OGDEN -- In the midst of Weber State's toughest road stretch of the season, the Big Sky Conference schedule makers carved out a pit stop for WSU at the Dee Events Center tonight.
Thursday night's win over Northern Arizona marked the first in a stretch where the Wildcats play four of their final five league games on the road, broken up by tonight's 7:30 p.m. game in Ogden against Eastern Washington. WSU will also be home for a non-conference Bracketbusters battle against UT Arlington on Feb. 18.
Weber State and Montana have each secured at least a top two finish in the conference race and battle to host the Big Sky tournament.
"We've got work to do (today) against a highly talented team that's going to be very difficult for us to play against, so we're worried about that right now," 'Cats coach Randy Rahe said.
Eastern Washington (11-13, 5-6 Big Sky) gave WSU all it could handle Jan. 5 in Cheney, Wash. The Wildcats (19-4, 11-1) scratched out their first conference road win, 76-69, despite turning over the ball a season-worst 22 times.
Eastern Washington should be rested and ready to play in its only game of the week.
Junior forward Colin Chiverton (16.2 points per game) and senior guard Cliff Colimon (14.8 ppg) lead the Eagles' attack.
Chiverton ranks third in the Big Sky in scoring, behind Weber State point guard Damian Lillard, the NCAA scoring leader at 25.2 ppg, and Portland State's Charles Odum.
Wildcats guard Scott Bamforth is fifth at 15.4 ppg.
Weber State has won seven of its last eight against Eastern Washington and is 26-4 all-time against the Eagles in Ogden. The Wildcats are a perfect 13-0 at home this year, but they don't have to go back far for a cautionary sign, however: the Eagles were the last team to beat them at the Dee Events Center, a 75-59 loss on March 2, 2010. Weber State took its revenge three days later in Ogden, eliminating Eastern Washington in the quarterfinals round of the Big Sky tournament.
Eastern Washington and Weber State each rank in the top 10 in the NCAA in 3-pointers per game, with the Wildcats at third (9.3 3s made per game) and the Eagles in sixth (9.1).
WSU senior forward Kyle Bullinger scored a season-high 16 points Thursday and continues to improve since returning to the lineup after missing nine games with a dislocated elbow.
"He's got a really good look in his eye. His confidence is back, you can just see it. It's really good to have him back," Rahe said. "He does so many things for our team -- just his mindset, his toughness."
The 6-foot-6 Mountain View, Wyo., native, a first-team all-Big Sky player last year, went 3-of-5 from beyond the arc to pass former Wildcat Nick Hansen for fifth place on the school's career 3-pointers list with 143 for his career.
"(Bullinger's) always been a good shooter. It's good to see him make shots again," Rahe said. "It's really good for our team to have him come back and have him play close to where he's been. I'm really proud of him. He's worked so hard to get there. He's never gotten frustrated, he's never gotten down, he's just kept fighting."
Rahe was also pleased with Weber State's bench play Thursday, particularly sophomore forward Byron Fulton and freshman guard Gelaun Wheelwright.
Fulton had 13 points and 10 rebounds in 17 minutes, while Wheelwright was active and scored six points in 26 minutes while helping Weber State build out its lead to over 20 points.
"Those two guys have been doing a really good job for us off the bench. They've been productive, they've given us a spark. Anything we can get from those two guys is really needed," Rahe said.
Comments