BILLINGS, Mont. – With a pair of road games this week, the Montana State University Billings men's basketball team continues Great Northwest Athletic Conference action against Western Washington University on Jan. 8 and Simon Fraser University on Jan. 10.
 
Thursday's game against the Vikings is scheduled for 8 p.m. Mountain time at Sam Carver Gym in Bellingham, Wash. On Saturday, the Yellowjackets will face the Clan, also at 8 p.m. Mountain time in the West Gym on the SFU campus in Burnaby, British Columbia. Both games will feature live video and live statistics, available at www.msubsports.com.
 
The 'Jackets (2-12, 0-4 GNAC) are coming off two of their most energetic performances of the year, falling to Saint Martin's by just one point, 66-65, before taking GNAC-leading Western Oregon to the limit in a 72-64 loss last Saturday in Alterowitz Gym.
 
Momir Gataric put up big numbers in both games, with a 14-point, 13-rebound double-double against Saint Martin's and 13 more points against Western Oregon that earned him GNAC Player of the Week honorable mention notification. On the season, Gataric is averaging 11.2 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, while shooting 49.5 percent from the field, and his 27 assists are second-most on the team.
 
Also having a major impact last week were Emmanuel Johnson and Jordan Perry, who have each stepped into key roles for the 'Jackets. Johnson is averaging 7.1 points and a team-best 5.3 rebounds per game, and his field-goal percentage of 56.6 is the highest on the team and ninth-best in the conference.
 
Perry has been a key contributor off of the bench, turning in a season-best performance of 12 points and nine rebounds last Saturday. Overall he is posting 4.8 points and 3.4 rebounds in 17 minutes per game.
 
Leading the team in scoring is senior Antoine Hosley, who sits at 12.5 points per game and is leading the team with a free-throw percentage of 74.4. Marc Matthews is another top scorer for the 'Jackets with 8.9 points per game, and he leads the team with 21 3-point field goals.
 
Freshman point guard Kendall Denham is leading the team with 33.1 minutes per game and in assists with 52 on the season, and his assist-turnover ratio of 2.1 ranks 11th-best in the GNAC.
 
Senior Tyler Nelson has started all 14 games for MSUB, and is grabbing 4.8 rebounds in 22.5 minutes per game. Jace Anderson has earned three starts as of late and is a strong perimeter shooter for MSUB, converting at a mark of 46.2 percent from beyond the arc on the season.
 
As a team the Yellowjackets rank No. 1 in the conference in 3-point field goal defense, holding opponents to a clip of just .320 on the season from long distance. The team also holds a strong mark in defensive rebound percentage, ranking third in the GNAC at 71.1 percent.
 
Overall the 'Jackets are outscored 73.6-67.6, and thanks to a stingy rebounding defense that allows just 34.3 per game are nearly even in rebounding (34.3-34.2). From the field MSUB is shooting 43.7 percent, with marks of 33.1 percent from 3-point range and 61.0 percent from the foul line.
 
Thursday, Jan. 8 – 8 p.m. MTN – Sam Carver Gym – Bellingham, Wash.
Western Washington University Vikings
2014-15 Record: 7-6, 0-3 GNAC
Head Coach: Tony Dominguez, 3rd season
2013-14 GNAC Finish: 2nd (20-8, 13-5 GNAC)
 
The Vikings have dropped three of their last four contests and four of their last six overall, beginning the conference portion of their schedule 0-3 early on in 2014-15. WWU nearly came out on top twice last week, falling 64-60 against Alaska Fairbanks and 62-60 against Alaska Anchorage on arguably the toughest road trip of the season.
 
The losses came after a split at the South Point Holiday Hoops Classic, in which the Vikings lost to Tarleton State 72-65 but defeated Cal State San Bernardino 72-66. WWU opened its conference play on Dec. 6, 2014 with a narrow 122-118 loss at Simon Fraser.
 
On the season WWU is being led in scoring by Jaamon Echols, who is averaging 19.2 points per game and adding 4.4 rebounds. Echols is one of five Vikings to average in double figures, and Ricardo Maxwell (15.5 ppg) and Jeffrey Parker (15.0) are both scoring at least 15. Parker is shooting 47.3 percent from the floor and is contributing 5.8 rebounds per game, while Echols is at 47.5 percent and 4.4 rebounds per game.
 
Anye Turner is another double-digit scorer at 10.2 points per game, and is leading the team and the conference in rebounding with 8.2 per game. His 42 blocks and 3.2 per game are far-and-away the most in the conference, and his total number ranks No. 4 across all of NCAA Division II.
 
Bouncing back after missing last season with an injury, Joey Schreiber has been productive with 11.2 points per game while shooting 46.2 percent from the field.
 
Maxwell leads the team with 41 assists on the season, and his assist-turnover ratio of 2.73 would rank No. 5 in the GNAC if he had played enough games to qualify for the statistical rankings. Parker has been the top man from the arc, converting 37 3-pointers for a percentage of 44.6.
 
As a team the Vikings have the second-highest scoring offense in the GNAC at 84.2 points per game, while allowing 72.4. The Vikings outrebound opponents 42.7-35.6, shoot 47.1 percent from the field, 34.1 percent from 3-point range, and 62.1 percent from the foul line.
 
The Series: All-time against the Vikings the Yellowjackets are 4-17 and have never won on the road (0-10). The 'Jackets defeated the 11th-ranked Vikings on the road to the 2012 GNAC Championship, winning 82-78 in the semifinals on March 2.
 
Last Time Out: The 'Jackets walked away with a 102-101 overtime thriller last February in Alterowitz Gym, earning a season split with the Vikings. WWU won the first meeting of the season between the two 84-71 on Jan. 18, 2014 in Bellingham.
 
Saturday, Jan. 10 – 8 p.m. MTN – West Gym – Burnaby, B.C.
Simon Fraser University Clan
2014-15 Record: 6-5, 1-2 GNAC
Head Coach: James Blake, 5th season
2013-14 GNAC Finish: 10th (10-16, 3-15 GNAC)
 
Leading the NCAA Division II in scoring offense with 124.3 points per game, Simon Fraser has employed a new-look strategy that has resulted in an overall winning record so far this season. Despite the high-powered offense, the Clan also allows the most points in Division II at 107.2 per game.
 
SFU also leads the NCAA in 3-point field goal attempts with 493 (44.9 per game), and the next-closest team, Minnesota State Moorhead, has attempted 443 while playing six more games than the Clan.
 
After defeating Western Washington to open its 2014-15 conference slate, SFU dropped a pair of games against Alaska Anchorage (108-86) and Alaska Fairbanks (121-111). Earlier in the season the Clan set a new GNAC single-game scoring record in a 160-99 win over Northwest Indian College, and topped that mark with an ensuing 161-108 win over the Capilano Blues on Dec. 16, 2014.
 
Leading the barrage of scoring for SFU is Sango Niang, who is the top scorer in the conference at 22.1 points per game. Niang's 183 field-goal attempts lead the conference as well, and his 8.0 assists per game lead the GNAC and rank No. 3 in all of Division II.
 
Ranking No. 2 on the team in scoring is Roderick Evans-Taylor with 16.4 points per game, and his 6.3 rebounds per game lead the team. Justin Cole is averaging 14.0 points, Michael Harper is at 12.5, and Patrick Simon is at 12.1.
 
Adam Westfall has been the top 3-point shooter at 42.9 percent, and is averaging 10.5 points per game. Minutes are spread evenly across the team, with no player averaging more than 26.8 minutes and no player who has played in all 11 games averaging less than 7.5 minutes per game.
 
As a team SFU is outrebounded 47.8-41.5 but generates 28.2 turnovers per game while committing just 16.4. The Clan is shooting 49.6 percent from the field, 36.1 percent from 3-point range and 69.0 percent from the free-throw line.
 
The Series: MSUB is 8-1 overall against Simon Fraser, including a mark of 3-1 on the road against the Clan. The Yellowjackets have won the last seven meetings between the teams, and scored 90 or more points in six of those matchups.
 
Last Time Out: The 'Jackets won both games last season against the Clan, including a big 100-70 victory on the road the last time the team played in Burnaby. Matthews had 15 points on three 3-pointers in the win last January.
 
At home last season, MSUB picked up a 95-82 victory, as Matthews had 11 points and six rebounds for the 'Jackets last February.