CHENEY, Washington — The bitter narrative is becoming all too familiar for the Bobcats.
The sweet weekend sweep thrusts the Eagles squarely into the heart of the Big Sky race.
For much of Montana State’s downward spiral over the last five weeks, the Bobcats have gone blow for blow with its Big Sky opposition for the first half and much of the first 30 to 35 minutes. And for most of a stretch that has seen MSU lose eight of its last 10, the Bobcats simply have not been able to finish.
Eastern Washington won the final two minutes of action at Reese Court on Saturday afternoon 10-5 to post an 84-79 victory in front of 1,804.
Eastern Washington point forward Bogdan Bliznyuk (32)/by EWU Athletics
The EWU win gives the Eagles a late-season sweep of the Montana schools. Eastern knocked off Montana 74-65 on Thursday, snapping UM’s 13-game Big Sky winning streak in the process.
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“After the Idaho game (a 66-64 loss), we talked about how we need a bye (in the Big Sky Tournament) and every game we have is big,” EWU star senior Bogdan Bliznyuk said after nearly notching a triple-double. ”Every game we have is for seeding. With Montana coming in being top of the league, that was a huge win and will probably give us some tiebreakers. We have to keep winning to stay in that top four conversation. It was great to take care of business.”
After a 12-6 start that included four straight wins to begin Big Sky play for the first time in 13 years for the Bobcats, MSU has only managed home victories over Southern Utah and Sacramento State.
“The ball movement is good, we are making assists, we are making simple plays, we are taking good shots, guys are being good teammates, doing a lot of good things. Tonight, we were right there and didn’t come up with a couple things and that’s how close that ball game was,” MSU fourth-year head coach Brian Fish said.
“We still haven’t closed the loop yet. We have one thing that’s hurting us each game. We have to close the loop on everything and then we will be ready to go.”
Montana State guard Tyler Hall (3)/by EWU Athletics
MSU trailed by one at halftime in a 19-point loss to Sac State that started the spiral. The Bobcats were tied at halftime with the rival Griz before losing by 15 on their home court. MSU blew a four-point halftime lead in a two-point loss to last-place Northern Arizona, let a four-point halftime deficit turn into a 25-point loss at Northern Colorado, blew a four-point halftime lead in a three-point home loss to Portland State and lost by 10 at Idaho Thursday despite leading with 6:50 left in Moscow.
“Sure, it’s great we are showing we are playing with these teams and showing we can beat them but it doesn’t mean anything if we are actually getting wins,” MSU senior Konner Frey said after setting his Bobcat career high with 16 points. “That’s a jump we have to take. We know we are there, we know we are fighting with it but almost doesn’t cut it.
On Saturday, Montana State built a 40-38 halftime lead and had the game tied at 74 with 2:19 left only to watch the Eagles pull away, leaving MSU searching for answers once again.
“It’s the same thing pretty much every game,” MSU junior Tyler Hall said after his 46th 20-point game. “It’s the last couple of minutes. We have to get there.
“It’s frustrating but we have to change it. We are still the team we thought we were but we are in a slump and we have to get a win under our belts and keep the momentum going.”
Eastern Washington forward Mason Peatling (14)/by EWU Athletics
In the first half, Montana State seemed to have all the answers for Bliznyuk, EWU’s senior league MVP candidate. The Bobcats trapped the 6-foot-6 point forward in the half-court, forcing him to pass out of double teams. The result was leaving 6-foot-8 forward Mason Peatling alone on the block. The sophomore scored 12 of his 19 points in the first half. He also grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds.
On the other end, Devonte Klines sliced through EWU’s zone defense, scoring Montana State’s first 10 points. His penetration opened things up for kick outs, leading to seven MSU 3-pointers, including two each from Klines, Hall and senior Konner Frey.
Frey scored 10 of his season-best 16 points before halftime and ended up knocking down three of his four 3-point tries overall. Hall scored 10 of his 22 before halftime, including hitting a pair of triples.
“I don’t think I did anything special, I just took wide open shots my teammates provided for me,” Frey said. “That’s a result of playing with Tyler and Harry (Frey) and Devonte. They had to give something up. I was just trying to take good shots.
“Zones defenses definitely have weaknesses so I was trying to find those holes.”
The first half flew by in 32 minutes of real time thanks to just two fouls in the first 18 game minutes.
Montana State guard Harald Frey (5)/by Brooks Nuanez
After halftime, Bliznyuk and the Eagles adjusted, slipping the traps and getting their senior facilitator in scoring situations. The native Lithuanian responded by scoring 19 of his game-high 25 points after halftime, including making all nine of his free throw attempts. He has now hit 65 straight free throws and 137 of his 151 attempts from the stripe overall.
“In the first half, I was sloppy with the ball, throwing it all around and not taking care of it, which was very disappointing,” Bliznyuk said. ”Every possession is valuable so in the second half, I made it a key to value each possession. That new focus helped me.”
MSU point guard Harald Frey, who scored 11 of his 16 points after halftime to go with seven rebounds and four assists, hit a 3-pointer with 10:39 left to give Montana State a 62-61 lead. Although the game remained tight, MSU would not lead again.
EWU stretched the lead to 74-66 with 5:21 left on a 3-pointer from Jack Perry, the true freshman’s third triple during an 11-point afternoon. Bliznyuk had the assist, one of nine dimes in a game where he missed a triple-double by one rebound and one assist.
“Jacob (Davison), Jack, a lot of our young guys came in and they are playing with confidence now,” Bliznyuk said. “Early in the season, maybe they didn’t know their role, their identity and now they know.”
Montana State forward Konner Frey 22)/by Brooks Nuanez
Montana State did not make a field goal for more than five minutes until senior Joe Mvuezolo Jr. snapped the streak with two huge shots. His pull-up mid-range jumper snapped the streak and his corner 3-pointer cut the lead to 74-72 at the under-4 media timeout. Frey’s jumper tied it at 74 with 2:19 left before Bliznyuk took over for good.
Trailing 77-74 with less than two minutes left, Hall fired a 3 in transition that seemed like a quick shot if not for the fact that Konner Frey was already under the rim. Frey was called for a questionable offensive foul that sent Peatling to the line for two free throws. He hit one to extend the lead to 78-74 with 45 seconds left.
“That was really tough,” Frey said. “I thought I was in really good position. I was trying to be really careful to not push. That definitely would’ve been a swing to get that offensive rebound but instead they got two free throws.”
Bliznyuk hit six straight free throws, one a part of a 3-point play to help EWU retake the lead once and for all. Hall and Frey each missed crucial free throws for the Bobcats, who only missed three of their 18 attempts from the stripe all night.
EWU now prepares for a crucial road trip starting with Weber State on Thursday and Idaho State on Saturday. The Eagles remain alive for the Big Sky title because of Idaho’s 79-77 overtime win over Montana in Moscow on Saturday night. Weber State beat Sac State 83-73 on the road to move to 12-2 in league play, one win behind UM in the win column and one game ahead of the Vandals. EWU is two games back of Idaho and alone in fourth.
Montana State guard Tyler Hall (3)/by Brooks Nuanez
“No team has won the Big Sky Tournament that has had to play four games so that extra day off and not having to play another game is huge,” Bliznyuk said. “It’s tough to play Thursday-Saturday but to do that for three games, you have to get as much rest as you can and if you have another game, it makes it tough for you.”
Montana State now prepares for rival Montana in Missoula on Saturday. The Bobcats have lost 14 of 15 to their rivals, the one win a nine point triumph in Bozeman last season. The Griz posted a 67-52 win over MSU in Bozeman earlier this season.
“We can’t give up,” Hall said. “We still have three games left. We aren’t going to look ahead to Reno. We are just trying to get a win.”
This game was attended and reported by Colter Nuanez. Photos by Eastern Washington Athletics or Brooks Nuanez, as noted. All Rights Reserved.
