Men's Basketball vs. Oregon St.

[bozbobcat]

The Cats played hard, but ended up falling 63-72 to Oregon State this afternoon. Nick Dissly scored 22 and Ted Morris 14, but Oregon State is really not a bad team. The Cats put up some bad shots on fast breaks. Also, Danny Piepoli made some big threes down the stretch to get the Cats close again. It was a nice effort for the Cats and they need to keep improving.

[Egg Salad]

Oregon State was definately beatable, but turnovers and bad shooting decisions killed the Cats today. I wasn't really impressed with play on the perimeter either. 1-11 from the field and 7 turnovers from Taylor isn't going to cut it. A lot of our turnovers resulted in fast break points. Ted was a beast as usual, and had a double-double. If there weren't so many wreckless plays, I think the Cats could have won comfortably.

[1BadBobcat]

Just got back from a fantastic sports weekend in Bozeman after watching the Cats b-ball team play a close one with Oregon State. My rant: where in the hell where the fans? The announced attendance was a little over 2,000, and I think they were counting people and their shadows. I have posted this a couple times last season, but I am extremely disappointed with the support given to our hoopsters. Sure, you can lay out all the excuses you want (bad weather, students on Turkey break, people heading home after long weekend, bad team, etc.), but IMHO there is just absolutely no reason why there shouldn't have been at least 4-5,000 fans there today.

There were two key ingredients that could have really helped in pushing fans to the b-ball game. One was the football playoff game. Enough people went to Bozeman for that game that they could have taken the opportunity to watch a basketball game as well. It's very rare during the season that you get both events in one weekend, let alone an afternoon tip-off. Second, we got a PAC-10 team to come to Bozeman (granted, a bad one, but PAC-10 none the least)!!!! The last time a PAC-10 team played in Bozeman was 1987!! And all we could draw today was 2,000 fans. To be honest with you, I was embarrassed by that effort from our fans.

So who's to blame? Sure we don't that great of a team, but we are truly in a re-building phase. Don't withhold your support because of our players. They played hard today - they made some mistakes and it cost them the game. And they have a long road ahead of them with games at Fresno State on Wednesday and against Wyoming on Saturday in Billings. I point the finger at our athletics department. They do a very poor job of marketing. This b-ball game really could have been sold or promoted in conjunction with the football game. There was only one mention of it over the PA system yesterday during the game. They could have offered discount ticket prices to anyone holding a ticket stub from the football game. The list goes. My point is that I am sick and tired of going to b-ball games and seeing the poor turnout. Our student-athletes deserve much better, as do our our coaches. End rant.

[bozbobcat]

I felt the same way, but I didn't mention it before. I felt like a PAC-10 team would draw fairly big, but where were the fans today? I hope that future games can draw better.

[Egg Salad]

Contrary to popular belief, people's lives do not revolve around MSU athletics.

[BelgradeBobcat]

Oregon State really pressured us and our young team couldn't handle it very well. Way too many turnovers. We had a bad stretch before the half and again after the half to lose the game.

McGillis from Missoula is a good player for them. I hope the rumors aren't true-that Durham could have signed him, but offered the scholarship to someone else (Derrick Edmonds?) If so one of the greatest blunders of his career.

Our team will go as Carlos Taylor goes. He was 1-11 today. When he's hitting his shots we'll be tougher to beat.

[alasax]

Taylor looked like he was really pressing early. Trying to score on his drives. Then he started launching to see if he could find that groove. He didn't. To his credit he was a defensive force throughout.
Peipolli (sp) was a bright spot today and Meklen played better.
Too many turnovers, missed free threows and some bunnies that should be falling.
Effort was good and Huse coached the game VERY well.

Go Cats!

[grizzh8r]

The Cats just need to work on turnovers and making the easy buckets (Durr missed 2 easy layups on backcuts on the first two offensive possessions).

I fully agree with mslacat - this team will be good by the end of the season. They just need practice. I saw some good things out of this team today. Dissly looks like he has finally turned the corner, and is a very vocal leader as well.

[1BadBobcat]

Contrary to popular belief, people's lives do not revolve around MSU athletics.

Really, no sh%#t! I don't seem to recall mentioning anything about that. Sorry you feel you need to toss one more excuse onto the heap. One game might be excusable, but attendance is this way for all our home games. And it's been dropping for several years now. Take Bozeman, Belgrade, & Livingston and you probably have close to 50,000 people in the surrounding area. Toss in the fact that we are hosting a PAC-10 team and you'd think we could draw a decent crowd. But hey, your life doesn't revolve around Bobcat athletics so no worries, eh mate?

[longhorn_22]

The Cats just need to work on turnovers and making the easy buckets (Durr missed 2 easy layups on backcuts on the first two offensive possessions).

I fully agree with mslacat - this team will be good by the end of the season. They just need practice. I saw some good things out of this team today. Dissly looks like he has finally turned the corner, and is a very vocal leader as well.

I really like Durr as a leader and whatnot, and I've said it before, but he really needs to come off the bench. I still do not see anything from him yet that should warrant a start over Branden Johnson. Johnson is our best 3-point threat and he played, what, 13 minutes? Ridiculous. He was subbed in and taken out at in-opportune times. Huse needs to teach these kids how to utilize the post players and get the ball in to Ted. That is a HUGE weakness for us not getting the ball in the paint. Just my $.02

[longhorn_22]

Contrary to popular belief, people's lives do not revolve around MSU athletics.

Really, no sh%#t! I don't seem to recall mentioning anything about that. Sorry you feel you need to toss one more excuse onto the heap. One game might be excusable, but attendance is this way for all our home games. And it's been dropping for several years now. Take Bozeman, Belgrade, & Livingston and you probably have close to 50,000 people in the surrounding area. Toss in the fact that we are hosting a PAC-10 team and you'd think we could draw a decent crowd. But hey, your life doesn't revolve around Bobcat athletics so no worries, eh mate?

Attendence should really be improved if this game was scheduled on a Friday night or something and not Sunday at 1:00.

[Egg Salad]

Contrary to popular belief, people's lives do not revolve around MSU athletics.

Really, no sh%#t! I don't seem to recall mentioning anything about that. Sorry you feel you need to toss one more excuse onto the heap. One game might be excusable, but attendance is this way for all our home games. And it's been dropping for several years now. Take Bozeman, Belgrade, & Livingston and you probably have close to 50,000 people in the surrounding area. Toss in the fact that we are hosting a PAC-10 team and you'd think we could draw a decent crowd. But hey, your life doesn't revolve around Bobcat athletics so no worries, eh mate?

So maybe some people just didn't feel like going to the game. People already shelled out a bunch of money to get here for the football game. Maybe it's just me, but I don't feel comfortable telling people how they should spend their time and money. With the roads how they were, I wouldn't drive from Livingston or Belgrade either. You said, in your opinion, it is inexcusable. In my opinion, it is.

And no, my life does not revolve around Bobcat athletics, and thank God. If it ever does, I'm going to seek professional help. By the way, I was at the game.

[rtb]

The atmosphere in the fieldhouse kills interest from the casual fan I think. The place just doesn't get rockin' like it use to. In a year or two when this team starts winning games the fans will come back, but right now I think a lot of people in Bozeman are disenchanted with MSU Basketball.

I wish there was a way to make people feel closer to the action and get pumped up in the fieldhouse, but it just isn't a great set-up for that. In order to really get the crowd going in the fieldhouse we have to have a good winning team. It sucks!!

Overall I was disappointed with the crowd, but that is the normal atmosphere for a Sunday afternoon game.

[longhorn_22]

The atmosphere in the fieldhouse kills interest from the casual fan I think. The place just doesn't get rockin' like it use to. In a year or two when this team starts winning games the fans will come back, but right now I think a lot of people in Bozeman are disenchanted with MSU Basketball.

I wish there was a way to make people feel closer to the action and get pumped up in the fieldhouse, but it just isn't a great set-up for that. In order to really get the crowd going in the fieldhouse we have to have a good winning team. It sucks!!

Overall I was disappointed with the crowd, but that is the normal atmosphere for a Sunday afternoon game.

I agree with you on that, rtb. We need to start winning to really get the crowd into it. We also need to get something done with the pitiful advertising this team gets. It is ridiculous what little attention this team has displayed for them on campus and throughout town. I saw in the paper that there was an opening for a new marketing director. Anyone know if anything good came from that?

[SaltyCat]

With the exception of a few players (McGillis not being one of them) Oregon St. is in no way a Pac-10 caliber team. They were a very beatable opponent. Fresno State has far superior talent to OSU and I am a little worried that we may get blown out of the gym on Wednesday.

As for my impressions of the game...Dissly was all over the place today. He was our only offense for most of the game. I was also impressed by the spark Danny Piepoli brought off the bench. Ted put up good numbers, but he just isn't the low-post threat that we need to compete. I think Durham being in foul trouble early hurt Taylor's effectiveness. He doesn't look as comfortable in the offense as when Casey is in the game with him.

All we can really ask for from this team is that they show steady improvement throughout the season and build a foundation for the programs future. It is pretty obvious that MSU basketball has taken a back seat to football and the excitement is just not there at the moment. It wasn't too long ago that the roles were reversed. Hopefully the program can get back to where it once was...

[1BadBobcat]

Contrary to popular belief, people's lives do not revolve around MSU athletics.

Really, no sh%#t! I don't seem to recall mentioning anything about that. Sorry you feel you need to toss one more excuse onto the heap. One game might be excusable, but attendance is this way for all our home games. And it's been dropping for several years now. Take Bozeman, Belgrade, & Livingston and you probably have close to 50,000 people in the surrounding area. Toss in the fact that we are hosting a PAC-10 team and you'd think we could draw a decent crowd. But hey, your life doesn't revolve around Bobcat athletics so no worries, eh mate?

So maybe some people just didn't feel like going to the game. People already shelled out a bunch of money to get here for the football game. Maybe it's just me, but I don't feel comfortable telling people how they should spend their time and money. With the roads how they were, I wouldn't drive from Livingston or Belgrade either. You said, in your opinion, it is inexcusable. In my opinion, it is.

And no, my life does not revolve around Bobcat athletics, and thank God. If it ever does, I'm going to seek professional help. By the way, I was at the game.

I am happy you were there. I'm sorry you felt I was trying to dictate to others how should spend their free-time. Not my point. Rather, I was hoping more people would take the opportunity to catch a little Division 1 basketball when it is in their own back-yard. I drove over this weekend from Helena and the roads were not an excuse for people travelling to a sporting event or back home after a hoilday visit with friends and family. As for a Sunday tip-off @ 1pm, I am gonna be there. While I am able to attend all home football games, that is not the case with basketball. With evening tip-offs and games being played during the work week, it is rare when I make it for a b-ball game. However I do manage to get to about 3-4 home games/year. My life does not revolve around Bobcat Athletics, but I am a serious fan. It was also mentioned that winning breeds attendance. I agree, but put yourself in the players' shoes. The young men are not stupid - they can take the court, look into the stands and see how few people are there. How motivated would you be to play for a team that evidently has very little support?

[BobCatFan]

Just got back from a fantastic sports weekend in Bozeman after watching the Cats b-ball team play a close one with Oregon State. My rant: where in the hell where the fans? The announced attendance was a little over 2,000, and I think they were counting people and their shadows. I have posted this a couple times last season, but I am extremely disappointed with the support given to our hoopsters. Sure, you can lay out all the excuses you want (bad weather, students on Turkey break, people heading home after long weekend, bad team, etc.), but IMHO there is just absolutely no reason why there shouldn't have been at least 4-5,000 fans there today.

There were two key ingredients that could have really helped in pushing fans to the b-ball game. One was the football playoff game. Enough people went to Bozeman for that game that they could have taken the opportunity to watch a basketball game as well. It's very rare during the season that you get both events in one weekend, let alone an afternoon tip-off. Second, we got a PAC-10 team to come to Bozeman (granted, a bad one, but PAC-10 none the least)!!!! The last time a PAC-10 team played in Bozeman was 1987!! And all we could draw today was 2,000 fans. To be honest with you, I was embarrassed by that effort from our fans.

So who's to blame? Sure we don't that great of a team, but we are truly in a re-building phase. Don't withhold your support because of our players. They played hard today - they made some mistakes and it cost them the game. And they have a long road ahead of them with games at Fresno State on Wednesday and against Wyoming on Saturday in Billings. I point the finger at our athletics department. They do a very poor job of marketing. This b-ball game really could have been sold or promoted in conjunction with the football game. There was only one mention of it over the PA system yesterday during the game. They could have offered discount ticket prices to anyone holding a ticket stub from the football game. The list goes. My point is that I am sick and tired of going to b-ball games and seeing the poor turnout. Our student-athletes deserve much better, as do our our coaches. End rant.

Marketing. Marketing. Marketing. This is something MSU does not understand. They act like a small business. They do not understand how $$ spent on marketing brings in $$. Did anyone hear a radio spot for this game in Bozeman? Read a add for the game in the paper. At the football game, they mentioned the game 1 time. It takes at least 3 times for the message to sink in.

[MSU999]

I really like Durr as a leader and whatnot, and I've said it before, but he really needs to come off the bench. I still do not see anything from him yet that should warrant a start over Branden Johnson. Johnson is our best 3-point threat and he played, what, 13 minutes? Ridiculous. He was subbed in and taken out at in-opportune times. Huse needs to teach these kids how to utilize the post players and get the ball in to Ted. That is a HUGE weakness for us not getting the ball in the paint. Just my $.02

I do think Huse is still experimenting with plays as the #4 position is a guess. Pepoli got minutes tonight and shot well early and terrible late. He should not have been in the game late....Durr or Johnson should have.

Durr does need to get going......I think he should start tho and Johnson off the bench......I think Huse is trying not to put pressure on Johnson as a starter. Durr is so frustrating at times as he will not shoot and penetrate to the basket.....his defense is great and so is his leadership, but you can tell by his minutes that offense is the coaches preference over defense. He is a senior and could be put on the shelf if he does not get in gear!

I still think he thinks he will be pulled if he shoots and misses......I do not understand that as everyone else shoots at will and stays in the game.

[longhorn_22]

I really like Durr as a leader and whatnot, and I've said it before, but he really needs to come off the bench. I still do not see anything from him yet that should warrant a start over Branden Johnson. Johnson is our best 3-point threat and he played, what, 13 minutes? Ridiculous. He was subbed in and taken out at in-opportune times. Huse needs to teach these kids how to utilize the post players and get the ball in to Ted. That is a HUGE weakness for us not getting the ball in the paint. Just my $.02

I do think Huse is still experimenting with plays as the #4 position is a guess. Pepoli got minutes tonight and shot well early and terrible late. He should not have been in the game late....Durr or Johnson should have.

Durr does need to get going......I think he should start tho and Johnson off the bench......I think Huse is trying not to put pressure on Johnson as a starter. Durr is so frustrating at times as he will not shoot and penetrate to the basket.....his defense is great and so is his leadership, but you can tell by his minutes that offense is the coaches preference over defense. He is a senior and could be put on the shelf if he does not get in gear!

I still think he thinks he will be pulled if he shoots and misses......I do not understand that as everyone else shoots at will and stays in the game.

I agree with that completely. If Casey Durham wasn't is so much foul trouble, Taylor shouldn't have played as much as he did. He just had a terrible night.

[mslacat]

This was the game when the schedule came out that I circled as the one can not miss game of the season. Unfortunately Saturday and Sunday I was sicker than a dog with food poisoning thingy. I did not even get to listen to it from the net. I was flat on my back in bed! I thought we had a real chance of knocking off a Pac-10 school Sunday, but no go. Taylor and Davis were recruited to answer our point guard problem, but we are still not their yet. Casey is a decent point, Taylor seems to be OK, but still more of an off guard, and Davis is struggling mightily. I think we still need to build some stability their.

Jack McGillis was the other reason I wanted to make it down to Bozeman Sunday. First he is a Montana Kid, second he is a Missoula Hellgate kid, third I conversed quite a bit with a few of Jacks "family members" during his recruiting. I always admitted I was bias in this issue, but I though Durham, and Tinkle made a BIG mistakes by not offering this kid. From January to mid march of 2006 he was a Bobcat in waiting all Durham had to do was offer. From mid March to the end of April (after Durham pissed off Jack) all Larry K had to do was offer him a scholarship also and he would have been a Griz. Once Romar from U. of Washington moved in it was History for both Montana Schools. He ended up with offers from OSU, WSU, Idaho and I think Utah State. Plus a handful of D-1 Schools were offering to place him in a JC for a year and sign him the next.
Durham Quote: "If McGillis is so good why is not Montana recruiting him"

BTW: I forget who posted it above, we indeed did sign Edmonds in favor of McGillis. The question was do we go JC or High school. Durham chose JC.