The MSU Men have had nothing short of a surprising start to their season. Picked relatively low in both the Big Sky Preseason Coaches and Media Polls, the Cats are 7-5 so far after their non-conference schedule (plus one Big Sky loss at Eastern Washington). Three of those wins have come in overtime. Three of those wins have been in second half comebacks. Two of those wins are against Big 12 and Pac 10 opponents.
Like I said -- definitely surprising considering the Cats were returning a grand total of one starter, and four total players with significant playing experience from last season.
That one starter is senior center Divaldo Mbunga. After being "protected" from the television media last year, we intrepid sports reporters have already interviewed Divaldo twice this season, and he's a very well spoken guy, especially given English is his second language. He's definitely stepped up this year in terms of being a leader -- being a bit more vocal in practice and games is the clearest indication of that leadership coming out.
M-V-P of the young season definitely goes to Great Falls native, sophomore Bobby Howard. Howard leads the Cats with over 29 minutes and 13.8 points per game. He started the season as the sixth man, playing behind Brandon Johnson, but Coach Brad Huse says he couldn't keep Howard on the bench with his hot start.
In order to have such a good start, the Cats knew they'd have to get some output from their seven newcomers, and none of them has been more important than junior guard Will Bynum. Bynum is third on the team in scoring behind Howard and Mbunga, but his greatest addition to the team so far has been his defensive intensity. Bynum leads the Cats with nine steals on the season.
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The Lady Cats are 6-6, playing their first conference game Saturday in Missoula, and hoping to forget the last time they visited Dahlberg Arena, a 101-65 loss in last year's Big Sky Championship game to the Lady Griz.
MSU's greatest strength is offensive diversity, as coach Tricia Binford literally has six players who could lead the team in scoring any night. Here they are:
1) Nubia Garcia - Senior Forward
Garcia plays in the Post and leads the Cats with 12.2 points per game. She's greatly improved her offensive game this season, shooting over 50 percent, but also stands out on the defensive end. Garcia has eight blocks through 12 games, averages over eight boards per game, and is second on the team with 17 steals.
2) Erica Perry - Junior Guard
Perry runs the Point for the Lady Cats, and is actually shorter than me at 5'4". I don't get many BBall starts shorter than I am, so bear with me on that one. Perry averages nearly 11 points per game, and she gets them mostly from driving the lane and finishing or getting to the free throw line; however, last week against Albany, Perry was four for four from three point land, and had 19 total points. Could be a sign of things to come. We shall see.
3) Jenny Heringer - Junior Guard
Heringer is a big guard at 5'11", but can handle the ball very well, and even fills in at the point when Perry needs a break. She shoots the three very well, and tends to score in bunches. If she's hot, her teammates look for her each time down the court.
4) Katie Bussey - Freshman Guard
Bussey is a freshman from Colorado, and actually looks exactly like a girl I knew in elementary school named Katie. So that's weird, but completely irrelevant. Bussey averages nine points per game, and is capable of scoring a lot. She'll learn over the next few months/years at MSU to be a bit less erratic in her drives, and should develop into an electric player with more playing time.
5) Sarah Strand - Sophomore Forward
Strand is a 6'1" forward with a knack for hitting big three pointers. I'm always surprised when she hits them too, cause it seems like her defenders are never guarding her closely. You'd think opposing coaches would pick up on the fact that she can hit those shots in film sessions.
6) Anne Phippard - Senior Guard
Phippard is the dark horse here -- if you decide to focus on the bigger names above, she can kill you with her jumper. Phipppard leads the Lady Cats in three point percentage, up near 39, but is a bit more selective with those shots than some other long ballers on the team.
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This weekend's Cat/Griz games should be great tests for both the MSU Men and Women, especially being on the road. We should get a glimpse of the Cat's Big Sky prospects by Saturday's end.
Check out 10@10 for your highlights!
Also, should you want another outlet to satiate your desire for Bobcat Basketball, check out the blogs of the two coaches!
Coach Huse: http://bradhusebasketball.blogspot.com/
Coach Binford: http://coachbinford.blogspot.com/
~ Dave
dave@maxmontana.com
