 13-1 when scoring 80 or more points in a game. The 'Cats also improved to 102-5 under coach Randy Rahe when holding their opponents under 60 points.
• For the fourth-straight year, the Big Sky Tournament is being held in Boise, Idaho at the Idaho Central Arena. All games except the championship game will be on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. The championship game will be on ESPNU and not on ESPN+. You must be a subscriber to ESPNU to watch the championship game.
Wednesday, March 9 (First Round)
#8 Sacramento State 57, #9 Idaho 54
#7 Portland State 66, vs. #10 Idaho State 52
#6 Eastern Washington 78, #11 Northern Arizona 75
Thursday, March 10 (Quarterfinals)
#1 Montana State 83, #8 Sacramento State 61
#4 Weber State 68, #5 Montana 56
#7 Portland State 77, #2 Southern Utah 65
#3 Northern Colorado 68, #6 Eastern Washington 67
Friday, March 11 (Semifinals)
#1 Montana State vs. #4 Weber State 5:30 p.m. ESPN+
#3 Northern Colorado vs. #7 Portland State 8 p.m. ESPN+
Saturday, March 12 (Championship)
Championship game 6 p.m. ESPNU
• This week marks the 47th Big Sky Conference postseason tournament and Weber State has participated in 45 of the 47 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 48-33 all-time in the tournament and is 34-10 in its first game of the tournament.
• This will be the 128th all-time meeting between the two schools with Weber State holding a 88-39 all-time series lead. The 88 wins is the most by Weber State against any opponent in its history. The Wildcats are 5-3 all-time against MSU in the Big Sky Tournament with the last game coming in 2009.
• The winner of Friday's game will play for the Big Sky Championship against the winner of No. 3 Northern Colorado and No. 7 Portland State. The championship game will be Saturday at 6 p.m. on ESPNU.
