Yellowjackets Travel to Chadron State and Mary

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The Montana State Billings men’s basketball team begins a two-game road swing Saturday at Chadron State.  The Yellowjackets are coming off an impressive come-from-behind, overtime victory over the University of Mary on Wednesday, 70-67.  With the victory, the Yellowjackets improved to 2-1 on the year and are over .500 for the first time since the end of the 2005-06 season.  It also was the first time MSUB has won back-to-back games since Feb. 19, 2007.

The Yellowjackets are led by senior guard Michael Hall who is averaging a team-high 20.3 points per game.  He leads the team with 19 made field goals and 11 made 3-pointers and is a team-best 12 of 13 from the charity stripe.  Second on the team is Derrick Wright and Travis Bunker who each are averaging 12 points per game.  Bunker is averaging a double-double, as he is pulling down 10 rebounds per contest.  Bunker is second on the team in field goals made with 12 and second in treys with seven.  Mario Burns leads the team averaging seven assists per game and also is in double figures scoring at 10.7 points per game.  Burns also leads the team with seven steals. 

As a team the Yellowjackets are shooting 42.3 percent from the field, 33 percent from downtown and 71 percent from the line.  The Jackets are pulling down 35.3 rebounds per game, compared to 36.0 from their opponents.     

A WIN AT CHADRON STATE WILL...
• Give the Yellowjackets a 3-1 record
• Be the first time MSUB has won three games in a row since Feb. 17, 2006
• Give MSUB its first road win since Feb. 3, 2007

A WIN AT MARY WILL...
• Give the Yellowjackets a 2-0 record in games in Bismarck
• Give MSUB possibly its first road win since Feb. 3, 2007
• Give the Yellowjackets at least their third win of the season

SCOUTING CHADRON STATE
Saturday will be the first of two meetings with Chadron State this season, the Eagles will return the favor to Billings Jan. 2.  CSC enters the game 2-1 on the year after splitting two neutral site games last week at the RMAC Tourney.  CSC downed Colorado College (82-61), but lost a nail-biter, 79-75 to Cal State Dominguez Hills.  The Eagles are led by Tim McLaurin who is averaging a team-high 20.7 points per game.  He leads the team with 20 field goals made, second in 3-pointers with six, and is 16 of 18 from the line.  He also leads the team in rebounding at a 7.0 clip.  McLaurin also leads the team in assists with 18.  Kevin McClelland also is in double figures at 11.7 points per game.   He leads the team with seven 3-pointers.  The Eagles are shooting 47 percent from the field, 35 percent from beyond the arc and 79 percent from the line.  CSC is averaging 38 rebounds per game and scoring 80 points per contest.

LAST TIME VERSUS CHADRON STATE
The Yellowjackets own a 5-3 record in the series that dates back to Dec. 7, 1956.  Chadron State won the first three meetings in the series, all in the 50’s, but MSUB has won the last five starting with a 68-57 victory Dec. 7, 1957 in Billings.  The last time these two teams got together was Dec. 4, 2004 as MSUB won the fifth straight with a 101-90 victory in Billings.  The Jackets have a 5-1 record at home in the series and Chadron leads 2-0 in Nebraska.

SCOUTING MARY
The Marauders enter their home opener with MSUB on the heels of a four-game losing skid, including a 70-67 overtime loss at MSUB this past Wednesday.  Mary (0-4) is led by Geoff West who is averaging 18.0 points per game.  MSUB held him on Wednesday to nine points below his then-average of 20.0.  He leads the team with 25 made field goals, 15 made 3-poitners and is third in assists with nine and leads the team with seven steals.  Second on the team in scoring is Eric Erdmann who is averaging 11.5 points per game.  Mary is shooting just north of 40 percent for the season, however opponents are shooting 51 percent against the Marauders thus far.    UM is averaging 65 points per game, while allowing 83.5 points. 

LAST TIME OUT VERSUS MARY
The Montana State Billings men’s basketball team extended its winning streak with a come-from-behind, hard fought overtime victory over Mary on Wednesday at Alterowitz Gymnasium.  The Yellowjackets won 70-67 over the Marauders and had three clutch baskets in overtime to seal the victory.  Michael Hall drained a beyond NBA-range 3-pointer, while Travis Bunker and Brad Hodge each had buckets in the overtime period to lift the Jackets to their second win of the season.  MSUB had four starters in double figures led by 17 points from Hall and Bunker.  Bunker recorded his second double-double in as many games and played every minute of the game.  MSUB leads the all-time series 3-0.

TOUGH ON THE GLASS
In a 70-67 overtime victory over Mary on Wednesday, the Yellowjackets dominated the glass, outrebounding the Marauders 35-26, including 14-7 on the offensive end.  All but one of the eight players who played for MSUB tallied a rebound.  It was the second consecutive game that the Jackets have won the battle of the boards, MSUB had a 40-38 advantage over Montana Western Nov. 22.

IRONMAN BUNKER
Senior Travis Bunker played all 40 minutes against Montana Western in the home opener Nov. 22 and followed that with a complete game performance against Mary on Wednesday. In two games, Bunker has played in 85 minutes and leads the team with 120 minutes in three games for an even 40.0 average.

OVERTIME YELLOWJACKETS
The Yellowjackets needed an extra period to down the Mary Marauders Wednesday evening, 70-67.  It was the first overtime game for MSUB since a 90-89 overtime loss on Dec. 21, 2006, against Northwest Nazarene at Alterowitz Gym. It was the first overtime victory since a 113-106 victory over Saint Leo on Dec. 21, 2004.

QUICK OUT OF THE GATES
The Yellowjackets have started quick out of the gates at home this season.  Against Dickinson State (Nov. 11) MSUB raced to a 16-5 and a 24-10 lead.  Then, on Saturday, the Jackets raced to a 16-6 lead through the first seven minutes against Montana Western.  On Wednesday, the Jackets continued that trend with a 21-11 lead through the first nine minutes against Mary.

BUNKER DOUBLE-DOUBLE
For the second consecutive game, senior Travis Bunker has recorded a double-double.  On Wednesday, Bunker scored 17 points and pulled down 12 rebounds.  Bunker is averaging 12 points and 10 rebounds per game.

SNAP THE SKID
With an 81-76 victory over Montana Western Nov. 22, the Yellowjackets snapped a 13-game skid dating back to last season.  The Jackets defeated Alaska Fairbanks on Jan. 24, 2008 to snap an 18-game skid to that point.  This is the first time MSUB has been .500 or better since the final game of the 2005-06 season.

RENEWING A RIVALRY WITH MARY
Two teams separated by 415 miles have not played each other since the 1983-84 season and only have played two games in each school’s history.  MSUB won both meetings, the first in Bismarck on Dec. 14, 1979, 83-74 and won in Billings on Jan. 16, 1984, 77-65.  The University of Mary is the closest NCAA Division II school to MSUB in terms of mileage and travel time.  The Yellowjackets downed Mary 70-67 in overtime Wednesday and will play at Mary on Monday.

STOUT DEFENSE
MSUB held Montana Western to under 40 percent shooting in both halves Nov. 22.  For the game, the Bulldogs were 28 of 71 from the field for 39.4 percent. 

GETTIN’ TO THE LINE
The Yellowjackets got to the free throw line 25 times against Montana Western Nov. 22 and followed with getting to the line 24 times against Mary on Wednesday.  MSUB knocked down 19 free throws, including 9 of 10 in the final five minutes preserve the victory against UWM.

HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
The Yellowjackets have just five road games between the beginning of the season at Feb. 5.  MSUB started the year at No. 10 Gonzaga and plays at Mary and Chadron State this weekend.  From there, the Jackets have six-straight home games in December and early January prior to the beginning of conference play.    For the season, the Jackets only have 11 road games and 16 home games. 

BURNS DOES THE DISHES
Junior Mario Burns leads the team with 21 assists this season for a 7.0 average.  He had eight assists and five steals, against Montana Western earlier in the season.  He then followed with a nine assist outing against Mary on Wednesday and just missed a double-double by one assist.

PAINTING THE PAINT
The Yellowjackets dominated the points in the paint against Montana Western Nov. 22.  MSUB scored 34 points in the paint compared to 18 for the Bulldogs and followed with a 22-18 points in the paint advantage over Mary on Wednesday for a 56-36 lead in the Jackets’ two wins this season.

HALL NAMED CO-GNAC POW
Senior Michael Hall earned co-GNAC Player of the Week honors for his 24-point outing against No. 10 Gonzaga in the season opener Nov. 15. Hall scored a game-high in points and was 8 of 17 from the field and 5 of 12 from beyond the arc.  He scored the final 14 points of the first half to bring the Yellowjackets within five at intermission.  Hall shares the first GNAC Player of the Week honor since MSUB joined the league last year with Blake Poole of Saint Martin’s.

SENIOR LEADERSHIP
Last season, the Yellowjackets didn’t have a senior on the team, in fact, MSUB had probably one of the youngest teams in the country with six freshmen and four sophomores.  This season, two senior transfers and six junior transfers highlight the team.
FRESH FACES
As the 2007-08 roster featured six freshmen, the 2008-09 roster features nine new players, including two Division I senior transfers, six transfer juniors and one freshman. 

JUCO INFUSION
MSUB has a number of junior college transfers this season.  In fact, five of the nine new players all came from junior college.  Derrick Wright and Mario Burns came from Western Oklahoma State College, while Lance Anderson and Brad Hodge transferred from Grays Harbor College and Adam Weisz came to MSUB from Dawson County Community College.

JACKETS PICKED EIGHTH
The Yellowjackets were picked preseason eighth by the conference coaches.  The Jackets tallied 22 points, three ahead of ninth-place Alaska Fairbanks.

LISTEN TO PFEIFER
Fans can listen to the weekly Coach Pfeifer Show on the internet each Tuesday.  Log on to www.msubillings.edu/athletics to listen to Pfeifer’s thoughts on the previous week and the coming weeks throughout the season.

WATCH/LISTEN TO HOME GAMES
Fans can listen to all MSUB men’s basketball home games by logging on to www.musbillings.edu/athletics and click on live broadcasts.  Ken Adelblue provides the play-by-play for each home game.