Monday, December 16, 2019

UCSB vs. Idaho State Men's Basketball Game Preview, by Gaucho Freg

UCSB @ Idaho State Preview
Monday, December 16, 2019, 6:30 PM PST
 
Quick Bite:
UCSB finishes the second game of a two game road swing with just a day’s rest, a schedule set-up to mimic a road swing in conference play.  This is a return game from the Bengals visit to SB last year.

By the Numbers                                                             
 
   
Idaho St..png (10.09KiB)
UCSB logo small.png (7.12KiB)
Record (D1 only) 1-4 6-4
Home/Away vs D1 0-0 (H) 2-3 (A)
Composite National Rankings
DCI 1&2, BPI, KP, Massey, NET, RPI, Sagarin 272 154
NET N/A N/A
SOS 242 266
CBS Preseason Rank 341 162
SI Preseason Rank 318 137
Preseason Poll Pick 8th-9th (11) 2nd
Efficiency Rankings (Pomeroy) 
Offense 295 87
Defense 316 243
Scoring 71.7 72.5
FG% 48.3 46.4
3 PT Makes/Attempts 7.1/20.4 6.4/18.6
3Pt % 35.0 31.2
FT Makes/Attempts 12.3/19.7 14.9/19.8
FT% 62.3 75.3
Defense:           PPG Allowed 64.4 66.1
FG % Defense 45.1 42.6
3Pt % Defense 18.6 30.7
Steals PG 8.9 4.4
Blocks PG 2.1 2.8
Rebounding Margin +6.7 +5.9
Assists/Turnovers PG 12.9/16.2 13.5/11.7
 
 
Idaho State:
Best win (NET):  @ Air Force (185)
Worst Loss (NET):  @ Wyoming (323)
Trend: Lost 1


Idaho State-UCSB History
UCSB leads the series 4-2.  Their first meeting was in 1971 in Rob Gym with the Gauchos prevailing 84-71.  UCSB won last year in SB, 84-65.  The Gauchos had 5 players in double figures led by Armond Davis (19) and Ramsey (18).  Sow, Toure and Blackmon each chipped in 10 pts.  Heidegger did not shoot the ball well but dished 8 assists and tied for the team lead in rebounds (5).  Three of the Bengal’s leading scorers from that game, Stutzman, Maker and Mocsan return. 

About the Arena:  Starting this season the Bengals will now play all of their games in Reed Gym, constructed in 1951 and seating 3,214.  In prior years, they played their home games in Holt Arena, a dual purpose facility, seating 12,000 for football and 8,000 for hoops. Holt was constructed in 1970 making it the oldest on-campus enclosed football stadium in the country.  Only the Astrodome predates it for enclosed field stadiums. Holt’s draw back is cavernous, empty spaces behind the basket and a building with a lot of empty space making for a poor home court advantage.  Hence, the move back to Reed.  Average attendance is 1,216 this year.  It sits at an elevation of 4,560 ft. 
 
Head Coach:  First year coach Ryan Looney took over for Bill Evans who was fired after last year’ 11-19 campaign.  Looney had tremendous success at the D2 level, taking Pt Loma to the championship game last year and making the post season every year as a HC except for his first season at Pt. Loma.  Prior to his last 3 years at Pt. Loma, he was at Seattle Pacific for 7, taking them to the Sweet 16 twice.  Before Seattle Pacific he coached NAIA Eastern Oregon for five years, taking them to the 2nd round and Elite 8 in his last two years there. With his Pacific NW background, he’s a great fit for the Bengals.

Roster & Overview
While this will be their third home game it is their first vs. a D1 opponent.  The Bengals have only played five D1 games so are a bit of a question mark.  They do boast a nice victory on the road vs Air Force early in the season but have lost to Santa Clara, Pepperdine, Washington St and to lowly Wyoming.
The Bengals lost their three top scorers from last year’s team so its a fresh start for ISU.  They do return most of the rest of their production and Looney has been successful at every stop but, it has usually taken a year for him to start getting results. If you see Gittens passing to the other team once in a while, you’ll have to forgive him as FIVE players from the College of Southern Idaho (CSI) join Idaho State this year, which has to be a record.
The Bengals are tall at the guard position with only PG Tarik Cool under 6’5” but are undersized at the forward positions. 

Probable Starters
Guard – Tarik Cool  #2 6’2”, 190 lb, JC Transfer Junior.  14.3 ppg, 3.6 apg, 3 rpg, 27 mpg
Leads team in scoring and ft attempts, 27-35.  Third in three pointers made, 36%.  Poor ATO ratio of 1.1.  Played at Lane CC in Texas
Guard – Jared Stutzman  #21  6’6”, 200 lb, Senior  12.4 ppg, 2.9 rpg. 27 mpg.
Top three point shooter on team, 41%.  Preseason Big Sky 2nd team pick.
Forward – Coreyoun Rushin #15  6’6”, 200 lb, JC Transfer Junior  5.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2.4 apg, 26 mpg.
Second on the team in assists.  Not a perimeter threat.   Played at CSI
ForwardMalik Porter #3  6’5”, 205 lb, JC Transfer Junior.  7.6 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 26 mpg
Strictly an inside the arc player on offense.  Played at CSI
ForwardChier Maker #5  6’7”, 200 lb, Senior, JC Transfer – 11.3 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 32 mpg.  Leads team in minutes played and is second in rebounding.  From Australia, leads team in 3 point attempts but is making just 27% of them.

Probable Key Reserves
Guard – Austin Smellie.  #1  6’5”, 185 lb, Sophomore  6.1 ppg, 2.9 rpg. 19 mpg.
Excellent three point shooter, 5-11 from deep.  Good decisions with the ball, 2.4 ATO ratio.
Wing– Chidi Udengwu.  #4  6’7”, 194 lb, Senior , JC Transfer  5.4 ppg. 5.9 rpg
Leads team in rebounding despite coming off the bench. Second in FT attempts but making only about half.
Guard – Nico Aguire  #12  6’0”, 175 lb, JC Transfer Sophomore  
Good three point shooter, poor ATO ratio.  From Chile, played at CSI

Injured/Unavailable
Guard - Balint Mocsan, #20 6’3” 190lb, Senior.  He and Stutzman are the top returning players for the Bengals but Moscan has yet to play this year.  Had a shoulder injury at the end of last season and is apparently still on the mend.
 
Match-up & prediction:
Sow had his worst game of the season.  Against undersized Idaho State, he has a chance to bounce back. 

Keys to the game for the Gauchos
·        Unleash the Sow
·        Defend the perimeter, the Bengals best shot at winning is knocking down a bunch of threes.

Prediction:  It’s a short turnaround but after losing a tough one, I think the Gauchos will be focused.  UCSB 76  Idaho State  68
Official Site: https://isubengals.com/index.aspx?path=mbball
Hey Guys!https://bigskyfans.com/bengals/viewforu ... d1f191bee6
How to Watch:   https://portal.stretchinternet.com/idast/

Idaho State Pre-Season Preview Link:
https://cbbcentral.com/2019/10/09/32x32 ... y-preview/
https://www.three-man-weave.com/3mw/big ... 20-preview
idahostatejournal.com/sports/isu/three-predictions-for-idaho-state-men-s-basketball-in/article_5ff85bab-93c4-5f3a-a157-b316de57e9e4.html
 
Fun facts about Idaho State:  (Same as last year, short turnaround between games, sorry). Bengals basketball had some success in the 1950s lodging four victories in the NCAAs, which then, with just a 32 team field, placed them into the Sweet 16 each year.  In 1977 the Bengals defeated Long Beach then UCLA to advance to the Elite 8.  The Long Beach game was held in their home arena.  The school was founded in 1901 as the Academy of Idaho, undergoing four name & status changes before its current iteration in 1963.  Their first football coach came from Princeton in the 1920s and graced the school with the Princeton colors and mascot (Bengals aka Tigers).

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