FULL GAME NOTES (PDF)
BILLINGS, Mont. – The Montana State University Billings' men's basketball team opens the regular season at home Saturday against Black Hills State on Biolife White Out Night in Alterowitz Gymnasium.
Fans are encouraged to wear white to support the Yellowjackets. The first 200 students at the game will receive a free Biolife White Out shirt. Several contests will happen throughout the night, and a 47-inch flat-screen television will be given away.
THE SERIES
* Montana State Billings leads the all-time series over Black Hills State, 8-6
* The Yellowjackets have won six regular season contests over BHSU.
* Montana State Billings and BHSU met six times over a five-year span from 1972-1977, but have not met since MSUB's 66-59 win on Jan. 4, 1977, in Spearfish, S.D.
* The series began with a 43-37 BHSU win on Dec. 8, 1939.
* MSUB has won six of the 10 all-time meetings with Black Hills State in Billings.
* It will be the first regular season contests for both schools.
* Black Hills begins conference play for the first time in NCAA Div. II this year.
QUICK HITS
- Montana State Billings opens the season fifth in the GNAC preseason poll, after opening last season seventh in the poll, before winning the tournament title.
- The Yellowjackets are 6-4 in their last 10 regular season openers, and 7-3 in home regular season openers.
- The last five regular season home openers have been decided by single digits.
- The last four regular season home openers have been decided by a combined 13 points.
- MSU Billings has won four of it last five games at home, but lost three of its last four true road contests.
ABOUT THE YELLOWJACKETS
Black Hills State is playing its third contest of the season, but first counter. The Yellowjackets opened the season with an 89-66 loss at NCAA Div. I's South Dakota State, before beating Dickinson State on the road, 75-67. Tanner Adler dropped 32 points against South Dakota State and then 19 versus Dickinson State. Adler made 17 of his 39 shots from the field in the exhibition contests, including nine of his 21 three-point attempts. The junior added a total of 12 rebounds. Brady Bisgaard dished out six assists in the win over DSU. As a team, the Yellowjackets made 37 percent of their shots from field, and 15 of their 48 three-point attempts. BHSU has only one player over six feet, and has an average height of six feet, four inches.
THAT BOY CRAY
Montana State Billings'
Jarrell Crayton had a stellar debut as a Yellowjacket last week. The Boise State University transfer scored 12 points in the season opening win at Rocky Mountain College, before finishing with 26 points in the win at Carroll College. The senior shot 15 of 21 in the exhibition openers, adding a total of 13 rebounds. Crayton's 40 points came in 38 minutes of action. The Bellevue, Neb. native, made seven of his 10 free-throw attempts as well. He was one of five Yellowjackets to finish with double-digit scoring in both games.
The Montana State University Billings' men's basketball team opens the 2012-13 season at No. 5 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference preseason poll. The Yellowjackets are coming off of the conference tournament title, but return only four players from last season's roster. Seattle Pacific received eight of the 10 first place votes and enter the upcoming season as the preseason favorite to win the conference. Defending national champion, Western Washington had two first place votes and are second in the poll, followed by Central Washington and Alaska Anchorage.
QUICK LOOK AT THE ROSTER
MSU Billings returns four players from last year's squad which went 18-12 overall and 10-8 in conference play. Returners include: seniors
David Arnold and
Cameron Cusworth. The returning juniors include:
Robby Trabing and
Jimmy Hook. MSUB has 11 newcomers, adding eight transfers and three prep standouts. Transfers include:
Kalob Hatcher (Irvine Valley),
Brian Ridgeway (Nebraska-Kearney),
Devon Wallace (Eastern Arizona),
Jarrell Crayton (Boise State),
Sam Johnson (Casper),
Danny Desin (Montana State),
Omar McDade (Fort Hayes State) and
Tyler Nelson (Central Wyoming). The incoming freshmen on this year's roster are
Jace Anderson (Whitewater, Mont.),
Marc Matthews (Sierra Vista, Ariz.), and
Luke Adams (Anchorage, Alaska).
2011-12 HIGHLIGHTS AND OTHER NOTES
• MSU Billings went 10-4 at home last season.
• Montana State Billings was 14th in NCAA Div. II in points per game.
• The Yellowjackets' 95 blocked shots in 2011-12 were third-most in school history.
• MSUB went 6-2 in games decided by five points or less.
• The Yellowjackets were 11-0 when they outrebounded their opponents.
• MSUB was 14-2 when leading at halftime.
• Montana State Billings was 14-0 when it had a higher shooting percentage than its opponent.
• The Yellowjackets won the GNAC Tournament title for the first time in program history.
• MSU Billings appeared in the NCAA Div. II Western Regional for the first time in 25 years.
