Lady Cats vs Bengals

[bpcats]

Should be a great game. ISU actually leads MSU in most categories including steals, scoring margin, assists, defensive scoring.

Game should come down to who is gets off to a good start, turnovers, and how the Lady Cats respond two days after playing the Griz.

[bpcats]

This game will be close throughout the night. MSU concentrating so hard on guarding the 3 that they are giving up easy baskets on the inside. ISU has just as much talent as the Cats with their balanced scoring.

The Cats have hit a bit of cold streak with some of their shots not falling.

MSU 34

ISU 32

[TomCat88]

Thanks bp. Keep those updates coming.

[TomCat88]

Score. Time.

I'm watching The Suite Life on Deck, so I need a little help here.

[Hawks86]

71-45 Cats about 5 left

[TomCat88]

Thanks for understanding.

[bpcats]

Lady Cats are starting to pull away. MSU held a 3 point lead for the first few minutes of the half and then watched as the Lady Cats had an explosion of points as the result of diving on the floor, rebounds, nice passing etc. Freshman Emily Allen was crashing the boards hard and Kelsey Roben (converted guard to small forward this year) made some nice cuts to the basket for a total of 6 points in a short burst.

Latisha Adams and Ausha Cole have really brought a defensive presence to the point guard position. Latisha is really good as an off ball defender. She is great a stopping skip passes. Overall, the Lady Cats have really stepped up their defensive presence this year and it is paying off.

ISU is getting very frustrated right now...hadn't scored for 6 minutes. Will be hack fest by the Bengals rest of the way.

MSU 75
ISU 53

3:25 is left.

[bpcats]

Final score

83- 63.

Whatever MSU did in the offseason for conditioning is paying off.

[BelgradeBobcat]

This team is just clicking right now. I hope they can keep it up. It's a joy to watch.

[MSU01]

Wow, that's incredible. ISU has a pretty good team this year, and I was very concerned about a letdown game after the big emotional win over the Griz on Saturday. To win isn't surprising, but to win by 20 is not something I expected! Clearly this is a special team that isn't going anywhere. It will be a big shame if they don't draw a big crowd Saturday afternoon for the Cat/Griz game in Bozeman. They are most definitely a more entertaining team to watch than the men at this point!

[Helcat72]

Just got back from Bozeman and the ladys looked fantastic. Semansky can't be stopped down low, not because of her size (5-11) but because she gets in such great position to receive the ball and puts the ball in before the defender has a chance to go for a block. Katie Bussey hardly ever comes out and has more energy the longer she plays. Sara Balin uses the glass so well coming from a 45 degree angle tha the defendeer never gets close enough to play defense. All in all they are very quick to the basket and pass the ball better than any Lady Bobcat team I have ever seen. Ausha Cole is making people forget Erica Perry. She shoots the three and is a defensive beast on the ball. Lindy Sidensticker is the 4th option and is just waiting to drain the three if the defense takes any of the others away....and she's deadly. They remind me of the Gonzaga and U of Portland teams that have played in Bozeman the last few years.

[TomCat88]

Another thing to keep in mind is this team has finished the regular season strong the last three years. They won 7 of their last 9 last year after 2-5 league start, 5 of last 6 the year before (3-7 league start), and 8 of last 10 the year before (3-3 league start).

Up to 10 straight now. 6-0 in the league. Three straight home games before finishing with five of seven on the road.

[Gidal Kaiser]

TomCat88, that's going to be the real test: the road and its effects. Pokey and Greeley are the two road games to be very wary of, and Sac State's gym, I hear, is a bandbox. Hopefully, I get to go on a road trip or two as the season ends to see what will happen. don't forget, they also have the EWU-PSU swing and have to play them four times in the final two weeks.

Helcat72, I'm not exactly sure Cole is making people forget Erica Perry, but the freshman has stabilized the position. Both she and Adams are defense-first guards, which is fine when you have plenty other scoring options. That's how it will be next year, too, with Bussey/Albert/Semansky/Banis as the top four scoring options and everyone else slotted in after those 'Cats get fed. Also, here's something to ponder: Cole was initially MSU's fourth option at PG (Albert got injured, Webb got injured, Schmitt got booted - yes, the depth chart was in that order)

[bpcats]

This conference is far from over. The Cats have been fortunate so far with their ability to step up and hit the key shots at key times. The only team that doesn't worry me too much is Sac State because they struggle on defense so much. Teams like Northern Colorado and the Griz that can play a very physical game and use their deep bench especially at the post position give this Cats team a lot of trouble.

Just going to enjoy the ride while it lasts.

[TomCat88]

It's not over, but I have a boatload of confidence that MSU will win it barring more injuries. Reasons: the coach, the player attitude and skills, past history. This team has shown they know how to finish a season. I don't if it's attitude or conditioning, but they always play better as the season winds down.

[Helcat72]

TomCat88, that's going to be the real test: the road and its effects. Pokey and Greeley are the two road games to be very wary of, and Sac State's gym, I hear, is a bandbox. Hopefully, I get to go on a road trip or two as the season ends to see what will happen. don't forget, they also have the EWU-PSU swing and have to play them four times in the final two weeks.

Helcat72, I'm not exactly sure Cole is making people forget Erica Perry, but the freshman has stabilized the position. Both she and Adams are defense-first guards, which is fine when you have plenty other scoring options. That's how it will be next year, too, with Bussey/Albert/Semansky/Banis as the top four scoring options and everyone else slotted in after those 'Cats get fed. Also, here's something to ponder: Cole was initially MSU's fourth option at PG (Albert got injured, Webb got injured, Schmitt got booted - yes, the depth chart was in that order)

I didn't mean she's there yet...but she's starting to score ...go to the basket and (shoot the three) which Erica wasn't that good at. She's also making great entry passes for baskets both on set plays and on the break. Erica pretty much took it upon herself to get to the rim. Erica will still be known as the heart and soul of the lady cats the last four years...but Ausha Cole has shown that she can be the catalyst for the next 3.5 !

[Gidal Kaiser]

Fair enough. I wasn't trying to get any stuff started.