FULL GAME NOTES

BILLINGS, Mont. – The Montana State University Billings' men's basketball team returns to Alterowitz Gymnasium after a 10-day game break for the holidays. The Yellowjackets welcome Carroll College (Mont.) to Billings Saturday, in the final non-conference matchup of the 2012-13 regular season.

Montana State Billings (6-6, 0-2 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) faces its third straight NAIA Div. I Frontier Conference opponent, after dropping a 78-57 decision to Montana Western in its previous outing on Dec. 19. MSUB defeated cross-town rival, Rocky Mountain College, on Dec. 19.

“My hope is that our seven-day break has recharged our batteries a bit,” MSU Billings' Head Coach Jamie Stevens said. “I think the quality of our opponents and our overall travel caught up to us in the end. I think our staff, as well as our players needed this last week to get our excitement level back.

“Carroll gives us a game at a great time. We will have a few practices under our belt and a chance to play against an opponent before we resume GNAC play. I am excited to see what our team will become over the next three months.”

Saturday's matchup will be the 148th meeting between the programs. The Yellowjackets have won 85 of those previous meetings, including the last three. MSUB grabbed a 109-80 win in the last regular season meeting, Jan. 3, 1998, in Billings. Carroll hasn't beat Montana State Billings since a 105-91 decision in Helena on Feb. 14, 1994. The Saints have not won in Billings in 43 years.

MSU Billings also eased to a 91-72 exhibition victory in Helena, Mont., on Nov. 3. The Yellowjackets' Jarrell Crayton led all scorers with 26 points. The senior was 10-for-13 from the field. He also added a game-high nine rebounds. Four other MSUB players finished in double-figure scoring: Cameron Cusworth and Omar McDade both had 12 points; while Sam Johnson and Brian Ridgeway both added 10.

Montana State Billings had a 30-24 rebound advantage over the Saints. The Yellowjackets finished 51 percent from the field, while Carroll shot 52 percent. MSUB made 12 of its 30 three-point attempts, while the Saints were 2-of-10. MSU Billings was 9-for-10 from the free-throw line, and Carroll was 10-of-11. MSU Billings committed only nine turnovers.

Carroll College snapped an 11-game losing streak that opened its season. The Fightin' Saints defeated Thompson Rivers (B.C.) in their last game, 71-67. Carroll began the season picked fifth in the Frontier Conference preseason poll, just nine points out of second. One of the bright spots for the Saints this season has been their shooting from behind the perimeter. Carroll is 17th in NAIA Div. I with a .385 three-point field goal percentage. It is also 23rd in free-throw percentage.

The Saints are 24th in assist-to-turnover ratio. A large part of that is their new transfer, Noah Kone-Nelson who is 27th individually in assist-to-turnover ratio. The junior from NCAA Div. II's Academy of Art is also averaging 1.11 blocks per contest. Nick Jones leads Carroll at 13.56 points per game. Brett Ball averages 6.33 rebounds per game, while Chris McGrath dishes out 3.00 assists per outing.

Following the setback to Montana Western, MSU Billings went from first to third in the conference in turnover margin. Kalob Hatcher is third in that statistical category individually in the GNAC. Crayton had his nine-game double-digit scoring streak snapped in the Western loss, but is seventh in the conference averaging 15 points per outing. As a team Montana State Billings sits 10th in the GNAC in field goal percentage offense (.431) and defense (.482), free-throw percentage (.626), and three-point percentage (.308).

This will be third game in a five-game home-stand for the Yellowjackets. MSUB opens its conference home schedule against Simon Fraser (B.C.) Thursday. All children sixth-grade or under receive free admission to all Montana State Billings' home contests. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Live video and stats will be available on MSUBSports.com.