Northern Colorado vs. Weber State: 2018-19 college basketball game preview, TV schedule
On Saturday afternoon the two top teams in the Big Sky do battle as Northern Colorado travels to Weber State. Which team will emerge victorious?
TV Schedule: Saturday, January 19th, 9:00 p.m. ET, check local listings
Arena: Dee Events Center, Ogden, Utah
The top two teams in the Big Sky Conference square off on Saturday night when the Northern Colorado Bears (11-6, 5-1) travel to Ogden, Utah to take on the Weber State Wildcats (11-6,5-1). Northern Colorado has progressed over the last three seasons, going from 11 wins to 26 last season and a CIT championship. Over that span, there is one Big Sky team that Northern Colorado has failed to secure a victory against, their opponents on Saturday, Weber State.
The Bears have gone 0-6 against the Wildcats in the regular season over the last three seasons, but last year’s meetings were close, with one going to overtime and the other a 78-74 loss. They did, however, get over the hump against the Wildcats in last year’s Big Sky tournament, winning their quarterfinal matchup.
Head Coach Jeff Linder and his team began the season with two three-game winning streaks sandwiched between a loss at Texas Tech. After a 6-1 start, Northern Colorado suffered a four-game losing streak, first, road losses at San Diego and New Mexico State that were followed by losses to Rider and SIU-Edwardsville in the Las Vegas Classic. Once league play began, the Bears got back on the winning track, winning four of five entering this game, with the only loss to defending conference champion Montana.
Northern Colorado is one of the better three-point shooting teams in the nation, they make over 10 three-point shots per game and have made 171 on the season, both numbers are 23rd best in college basketball. The Bears average 80 points per game and have eclipsed that mark seven times, but only once against a Division I opponent since Dec. 1. They have four double-digit scorers and are led by senior guard Jordan Davis. The 6-2 Las Vegas native is the team’s leading scorer and the 7th best scorer in the country at 24.2 per game, he is also the team’s leading assist man, dishing out 4.8 per game and even at just 6-2 he is also 3rd on the team in rebounding, pulling down 5.4 per contest.
Not only does Davis do a little bit of everything, but he is also efficient in doing so, shooting 47.5% from the field, 78.6% at the line, and 38% from distance. The other three players that score at least 10 points per game are also guards, with juniors Trent Harris and Jonah Radebaugh net 20.7 points and 7.4 rebounds per game and freshman Bodie Hume being 2nd on the team in scoring at 12.9 per game.
Randy Rahe’s Wildcats began the season 5-2 including a 113-103 win over BYU, which was then followed by a three-game skid against Fresno State, Utah State, and Utah Valley and four W’s. In league play, this game with Northern Colorado ends a stretch of four of five the Wildcats will have played at the friendly confines of the Dee Events Center.
Weber State averages 82.6 points per game, so this contest could be more track meet than a basketball game. They are also one of the best defensive rebounding teams in the country, pulling down over 30 per game. Senior forward Brekkott Chapman not only leads the team with 9.2 rebounds per game, but the 8.12 defensive boards he grabs is the 7th highest number nationwide.
The Wildcats also have four double-digit scorers, Chapman pots 12.9 per game, but junior guard Jerrick Harding is the leader at 21.7, while his class and backcourt mate Cody John adds 15.2 and senior center Zach Braxton chips in with 10.9 points and 7.5 rebounds. When it comes to the rebounding numbers, Chapman is the biggest reason the numbers are so impressive. Chapman has pulled down 138 defensive boards on the season and the next closest Wildcat has grabbed just 79.
Key matchup
The key matchup in this game will come in the paint as Northern Colorado will need to find a way to keep Chapman off the boards. Junior forward Kai Edwards is 6-9 and the team’s leading rebounder with 6.3, while the next three best rebounders are 6-2, 6-3, and 6-6 respectively, which could leave the Bears at a severe disadvantage if Edwards gets into foul trouble, something he has been susceptible to this season.
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Harding can help neutralize Northern Colorado’s Davis and the Wildcats’ size advantage prove to be too much, as Weber State wins this one by at least five.