BILLINGS, Mont. – After winning its final game of 2014, the Montana State University Billings men's basketball squad gets set to resume action with a pair of Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchups this week at home in Alterowitz Gym.
 
MSUB faces Saint Martin's University on New Year's Day with a 7 p.m. tipoff time set for the contest. The Yellowjackets will turn around to face the top team in the conference in Western Oregon University on Saturday at 7 p.m. Both games will feature live video and statistics, available at www.msubsports.com.
 
The Yellowjackets (2-10, 0-2 GNAC) scored a big 73-57 win over Ottawa University (Kan.) on Dec. 20 to close out a three-game road trip in Hawaii. The victory snapped a five-game losing skid, and gave the 'Jackets momentum heading into the holiday break.
 
"We are excited to get going again at home," said MSUB head coach Jamie Stevens. "We haven't played at home for a while and this is another GNAC opportunity for us."
 
Emerging for the Yellowjackets in the team's most recent game were junior Emmanuel Johnson and sophomore Jace Anderson, who each had season-best point totals of 15 and 14, respectively. "Jace Anderson did some good things, came off of the bench and made some shots for us," Stevens said regarding Anderson's performance in the victory. "Emmanuel played really well, doing a lot of good things both rebounding and running a good, solid offense."
 
Moving into a starting role, Johnson is now averaging 5.9 points and a team-best 5.3 rebounds per game. Anderson meanwhile is holding a strong mark of 44.4 percent from 3-point range while averaging 8.5 minutes off of the bench.
 
Freshman point guard Kendall Denham also scored in double figures against Ottawa, contributing 10 points. The Malta, Mont., native leads the team with 44 assists on the season and has committed just 17 turnovers for a GNAC eighth-best 2.6 assist-turnover ratio.
 
"Kendall got aggressive and was looking to score in that game, and he is getting better and better," Stevens said.
 
Senior Antoine Hosley leads the team with 13.2 points per game and is shooting a team-best 77.8 percent from the foul line. Hosley also has 17 assists on the season and is tied for the team-high with seven steals.
 
Another senior, Tyler Nelson, is the lone Yellowjacket to have started all 12 games this season, and he is averaging 4.8 rebounds per game and shooting 72.2 percent from the foul line. "It's an exciting time of year, and we felt like that game against Ottawa could be a turning point for us this season," Nelson said. "We executed really well as a team that game and I feel that we can carry that momentum into these two conference games."
 
Each averaging in double figures on the season, Momir Gataric and Marc Matthews continue to be driving forces for MSUB's offense. Gataric sits second on the team with 10.8 points per game and also adds 3.2 rebounds. The junior is also shooting 48.1 percent from the floor and is second on the team with 20 assists.
 
Matthews leads the team in 3-pointers with 21 on the season, and he is also averaging 3.6 rebounds per game and has a team-high seven blocks.
 
Freshman Jordan Perry has also seen an uptick in minutes off of the bench, and is contributing 4.1 points and 2.7 rebounds in 15.2 minutes per contest.
 
As a squad MSUB is scoring 68.1 points per game while allowing 74.4, and the 'Jackets are narrowly being outrebounded 35.0-34.5 per game. From the floor MSUB is shooting 43.5 percent, and the team is at 31.7 percent from long range and 62.5 percent from the foul line.
 
Thursday, Jan. 1 – 7 p.m. – Alterowitz Gym
Saint Martin's University Saints
2014-15 Record: 4-8, 1-1 GNAC
Head Coach: Michael Ostlund, 2nd season
2013-14 GNAC Finish: 8th (9-17, 6-12 GNAC)
 
Also coming off of a victory in its most recent game, Saint Martin's snapped a two-game losing skid with a 96-83 win over Northwest Indian College on Dec. 20 at home. The Saints dropped a pair of games at the Las Vegas Holiday Classic, after splitting their first two conference games of the season.
 
Hosting Alaska Anchorage on Dec. 4, SMU fell 75-68 in overtime before defeating GNAC opponent Alaska Fairbanks 67-64 two days later. The Saints began the conference portion of their schedule 1-1, and also defeated soon-to-be GNAC opponent Concordia (Ore.) 73-72 on the road on Nov. 29.
 
SMU features a pair of players who are averaging in double-digits in the scoring department, with Tyler Copp (10.3 ppg) and Trey Ingram (10.1) leading the way. Copp has started 11 of 12 games this season and is shooting 37.3 percent from 3-point range and 76.7 percent from the foul line. The sophomore also ranks second on the team in assists with 36 and has 11 steals.
 
Starting all 12 games for the Saints and averaging 32.3 minutes, Ingram is shooting 41.6 percent from the floor and leads the team in 3-point field goals with 22 on the season (45.8 percent). His 54 assists are a team-high and his average of 4.5 per game is the sixth-best mark across the conference.
 
Tyler Idowu has posted strong numbers for the Saints, averaging 8.7 points and a team-best 5.7 rebounds on the season in eight starts. Brent Counts is another strong post player, shooting a team-best 61.8 percent from the floor while averaging 7.4 points, 3.8 rebounds and collecting a team-high 10 blocks.
 
As a team the Saints pose a similar scoring dynamic to the Yellowjackets, being outscored 73.5-68.9 on the season. SMU is also outrebounded 36.9-35.4, but the team holds a positive assist-turnover ratio at 1.16. The Saints are shooting 42.7 percent from the field, 37.5 percent from 3-point range and 63.9 percent from the free-throw line.
 
The Series: MSUB holds a narrow 12-11 all-time series advantage over SMU, and the Yellowjackets are 7-4 at home against the Saints. The teams have split their meetings over the past two seasons, with MSUB winning the first and losing the second game in both 2012-13 and 2013-14. Overall MSUB has won five of the last seven games between the two teams.
 
Last Time Out: Matthews connected on a pair of 3-pointers and scored 12 points while grabbing five rebounds for the 'Jackets, but Saint Martin's separated for an 83-70 win on Feb. 1 in Alterowitz Gym. In the first meeting last season, MSUB held SMU to just 50 points in a 66-50 win in Lacey, Wash., on Jan. 2. Matthews again was a double-figure scorer with 10 points, and he totaled six rebounds in his first-ever game against SMU.
 
Saturday, Jan. 3 – 7 p.m. – Alterowitz Gym
Western Oregon University Wolves
2014-15 Record: 10-2, 2-0 GNAC
Head Coach: Brady Bergeson, 2nd season
2013-14 GNAC Finish: 4th (18-12, 10-8 GNAC)
 
Since losing to Azusa Pacific 81-74 on Nov. 21, Western Oregon has won nine games in-a-row and has assumed the top spot in the GNAC standings. Azusa Pacific was recently selected as the No. 1 team in the west region according to the D2SIDA Men's Basketball West Region Rankings, as the Cougars received five first-place votes. The Wolves were ranked fourth in the most recent poll, and received the other first-place vote.
 
WOU will take on Seattle Pacific on the road New Year's Day before traveling to Billings to face the Yellowjackets on Saturday.
 
Leading the way for the Wolves this season has been Andy Avgi, whose 15.1 points per game rank No. 10 in the conference. Avgi also ranks second on the team and ninth in the GNAC with 5.8 rebounds per game, and he is shooting 55.4 percent from the floor.
 
Topping the Wolves in rebounding and ranking second in the conference is Lewis Thomas, who is hauling in 7.4 boards per game and averaging 8.3 points.
 
Junior guard Julian Nichols is also averaging in double-digits for WOU with 11.6 points per game, and his 59 assists and 22 steals are both team-highs. Nichols also leads the team from the foul line with a percentage of 87.1, and he is shooting an even 50.0 percent from the floor.
 
The Wolves' top perimeter shooter is Jordan Wiley, who has converted 27 3-pointers and holds a percentage of 41.5. Overall the junior is shooting 42.2 percent from the field, 75.0 percent from the foul line and is averaging 9.6 points per game.
 
Devon Alexander is averaging 9.8 points per game, and he joins Avgi, Wiley, and Thomas having started all 12 games for WOU this season.
 
As a team Western Oregon has the fourth-highest scoring offense in the conference at 80.0 points per game, and the second-best scoring defense allowing just 63.7 points per game. The Wolves outrebound opponents at a clip of 39.8-32.2, and the team's plus-3.33 turnover margin is third-best in the GNAC. WOU shoots 46.9 percent from the field, 36.4 percent from 3-point range and a GNAC-leading 77.9 percent from the foul line.
 
"We have gone on the road and played three really good PacWest teams, and having that experience will help us as we get prepared for Western Oregon," Stevens said.
 
The Series: Overall MSUB holds a 10-8 series advantage over the Wolves, and the 'Jackets are an impressive 7-2 at home against WOU. Western Oregon has won the last two meetings between the teams but MSUB has won four of the last six overall dating back to January of 2012.
 
Last Time Out: Western Oregon received 21 points from Wiley and 13 from Alexander to pick up a narrow 84-77 win over MSUB in Billings on Jan. 30. Matthews finished with eight points in the game for the 'Jackets. The first game of 2013-14 between the two was a shootout, as Wiley scored 14 and Avgi added 11 in a 98-90 WOU win in Monmouth, Ore., on Jan. 4.