The Bobcat Nation

Game is on Big Sky TV. 7:05 Tip!

Wow, they are stuck on the scoreboard at the end of the 1st half... Nice work Big Sky TV!!!

Cats looked good. Nice win!

The Butcher wrote:Cats looked good. Nice win!

Once they figured out how to bust they zone, it was all over. Bodes well for the rest of the season!

BSTV was MUCH better than what it used to be - still a few glitches here and there with the cameras, but a watchable feed, no dropped connection. No complaints for a free service, that's for sure! Pass on the good word, msusportsinfo.

Great win guys! One step closer to the big dance.

UofMTigerFan wrote:Great win guys! One step closer to the big dance.

Thanks for the kind words Tiger, but the only way MSU is getting to the Big Dance is by qualifying for and winning the BSC Tourney. That's almost 3 months away, and there's a lot of conference basketball between now and then. The OOC wins only serve as a measuring stick. However, this was a solid win over the team picked to win the Big West, a low- to mid-major conference on par with the Big Sky.

Great win for the Cats, first win ever over UCSB.

From MSU-

Official Basketball Box Score -- Game Totals -- Final Statistics
UC Santa Barbara vs Montana State
12/18/09 7:05 pm at Worthington Arena - Bozeman, MT
UC Santa Barbara 64 • 4-3
Total 3-Ptr Rebounds
## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min
00 Serna, Jaime f 3-7 0-0 3-4 2 7 9 4 9 1 2 0 0 20
20 Brew, Will f 0-3 0-3 3-6 0 2 2 3 3 4 0 0 0 25
15 Phippen, Sam c 2-4 2-4 0-0 1 4 5 1 6 0 2 0 0 22
33 Johnson, Orlando g 5-12 2-6 0-0 0 1 1 4 12 3 2 0 1 24
42 Powell, James g 3-8 3-6 0-0 0 1 1 2 9 0 1 0 0 24
01 Brew, Chris 2-8 0-0 0-1 1 0 1 1 4 1 0 0 1 16
04 Roemer, Paul 0-0 0-0 1-1 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 9
11 Joyner, Justin 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 9
21 Nunnally, James 6-10 0-2 1-4 4 2 6 0 13 1 2 0 0 24
25 Devenny, Lucas 2-4 0-0 3-6 1 4 5 0 7 0 1 0 0 19
32 Pastorek, Jon 0-2 0-1 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 8
Team 2 2 4
Totals 23-58 7-22 11-22 11 26 37 16 64 12 10 0 2 200
FG % 1st Half: 12-29 41.4%
3FG % 1st Half: 3-11 27.3%
FT % 1st Half: 2-7 28.6%
2nd half: 11-29 37.9%
2nd half: 4-11 36.4%
2nd half: 9-15 60.0%
Game: 23-58 39.7%
Game: 7-22 31.8%
Game: 11-22 50.0%
Deadball
Rebounds
3
Montana State 76 • 6-4
Total 3-Ptr Rebounds
## Player FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA Off Def Tot PF TP A TO Blk Stl Min
15 HOWARD, Bobby f 3-7 0-2 3-4 1 4 5 2 9 0 1 0 0 33
23 RUSH, Erik f 5-9 0-3 7-8 0 9 9 3 17 7 3 1 1 30
42 JOHNSON, Branden c 5-7 4-5 1-1 1 9 10 3 15 0 1 1 0 31
03 NAVARRE, Marquis g 4-9 1-4 0-0 0 2 2 2 9 6 3 0 1 33
20 BYNUM, Will g 0-4 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 3 0 3 3 0 2 22
01 BROWN, Austin 3-5 2-3 0-1 1 2 3 3 8 1 1 0 1 14
04 HENDERSON, Cameron 1-1 0-0 0-0 0 1 1 4 2 0 0 0 0 7
05 LOUFF, Bryan 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4
33 PIEPOLI, Danny 5-8 3-5 1-2 1 3 4 2 14 2 0 0 0 21
34 ANDERSON, Cody 0-3 0-1 2-2 1 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 5
Team 0 2 2
Totals 26-53 10-23 14-18 5 32 37 23 76 19 12 2 6 200
FG % 1st Half: 14-30 46.7%
3FG % 1st Half: 3-10 30.0%
FT % 1st Half: 3-5 60.0%
2nd half: 12-23 52.2%
2nd half: 7-13 53.8%
2nd half: 11-13 84.6%
Game: 26-53 49.1%
Game: 10-23 43.5%
Game: 14-18 77.8%
Deadball
Rebounds
0
Officials: Duane Allen, Deron White, Bobby Pultz
Technical fouls: UC Santa Barbara-None. Montana State-None.
Attendance: 2587
Score by periods 1st 2nd Total
UC Santa Barbara 29 35 64
Montana State 34 42 76

Game recap- From MSU-

BOZEMAN, Mont. – It seemed as if everyone in Worthington Arena was waiting for someone to break the ice of a two-minute scoreless streak to begin the second half of Montana State’s non-conference contest with UC Santa Barbara on Friday.



Branden Johnson was the man.



Montana State’s senior forward converted a four-point play and a three-pointer in the first 3:40 of the second, and put an exclamation mark on the proceedings with a third at the 15:11 mark. Johnson outscored the Gauchos 10-3 in the first five minutes after halftime to boost MSU’s lead into double-digits, provide the team with the cushion it needed, and spur the Bobcats to a 76-64 win over the Gauchos in Worthington Arena on Friday.



“BJ got us off to a good start in the second half,” said MSU coach Brad Huse. “We needed someone to knock down shots and get us going in the second half, and he did that.”



Johnson’s 10-point spurt helped the Bobcats sandwich halftime with a 22-7 run. As the Bobcat offense heated up, MSU’s defense clamped down. The Cats held UC Santa Barbara to 34% shooting in the game’s final 32 minutes, and limited UCSB’s leading scorer Orlando Johnson to 12 points, nearly five below his season average.



After Johnson’s third three-pointer in the second half, the Gauchos chipped away at MSU’s lead. A three-pointer by Sam Phippen followed by a tip-in and a layup by James Nunnally drew UCSB within five. But Johnson answered with a three-pointer 16 seconds later to stem the tide, and Erik Rush scored six points in a 13-5 run as MSU wrested control of the game away from its Big West opponent.



Erik Rush led all players with 17 points, senior Branden Johnson posted a double-double with 15 points and 10 boards, and Danny Piepoli came within a point of his career-high by scoring 14 points with two assists to lead MSU. Nunnally’s 13 points led UCSB. Montana State shot 52% in the second half, limiting UCSB to 38%.



-msu-

Family Christmas obligations forced me to miss this game. Great job guys! This is a very tangible sign that this program under Huse has vastly improved in the last four seasons.

Wow, the cats are really starting to show some flashes of a great team. I hope they can have a good showing on the very tough upcoming road stretch.