by Zachary Knecht
Featured Image: Photo by Montana State Athletics
Weber State Montana State Basketball Recap
After a promising first half of play, the Weber State Wildcats fall to the hands of the Montana State Bobcats 75-60. The ‘Cats put up a fight with their impressive first two quarters, but a second-half collapse sent the women home with an L.
The loss drops Weber State to 5-19 on the season, staying firmly in last of the Big Sky at 1-11 in conference play, while the Bobcats rise to 17-8, giving themselves some breathing room at the top of the conference at 10-3.
Team Leaders
Daryn Hickok and Jadyn Matthews were the main contributors to this Weber State offense. Hickok led the night in points and rebounds with her 20/10 double-double. She shot five of 12 from the field, sinking her lone three-point attempt. The star forward lived at the free-throw line all night, hitting nine of her 11 tries.
Matthews produced 15 points of her own, collecting seven rebounds on the way. She struggled from the field, only mustering four shots on 12 attempts, but also spent much of her night at the free-throw line. She shot seven of nine of her attempts from the line.
For the Bobcats, Darian White was the point leader in this contest, scoring 23 points with four rebounds, two assists, and one steal. She shot well, hitting seven of her 15 attempts from the field and nine of her 13 tries from the free-throw line.
Grace Beasley was productive from the bench for Montana State, grabbing 12 points on the night. She had an efficient performance, shooting four of six from the field and sinking all four of her free throw attempts but missing both her tries from the three-point line.
Physically Dominated
The ‘Cats were again dominated physically by Montana State. The Bobcats reached the 40-rebound mark, grabbing eight more than Weber State on the night while forcing the Wildcats to turn the ball over 14 times. Earlier in the season, Weber State’s main positive was their ability to assert themselves on the court, but this trend has died down as of late.
Thursday’s contest was a very physical one, with the Wildcats reaching the free-throw line 28 times and the Bobcats topping that with 29. The difference is that the ‘Cats only shot 67.9% compared to the 79.3% of Montana State when given the free chances. While this was not the complete reason for the loss, it was attributed to the second-half collapse of the Wildcats, giving up a dreadful 33 points in the final quarter of play.
Promising Signs
Although the Wildcats couldn’t pull away with a victory, they showed promising signs on the road against the conference’s top dog. Weber State limited shooting from beyond the arch at Worthington Arena, keeping the Bobcats to 14.3% from three. The ‘Cats also stole the ball nine times in the course of the four quarters, putting pressure on Montana State’s players.
All in all, to walk into the locker room at the half with the lead against a roster like that of Montana State shows that Weber State will go toe-to-toe with anyone.
What’s to Come
The ‘Cats will continue their road trip into Montana to face off against the Lady Grizzlies on Saturday.
Socials
Stay up-to-date on the latest in Weber State Basketball here at The Hive Sports, and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
| Weber State Starters | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | MIN |
| Daryn Hickok, F | 20 | 10 | 1 | 5-12 | 1-1 | 35 |
| Jadyn Matthews, F | 15 | 7 | 0 | 4-12 | 0-2 | 37 |
| Kaiija Lesane, G | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2-5 | 1-1 | 27 |
| Aaliyah Ellis, G | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1-5 | 1-3 | 17 |
| Vicky Parra, F | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 14 |
| Bench | ||||||
| Laura Taylor, G | 8 | 2 | 1 | 3-11 | 2-9 | 26 |
| Emri Lovell, G | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 12 |
| Ava Williams, G | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1-5 | 0-0 | 20 |
| Amelia Raidaveta, F | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 3 |
| Tamalii Fonoti, C | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 7 |
| Nakilah Johnson, G | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 |
| Charlotte Hegvold, G | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 |
| Team Total | 60 | 32 | 5 | 18-55 | 5-17 |
| Montana State Starters | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT | MIN |
| Darian White, G | 23 | 4 | 2 | 7-15 | 0-0 | 31 |
| Kola Bad Bear, F | 6 | 6 | 0 | 3-7 | 0-1 | 22 |
| Lexi Deden, F | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2-6 | 0-0 | 15 |
| Madison Jackson, G | 4 | 5 | 0 | 2-4 | 0-1 | 17 |
| Katelynn Limardo, F | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1-3 | 0-2 | 22 |
| Bench | ||||||
| Grace Beasely, G | 12 | 4 | 0 | 4-6 | 0-2 | 26 |
| Leia Beattie, G | 7 | 5 | 1 | 3-6 | 1-2 | 22 |
| Marah Dykstra, F | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1-3 | 0-2 | 21 |
| Taylor Janssen, F | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2-6 | 1-4 | 18 |
| Dylan Philip, G | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 |
| Mattie Olson, NA | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 |
| Lindsey Hein, C | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 |
| Team Total | 75 | 40 | 8 | 25-56 | 2-14 |