MBB Central Michigan

[Helcat72]

Nation's leading scorer, Marcus Keene plays for the Chippewas....averaging 30* per game. A 5'9" guard. He and the other 5"9" guard lead them in scoring. Should be interesting...however the have a huge front court !

[imacat]

Bobcats drop this one 106-103.


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[Common Cat]

If this is the type of team we can be going forward I will be more than happy.

[BelgradeBobcat]

Well they played their arses off. We are down three key players including one starter (Quinton Everett is on crutches with a knee issue).

Central Michigan is a crazy team. Everybody on that team seemed automatic from outside if given any room-and the kid who had 40+ it didn't matter how he was guarded he was going to score. They might be a nightmare team for somebody if they make the NCAA tournament.

Did Benson Osayande suddenly learn how to play basketball? He had 21 points and was above the rim all night. Where the heck has that been? Maybe because Fish had to stay with him because we just don't anybody else left? Also, CMU was really soft inside. But wow-what a game by him. I hope he can do that again sometime.

Good efforts by everyone-and everyone played-even the walk on guys. Cooper Olson did as good a job on their stud as anyone and also knocked down a three. Mandrell Worthy had some nice minutes and didn't turn it over-though he did foul out. Devonte Klines had some nice moments-even though the guy he was guarding got 43 points-or whatever, but that guy was just a freak.

It doesn't get much easier. We draw Weber to start conference season next week. Weber just beat Utah State on the road. So that'll probably be our 7th loss in a row. Then ISU-who's pretty skitzo but that one might be winnable-especially with them having to travel over from Missoula.

Fish said Sarp had one more game to go on his suspension. He was on the bench tonight. The way he's played this season-that may or may not be a good thing. I don't know.

[Colter_Nuanez]

Marcus Keene scored a career-high 44 points to lift Central Michigan past Montana State —
http://skylinesportsmt.com/keene-rayson ... ana-state/

[bobcatfan4life]

What a game!! Yes it ended in a loss, but this Bobcat team fought until the last second, Central Michigan is extremely talented, and every single player seems to be able to shoot the 3 ball. They were a fun team to watch, and in the last couple games, other than that 9 minutes or so against South Dakota, we do seem to be making some improvements. That 9 minutes against South Dakota was bad, but this game was different.

Keene was as advertised...he does it all from shooting the 3, driving to the hoop, pull up jumpers...he really does it all. He was really good but a little cocky for me. He got away was some clear fouls a couple of times. That is how it goes I guess, but he is definitely really good. It was fun to watch the battle between him and Tyler just in that they are two of the top scorers in the nation. Central Michigan really is a great team.

Now a little breakdown about this team:
1. Rebounding has improved immensely the last couple of games, although we only outrebounded South Dakota by a couple, we really did get in there against Central Michigan in rebounds. They did great in this area. We got 16 o boards and they had 7. That shows effort and helps to give guys that second opportunity. It was great to see.
2. Turnovers were down...that was also good to see. They are taking better care of the ball better which always helps the situation.
3. Player breakdown and thoughts...

Tyler Hall was himself...i really don't know what else to say, he missed a couple shots he would normally make and made some shots that many players wouldnt have made. He is incredibly fun to watch and on a couple of the turnovers he had, he was trying to get someone else involved, and it may have been better to pull up for the shot at that point. I appreciate his willingness to try and get people involved, but sometimes he just needs to take the shot. Just a little something I appreciate about him is that he doesn't seem to have the cocky attitude. It would be so easy for him to be its all about me and carry himself that way but he seems to have a team first mentality and doesn't have that cockiness that a lot of guys that are as good as he is would have. I like that just something i noticed, especially watching Keene. Keene definitely was a bit of a punk at times and pretty cocky, and he is great but when i see a player like that have that kind of attitude it turns me off.

Harold played a great game. It was hard to see him take that foul towards the end and walk off hurt. He looked like he was in a lot of pain. It seems he is getting more comfortable leading the team which is good to see. I did see him a couple of times gather the team together in a huddle and take the leadership role in a sense. That was good to see. Frey will be a good one if he stays healthy.

Zach seemed to get out of a little bit of a slump he seemed to be in. He has been a little off the last couple games, he did have 25 or so against South Dakota the first time i think, but he has seemed a little sluggish at times but he really is a talented player.

Devonte played well considering he was guarding the stud on the other team when he was in. I believe he can be a really great defender, he seems to have that instinct. I think his offensive game isn't quite there yet, but that will come.

Sam is just an enthusiastic, hard working guy out there. So often he is going against bigger guys but he fights hard inside. He is just a fun kid to watch, not only playing but on the sideline he always gets very excited for his teammates when they do well. Gotta love that energy.

Devin Kirby (DK) had moments as well. He definitely is still trying to find his way, but seems he is getting a little more comfortable each game.

Cooper got some minutes. Who would have thought that would happen? I can almost guarantee there is no way he would have played if it was our old coach, as the walk ons never played and would have especially not seen minutes in a close game like this one. I appreciate Fish for trusting him and not only that he had some high praise for him. He looked lost on offense at times, but he did well on the stud when he was in.

Mandrell is starting to come along. Other than the fouls, he played some great minutes. He had 4 rebounds, 3 blocks and no turnovers. He is coming along which is great to see.

Benson Osayande- YAY!! I am so happy about this. He played his best game since he has been here and he looked so good out there. He is very athletic and it was fun to see him be successful. I have a feeling this is what is to come with him and he will just continue to grow and get better. I was so excited to see this, i felt like he would come along eventually!

As for what is coming up, Weber State is a great team and they will be tough, but I am actually not prepared to say that we can't beat them and call it a loss as BelgradeBobcat has alluded too. I believe we can compete, especially if we play as we did last night, with anyone. I believe we can beat Weber and we can beat Idaho State. We have ability to start off conference 2-0 and it can be done!!

[aucat]

Maybe when we get into the BSC schedule we can get some wins. I've said it before but gosh there is such a
disconnect overall between the major hoops conferences and the Big Sky. Wish we somehow had a FCS level
way to play in so there was something to look forward to at the end of the season beyond the BSC tournament.

[sacstateman]

There is something to look forward to other than the Big Dance....NIT or CIT are options...actually they are probably better options for BSC teams because at least you have a chance at winning a couple of games or more....the NCAA tournament will never be a place where a BSC team can win two games or even, realistically one game, so it shouldn't be looked at as the end all for BSC teams....