November 2006
Bulldogs Host North Dakota Teams
Tuesday, November 28 2006
The University of Montana Western Bulldog basketball team returns to the Straugh Gymnasium for two non-conference men’s basketball games on Friday, Dec. 1 and Saturday, Dec. 2.
On Friday, the Bulldogs host the Minot State University Beavers and on Saturday, Western hosts the Dickinson State University Blue Hawks. Both of the games tip-off at 8 p.m. and will be broadcast in Southwest Montana on KDBM radio, 1490 on the AM dial.
The Bulldog JV’s host Salish Kootenai Friday at 6 p.m. and Salt Lake Community College Saturday afternoon at 4.
Western is now 4-3 on the season after weekend wins at the Milanovich Classic at Dickinson, North Dakota. The Bulldogs beat Dickinson State 85-66 and Valley City State College 75-58.
Minot State is an NAIA, Division II school. The Beavers, members of the Dakota Athletic Conference, are 3-4 on the season. Minot lost to MSU-Northern twice (85-89, 68-72), split with the University of Great Falls (73-78, 81-74), beat the University of Regina 77-69 and Rocky Mountain 85-83 and lost last weekend to Presentation College 81-85.
Dickinson State, a NAIA Division II school, is 2-4 on the season after dropping two at their Milanovich Classic. In addition to their loss to the Bulldogs, Dickinson lost 80-103 to Rocky Mountain.
In the Bulldog’s win over Dickinson last weekend, the two teams played a tight first half with the Blue Hawks leading 33-32 at the half. Western exploded for 53 second half points while holding Dickinson to 33. Tyler Palmer took scoring honors for the game with 32 points. The Blue Hawks were led by Ervin Belton with 17 and Roger Russaw with 13. For the season, Dickinson averages 72.3 ppg while giving up 61.
"We look forward to playing games at home,” said Bulldog coach Mark Durham. Dickinson and Minot are very similar to teams in our league. We expect both games to be very tough games. I hope we keep improving like we did last week. We are executing well on offense, playing very solid defense, and out-rebounding everybody. If we continue to do that we have a chance in every game.”
Tyler Palmer leads four Bulldogs averaging in double figure scoring. Palmer averages 17 followed by Wes Morales with 15.3, Zach Pitts with 12.1 and Aaron Sims with 11.3. The Bulldogs have out-rebounded their opponents 294 to 257 led by Wes Morales with 7.6 per game. Western averages 92.6 ppg while giving up 84.9.
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Bulldog Win Two On The Road
Sunday, November 26 2006
The Bulldogs were the unofficial champions of Milanovich Classic at Dickinson State University. Western beat the Dickinson State Blue Hawks 85-66 on Friday, Nov. 24 and downed Valley City State 75-58 on Saturday, Nov. 25. The two wins raised the Bulldogs overall record to 4-3.
Against Dickinson, the Bulldogs trailed 32-33 at the half but exploded for 53 second half points. Tyler Palmer led the charge with 32 points. The senior from Fairfield hit 6 of 13 in three point field goals and was 4 of 6 from the free throw line. Also scoring in double figures were Chad Myers and Wes Morales with 11 each. Western outrebounded the Blue Hawks 43-32 led by Kellen Ori with nine rebounds.
Against Valley City, it was another close first half. The teams went into the break tied at 29. In the second half, the Bulldog offense got untracked and outscored Valley 46-29.
Wes Morales and Aaron Sims led the way with 18 points each. Morales was 8 of 13 from the field and 2 of 3 from the field. Sims was 6 of 10 from the field and 6 of 8 from the free throw line. Also scoring in double figures were Zach Pitts with 12 and Tyler Palmer with 11. The Bulldogs won the battle of the boards 41-31 led by Morales with 13 and Sims with 8.
Western returns home to host Minot State on Friday, Dec. 1 and Dickinson State on Saturday, Dec. 2.
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Bulldogs On The Road For Three
Tuesday, November 21 2006
After a week off, the University of Montana Western Bulldog basketball team hits the road for three games.
Western plays an exhibition game against the Montana State University Bobcats on Wednesday, Nov. 22. Tip-off is 7:00 p.m. from the Worthington Arena in Bozeman, Mont.
On Friday, Nov. 24 and Saturday, Nov. 25, the Bulldogs compete at the Milanovich Classic at Dickinson, North Dakota. Western plays the Dickinson State Bluehawks, Friday at 7 p.m. and Valley City State University Vikings Saturday at 5 p.m.
The Bulldogs are 2-3 on the season after dropping two close games at the Eastern Oregon Tournament two weeks ago. Western lost 120-129 in overtime to Albertson College and 74-76 to Eastern.
The Bobcats, an NCAA, Division I team, are 1-3 in games that count and 3-3 in all games. MSU beat Minot State 78-63 and Western State 78-55 in exhibition games. The Bobcats lost to Utah Valley 37-69, UC Santa Barbara 56-88 and Portland 53-59. MSU captured their first victory of the season Sunday when they won on the road with a 72-65 victory over the University of Idaho. The Bobcats average 54.5 points per game while giving up 70.2.
"We have been looking forward to the Bobcat game for a long time,” said Bulldog coach Mark Durham. “This is the first time we have played them in my 11 years and we will be ready!”
Dickinson State, a NAIA Division II school, is 2-2 on the season. The Blue Hawks have split with both MSU-Northern and the University of Great Falls. Dickinson lost 54-89 to MSU-Northern in Havre and then beat the Lights at home 85-80. The Blue Hawks beat the Argos in Great Falls 80-76 and then lost at home 70-75. Dickinson averages 72.3 points per game while giving up 61.
Valley City, an NAIA Division II school, is 2-3 overall. The Vikings opened the season with losses to Northwestern College 70-90, Dordt College 67-70 and Dakota Wesleyan 59-64. Valley is now riding a two game winning streak with wins over Mount Mary College 88-64 and the University of Minnesota at Crookston 60-58. The Vikings average 68.8 points per game while giving up 69.2.
“The Dickinson and Valley City games will be fun,” added Durham. “We played well last time we were on the road, just not quite good enough to win. “Hopefully we can pick up a road win or two. “ we are playing four freshman and keep getting better and better with every game.”
The Bulldogs are averaging 97.6 points a game with seven players averaging in double figures. Wes Morales leads the team with 15.6 points per game followed by Tyler Palmer with 15.4, Aaron Sims with 13.5, Zach Pitts with 13, Gus McDonald with 11.5 and Kellen Ori with 10.2.
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Bulldog Lose Barn-Burner in Eastern Oregon
Sunday, November 12 2006
Eastern Oregon hit the winning lay-up as time ran out to down the Bulldogs 76-74 at the Aramark Quinn Classic. The loss drops the Bulldogs to 2-3 on the season.
The Bulldogs opened the game with a jumper by Wes Morales. Eastern quickly answered with a 3-point basket to take the lead. The Mountaineers maintained that lead over the next six minutes. A Kellen Ori three-pointer gave the Bulldogs back the lead. Eastern took the lead back three possessions later and maintained the lead until the 2:44 mark of the first half when Gus McDonald hit a layup to tie the game at 30. The lead changed three times over the half's final two minutes. Western led at the break 35-33.
In the first nine minutes of the second half, there were three lead changes and four ties. The Bulldogs had their biggest lead 57-50 after a Kellen Ori three-point basket at the 9:48 mark. Eastern Oregon then went on a 10-2 run to lead 60-59 with 6:30 left. The Bulldogs took their final lead of the game 64-62 on another Ori three-pointer at the five minute mark.
Eastern took the lead for good on a three-point play. The Mountaineers built a five point lead, 72-67 with 2:16 left. The Bulldogs then outscored Eastern 5-2 to pull to within two, 74-72. Zach Pitts hit two free throws with 11 seconds remaining to tie the game at 74. After a time-out, Eastern scored with two seconds remaining to seal the win.
Ori led the Bulldog with 18 going 6 of 7 from three-point land. Wes Morales added 15. Montana Western is off until Nov. 22 when they travel to Bozeman for an exhibition game against Montana State.
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Bulldogs Lose In Overtime In La Grande
Saturday, November 11 2006
Bulldogs lost 120-129 in overtime to Albertson College at the 8th Annual Aramark Quinn Classic. The loss evens Western's record at 2-2 on the season.
The game was a shoot-out from the opening tip. The Bulldogs led 60-58 at the half, but were outscored 54-53 in the second half and the scored was tied at 112 in regulation. In overtime, Albertson outscored the Bulldogs 17-8 in the overtime period.
Montana Western shot 70% from the field and outrebounded Albertson 45-24, but were their own worst enemy as they committed 53 turnovers.
Tyler Palmer led all scorers with 37 points. The Fairfield senior was 11 of 18 from the field, 5 of 9 in three-point field goals and 10 of 11 from the free throw line. Also scoring in double figures for the Bulldogs were Zach Pitts with 19, Alex Head with 14 and Wes Morales with 12. Head and Morales each had 10 rebounds to lead the team.
Western plays Eastern Oregon Saturday night in the final game of the tournament.
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Bulldogs At Eastern Oregon Tournament
Thursday, November 9 2006
The University of Montana Western Bulldog basketball team travels to La Grande, Ore. to compete in the Quinn Classic on Friday, Nov. 10 and Saturday, Nov. 11.
The Bulldogs face Albertson College on Friday night at 6 p.m.(PST) and Eastern Oregon University on Saturday 8 p.m.(PST)
Montana Western is 2-1 on the season after splitting last weekend. The Bulldogs lost 66-73 to Eastern Oregon and rolled over Walla Walla College 136-102.
Albertson opened the season with an 88-80 exhibition win over Northwest Nazarene and an 91-80 exhibition loss to Idaho State. This will be the 51st meeting between Albertson and Montana Western with Albertson leading in the overall series 33-17. The Bulldogs lost last year 89-97 at the Quinn Classic.
Eastern Oregon is 2-0 on the season after winning two in Montana last weekend. The Mountaineers scored an 80-72 come from behind victory over Montana Tech.
"It is a great weekend for us,” said Bulldog coach Mark Durham. These will be two really tough games on the road. It will be fun to see how this team reacts to life on the road against good teams. We want to improve from last week and give ourselves a chance to win down the stretch."
Wes Morales leads six Bulldogs scoring in double figures with 17 ppg. Gus McDonald follows with 14, Aaron Sim with 13.5, Zach Pitts with 12.7, Tyler Palmer with 12 and Chad Myers with 11.7.
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Bulldogs Clobber Walla Walla
Sunday, November 5 2006
Wes Morales scored 31 points to help Montana-Western beat Walla Walla College 136-102. The win improved Montana-Western’s record to 2-1 on the season while Walla Walla fell to 0-2.
Every player on the Bulldog roster scored in this game, including seven in double figures
In addition to his game high 31 points, Morales also pulled down 10 rebounds. Zach Pitts added 23 points followed by Gus McDonald with 19, Tyler Palmer with 15, Layne Glaus with 14, Alex Head with 11 and Kellen Ori with 10.
Montana-Western shot a blistering 59% from the field while making 46% of their three pointers.
The Bulldogs hit the road for a five game road swing starting November 10th against Albertson College in La Grande, Oregon.
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Bulldogs Fall To Eastern Oregon
Sunday, November 5 2006
Eastern Oregon defeated the University of Montana-Western 73-66 in a non-conference match-up.
Wes Morales led Montana-Western with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Chad Myers and Aaron Sims added 12 points apiece in the losing effort. As a team, the Bulldogs were icey cold from the field, shooting only 38% from the field.
Montana-Western trailed for most of the game. They took their first and only the lead with 7:09 left in the second half. The lead was short lived. Eastern Oregon came roaring back and re-took the lead.
The Mountaineers were able to make their free throws and held on for the 73-66 victory
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Bulldogs Host Eastern Oregon and Walla Walla College
Thursday, November 2 2006
The University of Montana Western men’s basketball team returns to action with a pair of non-conference games.
The Bulldogs host the Eastern Oregon University Mountaineers on Friday, Nov. 3 at 8 p.m. and the Walla Walla College Wolves on Saturday, Nov. 4 at 8 p.m. The Bulldog JV team plays the University of Great Falls JV’s Friday at 6 p.m. All games tip-off from the Straugh Gymnasium.
Both varsity games will be broadcast in Southwest Montana on KDBM Radio, 1490 on the AM dial
Montana Western is 1-0 on the season after a thrilling 92-90-overtime victory over the University of Lethbridge on Oct. 19. Five Bulldogs scored in double figures led by Tyler Palmer’s 21.
Friday’s game against the Bulldogs will be Eastern Oregon’s first official game of the new season. The Mountaineers have exhibition victories over an Alumni team 81-53 and Multnomah Bible College 96-45. Eastern Oregon is ranked 23rd in NAIA Division II preseason poll.
"Eastern Oregon returns four starters from last year’s team,” said Bulldog coach Mark Durham. “We split with them last year. They are a very good basketball team. Defensively, they will alternate between man-to-man and zone. Eastern is big and physical. This will be a very tough game.”
The Mountaineers were 17-11 last year, their best record since 1969. Last year, Western won in overtime in Dillon 94-90 and lost at La Grande 78-52.
Walla Walla College is opening their season with a road trip through Montana. The Wolves played at Montana Tech Friday and travel to the University of Great Falls on Sunday afternoon.
Walla Walla is a Division I member of the National Christian College Athletic Association. The Wolves finished last season with a 27-11 record.
“Walla Walla College is a bit of an unknown,” noted Durham. “The scouting report I have is they aren't very big, but are very scrappy and can really shoot it!”
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