Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
Idaho State
Wildcats conclude road trip at Idaho State Saturday night
2/23/2024 10:25:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Weber State has won six straight games and is tied for third in the Big Sky standings with four games remaining.
• Riding a six-game winning streak, the Weber State men's basketball team concludes its three-game road trip on Saturday night at Idaho State.
• The Wildcats and Bengals will tipoff at 6 p.m. from Reed Gym in Pocatello. The game will be televised on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Weber State radio coverage with Steve Klauke will be on 103.1 FM "The Wave". Live stats at WeberStateSports.com and the Weber State Wildcats app.
• Weber State has just one game this week. The Wildcats won their sixth straight game last Saturday with a 90-84 win at league-leading Eastern Washington. WSU is 18-9 overall and sits in a tie for third in the Big Sky at 9-5 with four conference games remaining.
Idaho State is 11-16 overall and 6-8 in conference play, tied for seventh in the league standings.
• Idaho State is the last team to beat Weber State. The Bengals beat the Wildcats 74-64 on January 27 in Ogden. WSU has won six straight since that loss.
• Wildcat standout Dillon Jones was named Big Sky Player of the Week for the seventh time this season and the 15th time in his career. He was also named the Lou Henson Mid-Major National Player of the Week. He averaged 29.5 points, 8.5 assists, and 7.0 rebounds per game in two road wins and shot 51 percent from the field and was 17 of 19 from the free throw line. Jones had 29 points, nine assists, and six rebounds in the win at Idaho and tied his career-high with 30 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists in the win at first-place Eastern Washington.
In the last six Wildcat wins, Jones is averaging 24.5 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per game, while shooting 51 percent from the field and 88 percent from the free throw line. He has scored 20 or more points in all six games.
• He leads the Wildcats in points, rebounds, assists, and steals, and ranks eighth in the nation with 15 double-doubles. Jones is 20th in the nation and first in the Big Sky in scoring at 20.5 points per game. He also leads the Big Sky in assists and is second in rebounding.
• He leads the league and is ninth in the nation in minutes per game and is fourth in the league in free throw percentage and field goal percentage. Jones is one of four players in the nation currently averaging at least 19 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game.
• He is WSU's all-time leader in steals with 199, and ranks second all-time in assists, third in rebounding, fourth in free throws made, and fifth in scoring. He is also fifth in Big Sky history in career rebounds. He is the only active player in the country and the only player in Big Sky history with at least 1,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, 300 assists, and 150 steals.
• Steven Verplancken scored in double figures for the 18th time this season as he scored 18 points with four 3-pointers in the win at Eastern Washington. He is second on the Wildcat team in scoring and ranks tied for 8th in WSU career 3-point shooting.
• In Saturday's game, Weber State senior KJ Cunningham will make Wildcat history as he will play in his 135th career game, the new record for most games ever played. Cunningham is in his fifth year at Weber State. He is averaging 5.1 points per game this season and has 24 3-pointers.
• Weber State leads the Big Sky in scoring defense, scoring margin, 3-point defense percentage, and turnover margin. WSU is also second in 3-point defense, and third in free throw percentage, 3-point percentage, and steals.
• Idaho State sits at 11-16 overall and 6-8 in Big Sky play, currently tied for seventh in the conference. The Bengals are second in the Big Sky in scoring defense and blocks, third in steals, and fourth in rebounding margin. ISU had won three-straight games before losing at Eastern Washington and Idaho last week.
• The Bengals beat Weber State 74-64 on January 27 in Ogden, WSU's last loss. Idaho State shot 50 percent from the field and held Weber State to 43 percent, and the 'Cats were just 6 of 21 from 3-point range.
• The Wildcats hold a 85-48 all-time lead over Idaho State but the Bengals have won two of the last three. In games in Pocatello, Weber State is 31-30 all-time and the Wildcats have won five of the last six, including a double overtime win last year.
• After Saturday's game, Weber State returns home for the final two home games of the season hosting Northern Colorado and Northern Arizona next week. The final game will be at Montana State on March 4, then the Big Sky Tournament will be March 9-13 in Boise, Idaho.
