MSU (wbb) vs. PSU 2:00 Sat Game Thread

[TomCat88]

Just tipped off and down 6-2.

[TomCat88]

MSU up 13-8 now with 12:50 to play in half

[TomCat88]

Getting outshot and outrebounded, but PSU is turning it over a lot. 15-12. This is one of those games you just can't lose. A win is like, meh, but a loss is going to hurt.

[TomCat88]

16-15 psu. MSU now turning it over, but boarding better.

[TomCat88]

Adams picks up her second foul and MSU now down 19-15 with PSU shooting fts.

[TomCat88]

26-24 PSU. Scoring opened up a bit there a couple mintes. Elliott needs to play more. Durham is 0-4 on 3s, but her and Stockton have shot well overall. Not able to get the ball inside. Very few shots for Semansky. Stockton and Durham have 12 shots, Semansky just one.

[TomCat88]

31-28 psu at 1/2

MSU starters 3-16; bench 9-15.

[TomCat88]

75-72, PSU Final. Ugh.

[MSU01]

Just got back from the game...from first place to losing to a 3-8 team at home in the space of 8 days. Ouch - MSU needs to figure out how to get a stop or two with a late lead.

[BelgradeBobcat]

Why is this team so terrible at home?

I guess the good news is the Big Sky tournament won't be in Bozeman.

[aucat]

Yep, quite the change over the past week or so. The UM blowout over EWU provides further evidence as to how far we have fallen. Some teams really improve as the season goes along and other regress. For unknown reason, our ladies are heading south. Today, Ashley and Latisha just had nothing to offer on the offensive end, and they are seniors. As Helcat said the other day, we just aren't very physical either. Once again, there was a glaring difference between the physicality of the two teams today.

It was great to see Durham and Elliot back doing well today, but PSU ganged up on Rachel and we just didn't get it done at the end. Really a shame. A little over a week ago it was beginning to look like we might actually be on the way to hosting a BSC tournament for the first time in decades, but now it looks like it will be headed over to its "semi-permanent" home in Missoula.

[Helcat72]

Why is this team so terrible at home?

I guess the good news is the Big Sky tournament won't be in Bozeman.

I only saw the first half (had to go to grandson's game) but.....Maybe because of expectations....maybe because of glaring weaknesses that teams have discovered since the first time through...I'm not sure if you can fix it...but their transition defense was terrible today, and they still haven't found themselves offensively. Rebounding and interior defense were also weak...don't know what's going on, but it looks like a little panic starting to set in!

[John K]

It seems like the MSU women are starting to develop a reputatoin for dropping off during the 2nd half of the BSC schedule too, although not as severely as the men's annual February swoon. After the UM win, I was really stoked about the WBB team's prospects for hosting the tourney and hopefully winning the title, but now...not so much. It's very disappointing.

[Helcat72]

Got to be the Griz are behind it!...must be in the wateror.... Some kind of ray shot down from outer space

[bpcats20]

I haven't watched the entire games of MSU Lady Bobcats, the last few games but enough to get a feel for how they are playing etc.

There is a difference in the level of competition between the men's conference and the women's conference. On the men's side there is Weber, and UM then everybody else is playing for 3rd place.

On the women's side, there are no favorites..period. If you don't shoot well (which the lady cats haven't done in four games), or you have defensive lapses they you are going to get beat. Talent wise we are right there with every other team in the conference. I don't think we have a consistent 3 point shooting team and that is hurting us a little bit. The Lady Cats are getting good shots etc but just aren't finishing.

They just need to get hot at the right time and not get down on themselves in the meantime. During this slump, we have seen the continued growth of Stockton and Dawkins. I really think that Dawkins has a chance to be freshman of the year.

[aucat]

I agree that the women's BSC is more balanced than the men, but I do think the Lady Cats are still short on talent. If you go to the games and just watch the players up close, the most glaring difference is, we just don't have many players who are big and strong. Rachel is the one player who I would say is strong. If only she was 2 or 3 inches taller. Jackie is also quite strong. That's it. The rest of the ladies--if there is a battle for a rebound, the opponent usually overpowers our player. Take Lexi Dawkins. She has great moves and a beautiful shot--even from the 3 point line. And I'm thankful she stayed in Bozeman, unlike some of her former teammates at Bozeman High. However, when she matches up against most of these post players down low, she give up lots of size. I'm not saying that I want Lexi to gain 50 pounds. That's not her frame. We just need to have more players on the team who have the large frame and size necessary to really compete down low for position when it comes to offensive and defensive rebounds.

Anyway, the bottom line, I still love to watch this team play, it's just that I've lowered my expectations from what they were. I just hope that going forward Coach Binford can recruit some bigger and more physical players to complement the ones we have.

[Helcat72]

I agree that the women's BSC is more balanced than the men, but I do think the Lady Cats are still short on talent. If you go to the games and just watch the players up close, the most glaring difference is, we just don't have many players who are big and strong. Rachel is the one player who I would say is strong. If only she was 2 or 3 inches taller. Jackie is also quite strong. That's it. The rest of the ladies--if there is a battle for a rebound, the opponent usually overpowers our player. Take Lexi Dawkins. She has great moves and a beautiful shot--even from the 3 point line. And I'm thankful she stayed in Bozeman, unlike some of her former teammates at Bozeman High. However, when she matches up against most of these post players down low, she give up lots of size. I'm not saying that I want Lexi to gain 50 pounds. That's not her frame. We just need to have more players on the team who have the large frame and size necessary to really compete down low for position when it comes to offensive and defensive rebounds.

Anyway, the bottom line, I still love to watch this team play, it's just that I've lowered my expectations from what they were. I just hope that going forward Coach Binford can recruit some bigger and more physical players to complement the ones we have.

Exactly! What I've noticed for several years...a tribute to the coach and competitiveness of the players that they are able to be in the top tier of the conference,....but their physicality or lack thereof, I feel, is the reason they can't sustain a league leading posture throughout the schedule. They get a second wind in the tournament, but if they have to play three games in a few days it wears on them more than other more physical teams.