SWeberCat02
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GAME #1 vs. UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY
WHEN: FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2009 SITE: DEE EVENTS CENTER
WHERE: OGDEN, UTAH TIME: 7:35 P.M. (MST)
2009-10 WEBER STATE WILDCATS
PROBABLE STARTERS ( 09-10 exh. game avg.)
P No NAME HT WT CL. HOMETOWN PPG RPG APG
F-23 Franklin Session 6-3 175 Jr. Los Angeles, CA 17.5 5.5 2.5
F-3 Kyle Bullinger 6-6 215 So. Mountain View, WY 6.0 5.0 2.0
C-45 Steve Panos 6-8 245 Sr. Salt Lake City, UT 6.5 8.0 1.5
G-1 Damian Lillard 6-2 185 So. Oakland, CA 22.0 1.0 6.0
G-12 Nick Hansen 6-4 205 Sr. Pocatello, ID 21.0 4.0 3.0
OFF THE BENCH
G-15 Lindsey Hughey 6-3 200 Jr. Grand Prairie, TX 11.0 0.5 1.0
G-21 Josh Noble 6-2 190 Jr. Brooklyn, NY 2.0 2.5 2.0
C-30 Darin Mahoney 6-8 225 So. Heber City, UT 0.0 2.0 0.0
F-33 Matt Washington 6-7 220 Jr. New Orleans, LA 0.0 0.0 1.0
C-55 Trevor Morris 6-9 240 Jr. Nampa, ID 4.0 3.5 0.0
TEAM STATS COMPARISON (Stats From 2008-09 Season)
CATEGORY USU WSU
Record 30-5 21-10
Points Scored 72.4 70.2
Points Allowed 62.0 66.3
Scoring Margin +10.4 +3.9
Field Goal % .496 .472
Field Goal % Defense .419 .425
3-Point Field Goal % .394 .376
3-Point Field Goal % Defense .363 .332
Free Throw % .724 .730
Offensive Rebounds 10.4 7.2
Total Rebounds 34.3 32.2
Rebound Margin +6.6 +0.0
Assists 16.2 12.1
Turnovers 11.2 14.4
Blocked Shots 2.5 3.7
Steals 2.5 3.7
Fouls 15.4 19.2
UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY “Aggies”
HEAD COACH
Utah State’s STEW MORRILL begins his 12th season as head coach at Utah State, and his 24th season overall as a head coach, He is the winningest coach in USU history with a record of 267-91 (.746). ...Morrill is one of only 24 active coaches in NCAA Division I with 450 career victories. ... Morrill has strong roots in the Big Sky Conference. As a collegiate player, Morrill played two seasons at Gonzaga when the Bulldogs were members of the Big Sky Conference. ... He spent three seasons as an assistant at Gonzaga (75-78) before joining Mike Montgomery’s staff at Montana, a Big Sky member, in 1979 and served through the 1985-86 season. In 1986-87, Morrill was named head coach of the Grizzlies. In five seasons in Missoula, Morrill compiled a 97-52 mark (.651). His 1990-91 team posted a 23-8 record, won the Big Sky Conference championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. Morrill was 7-3 vs. Weber State while at UoM. ... In 1991-92, Morrill left to become the head coach at Colorado State where he hired a young, up coming assistant coach named RANDY RAHE to join his staff. In seven seasons in Fort Collins, Morrill’s teams were 121-86 (.585) and made two NIT appearances. Morrill was 0-1 vs. Weber State while at CSU. ... In 1999-2000, Morrill came to Utah State and brought Coach Rahe with him. Rahe spent six years with Morrill in Logan. ... Overall, Morrill is 485-229 (.679) and is 15-8 lifetime vs. Weber State. He is 8-4 vs. Weber State during his tenure at USU.
SERIES HISTORY
Utah State leads the overall series 35-25 and have won eight of the last ten meeting against the Wildcats. ... Weber State holds a 16-13 advantage when playing in Ogden. In the Dee Events Center (since 1977-78), the two teams are 11-11. ... USU and WSU have met three times on neutral courts. The first two were at the Delta Center (now ESA Arena) in 1995-96 (WSU: 81-79 OT) and 1998-99 (WSU: 82-72). In 2006-07, the two teams met in the championship game in the Top of the World Classic in Fairbanks, Alaska. USU won that match up 68-55. ... USU’s largest margin of victory in the series came last year in Logan with the Aggies taking a 75-49 win (26 points). ... WSU largest margin of victory in the series was a 108-76 victory in Ogden on Dec. 14, 1985. ... The two teams did not play each other during the 1994-95 season.
LAST YEAR IN LOGAN - Nov. 25, 2008 USU: 75 WSU: 49
Utah State posted its most lopsided win the series with bizarre 75-49 win over the Wildcats before 7,693 in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. ... The Wildcats took a 35-28 half time lead holding the Aggies to just 7-21 (.333) shooting from the field, including 0-6 from the three-point line. WSU was 13-27 (.481) from the field including 4-7 from beyond the arc. KELLEN McCOY scored 13 and NICK HANSEN added 12. ... But it all came unraveled in the second half as the Aggies pushed back on both ends of the court. ... USU came out and went on an immediate 15-7 scoring run in the first four minutes with TYLER NEWBOLD and JAXON MYAER each hitting threes. STEVE PANOS scored all seven of WSU’s points. His basket with 16:20 left stopped USU’s scoring run and gave the Wildcats a 42-40 lead. ... Incredibly, that would be WSU’s LAST BASKET OF THE GAME. The Wildcats scored just seven points the rest of the way as the Aggies pulled away out scoring the ‘Cats 47-14 in the 2nd half. ... Weber State was just 3-15 from the field in the 2nd half and 16-42 (.381) for the game. ... The Aggies out rebounded the Wildcats 31-24 and had just five turnovers in the game. USU was 19-29 (.655) shooting in the 2nd half. ... All five USU starters scored in double figures led by GARY WILKINSON’s 10 points. TAI WESLEY had 14 points and 10 rebounds. ... STEVE PANOS led the ‘Cats with 17 and KELLEN McCoy had 16, but only
three in the second half.
LAST TIME IN OGDEN - Nov. 10, 2007 WSU: 78 USU: 71
Weber State overcame a 37-33 half time deficit, out scoring the Aggies 45-34 in the 2nd half to post a 78-71 win before 7,797 in the Dee Events Center. ... USU junior center GARY WILKINSON hit 5-7 1st half shots, scoring 13 points to lead the Aggies. WSU’s ARTURAS VALEIKA had 10 first half points and eight rebounds. ... The Aggies led most of the 2nd half taking their final lead, 59-58, with 6:44 left on a three-pointer by JAYCEE CARROLL. ... The Wildcats then went on a 6-0 scoring run ignited by a basket and two free throws from DEZMON HARRIS and a hoop by STEVE PANOS. ... The ‘Cats led 66-62 with 3:46 remaining and then went on a short 5-0 scoring run giving them a 71-62 lead with 1:53 left. ... USU then battled back with an 8-1 scoring run, closing the gap at 72-70 with 34 seconds left on two free throws by DESMOND STEPHENS. ... USU immediately fouled TYLER BILLINGS on the inbounds pass. He made both free throws. ... WSU then got a steal from BRODY VAN BROCKLIN who was then fouled. He made 1-2 free throws. ... TAI WESLEY’s 5th foul with 19 seconds left after an Aggie miss gave HARRIS two free throws making it 77-70. ... Both teams then made 1-2 free throws in the final 17 seconds. ... Wilkinson led all scorers with 21 points. JAYCEE CARROLL, who came in averaging 22 points in his career vs. Weber State, was held to just 3-11 shooting and 14 points. ... DEZMON HARRIS led the Wildcats with 16 points, 7-10 coming at the free throw line. VALEIKA had 15 points/12 rebounds and STEVE PANOS added 13 on 6-10 shooting.
SCOUTING THE AGGIES
Utah State, the reigning WAC champions, have been picked to repeat as champions by the league’s media and coaches. ... JARED QUAYLE (6-2, 180 Sr. Guard) and TAI WESLEY (6-7, 240 Jr. Forward) have been tabbed to the ALL-WAC Pre-Season team. ... Quayle, a former Box Elder High standout and USU’s only senior, was named to the First Team while Wesley was named to the Second Team. ... Quayle is the top returning scorer. He averaged 13.1 points and 6.0 rebounds last season. Wesley averaged 12.0 points and 6.0 rebounds. ... TYLER NEWBOLD (6-4, 210 Jr. Forward) is the third returning starter. He averaged 9.0 points / 4.2 rebounds in 08-09. ... Utah State plays a stifling defense which held opponents last season to just 42 percent shooting from the field. The Aggies are always one of the top rebounding teams in the country. Last year the Aggies grabbed 34.3 boards per game and limited opponents to just 27.7. ... USU had a +12.4 Scoring Margin on its opponents last season, averaging 72.4 points per game and holding opponents to just 62. ... The Aggies have won 18 of their last 23 games against INSTATE OPPONENTS, and is 25-9 (.735) against the state of Utah in the last nine years. ... Stew Morrill is 26-14 (.650) versus teams from the state of Utah during his USU tenure.
VS. THE WAC
Three former Big Sky Conference teams (Boise State, Idaho, Nevada) are now members of the Western Athletic Conference, so the Wildcats have played many games against WAC teams. ... The Wildcats are a collective 150-111 (.574) versus the current WAC.
WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY “Wildcats”
HEAD COACH
Weber State’s RANDY RAHE, begins his 4th season at the Wildcat helm. ... In his three short seasons, Rahe’s teams have captured two Big Sky Conferenc regulars season championships (06-07, 08-09), the Big Sky Post-Season Tournament championship (06-07), and an NCAA post-season berth in 2006-07. ... Rahe was named Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year in both 06-07 and 08-09. ... Rahe is 57-36 (.613) overall in his three seasons as Weber State, and 36-12 (.750) in Big Sky Conference games. ... Rahe’s teams have posted a HOME COURT record of 34-7 (.829) during his tenure. ... He is 3-9 vs. teams from the state of Utah and is 1-3 in his career vs. Utah State.
2006-07 20-12 overall 11-5 Big Sky
2007-08 16-14 overall 10-6 Big Sky
2008-09 21-10 overall 15-1 Big Sky.
MORRILL / RAHE BOND
When the Wildcats face the Aggies on Friday, many of the same plays, sideline mannerisms and post-game talk will probably look and sound the same. ... WSU head coach Randy Rahe spent 13 seasons as an assistant to USU’s Stew Morrill. ... Morrill hired Rahe when he took the position at Colorado State and they spent seven seasons together. ... When Morrill took the Utah State position, he brought Rahe along and he spent six seasons in Logan with Morrill before heading south to spend two seasons as an assistant at Utah under Ray Giaccoletti. ... The other differenc between the two is most likely their stature. Morrill stands at around 6-8 while Rahe is 5-7 (program height). ... Both coaches have immense respect for one another.
WILDCATS PICKED TO REPEAT IN THE ‘SKY
Weber State has been picked by both the coaches and media in the Big Sky Conference to repeat as champions. ... They received four first place votes from the coaches and had 60 points. Montana was second with three first place votes and 57 points. ... In the media poll, the Wildcats garnered 23 of the 25 votes cast and had 251 points. Portland State was picked second by the voices and scribes with two first place votes and 202 points. ... Idaho State and Portland State each had one first place vote in the coaches poll and Montana had two in the media poll.
48TH SEASON OF DIVISION I BASKETBALL
Weber State begins its 48TH season playing men’s basketball on the NCAA Division I level. ... In 1962-63, Weber State became the first junior college in the country to move from the juco ranks directly into Division I basketball. ... This will be WSU’s 47th season as a member of the Big Sky Conference. Weber State became a charter member of the league formed in 1963-64. ... The Wildcats have won 18 Big Sky Conference titles and made 15 appearances in the NCAA Division I men’s basketball championship. ... WSU has also made two NIT Post-Season Tournaments and two pre-season NIT’s.
ALL - TIME RECORD
Weber State has an overall record in 47 seasons of 853-495 (.632). ... In those 47 seasons, the Wildcats have had just EIGHT LOSING campaigns! ... The Wildcats have won 20 OR MORE games in 22 of those 47 seasons.
HOME UNDER THE DOME OF THE DEE
The 2009-10 season marks the 31st season of Wildcat basketball inside the 12,000 seat Dee Events Center which opened on Nov. 1, 1977. ... WSU defeated Long Beach State, 99-96 OT in the first game ever played under the dome. ... The Wildcats are 352-96 (.786) playing in the Dee Events Center. . . . Weber State’s overall home court record, counting the 15 seasons in the old Swenson Gym is a solid 532-114 (.823)!
SEASON OPENERS / HOME OPENERS
Weber State is 39-8 (.829) in men’s basketball season opening games. ... Last the Wildcats lost to Miami (Ohio), 70-66, in the season opening game which was played at the 2K Sports Tournament in Los Angeles. That marked the 6th time the Wildcats opened a season on a neutral court. WSU is 4-2 in those games. ... The Wildcats are 29-2 when opening the season AT HOME. The only losses came in 1991-92 vs. St. Mary’s (Ron Abegglen’s 1st game at WSU 79-71) and 1997-98 to Utah (87-72). ... WSU is 4-8 when opening the season on an opponent’s home court and 4-1 in neutral court season openers. ... Friday’s game marks the 3rd time the Wildcats have opened up their season facing Utah State. In 1979-80, WSU traveled to Logan and lost 91-84 in overtime. The Wildcats then went on to win 18 straight, then finished the season 26-3. ... In 2007-08, WSU hosted USU in the season opener which the Wildcats won 78-71.
STAFF RETURNS
Head Coach Randy Rahe has his current staff back for a second season. Last Spring, Rahe elevated Coach Eric Duft to Associate Head Coach. Duft has been with Rahe all four seasons at WSU as has Tim Gardner. ... Charles Harral is back for his 2nd season as is Director of Basketball Operations, Phil Beckner.
WHO IS BACK?
The Wildcats return six lettermen and four starters off of last year’s team which posted a 21-10 record overall and had a near perfect 15-1 mark in Big Sky Conference regular season play. ... Gone are Kellen McCoy (5-6, 180 Sr. Guard) who was the 2009-09 Big Sky Conference MVP. McCoy averaged 14.0 points and 2.7 assists per game last season. ... Also gone is Daviin Davis (6-4, 200 Sr. Forward) who was named the 2008-09 Big Sky Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Davis averaged 9.5 points a game.
DAMIAN LILLARD (6-2, 185 Soph. Guard) is WSU’s top returning scorer. Lillard became the first TRUE FRESHMAN in Big Sky Conference history to earn First Team All-Big Sky Conference honors. He also was named the 2008-00 Big Sky Conference Newcomer of the Year. ... Lillard started in 26 of WSU’s 31 games, averaging 11.5 points a game and shooting 84 percent from the free throw line. ...STEVE PANOS (6-8, 245 Sr. Center) is the only player on the team with three varsity letters, and joins NICK HANSEN (6-4, 205 Sr. Guard) as one of only two seniors on the team. Panos started all 31 games in the post last season averaging 9.4 points and 4.4 rebounds, while Hansen averaged 8.5 points and 2.3 rebounds per game knocking down 67-175 three-pointers (.383). ... KYLE BULLINGER (6-6, 215 Soph. Forward) is the other returning starter. Like Panos, he started in all 31 games averaging 8.7 points and 4.5 rebounds a contest.
THREE DASH DATA
Every team in the Big Sky Conference comes into the 2009-10 season having lost their last game of the 2008-09 season. The Wildcats enter 09-10 on a two-game losing streak having lost to Montana State in the semifinals of the 08-09 Big Sky Post-Season Tournament and at San Diego State in the first round of the NIT. - - - Three Wildcat freshmen: Pablo Coro (6-3, 190 Guard), Blake Davis (6-6, 210 Forward) and Byron Fulton (6-7, 220 Forward) will red-shirt the 2009-10 season. - - - BYU’s Lee Cummard was the only individual opponent to score 30 or more points vs. Weber State last season. Cummard had 30 in BYU’s 92-62 win in Ogden. - - - No player is three seasons under Coach Randy Rahe, has had a 30-point scoring game. Dezmon Harris’ 28 points at Sacramento State in 2006-07 is the most individual points by a Wildcat in the last three seasons.
NEXT GAME
Weber State gets its first taste of the road on Tuesday, Nov. 17 in Santa Barbara, California, facing the Gauchos of UC Santa Barbara. ... Tip off is set in the Thunderdome at 7:05 p.m. (PST).
RANDY RAHE QUOTES
ON UTAH STATE: “Obviously I have all the admiration and respect for Coach Morrill. I wouldn’t be in my present position if it weren’t for him. I learned, and continue to learn, much about the game from him. The Aggies are who they are. They rebound, play unbelievable defense, they share the ball and they don’t make mistakes. That’s why they are difficult to play, let alone beating them. Jared Quayle is a great player. He wants the ball with the game on the line, or will make the great defensive play with the game on the line. All five of their starters can score, so that’s makes doubling on the ball scary notion. But, we love to play these instate games and I can’t wait to tip it up.”
ON THE WILDCATS: “We are excited and ready to go. I wasn’t overly pleased with our play in the last exhibition game, especially from our veterans, but we are now all on the same page. We need to come ready to play no matter who we are playing. That’s the mind set you need to be successful.”
WHEN: FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2009 SITE: DEE EVENTS CENTER
WHERE: OGDEN, UTAH TIME: 7:35 P.M. (MST)
2009-10 WEBER STATE WILDCATS
PROBABLE STARTERS ( 09-10 exh. game avg.)
P No NAME HT WT CL. HOMETOWN PPG RPG APG
F-23 Franklin Session 6-3 175 Jr. Los Angeles, CA 17.5 5.5 2.5
F-3 Kyle Bullinger 6-6 215 So. Mountain View, WY 6.0 5.0 2.0
C-45 Steve Panos 6-8 245 Sr. Salt Lake City, UT 6.5 8.0 1.5
G-1 Damian Lillard 6-2 185 So. Oakland, CA 22.0 1.0 6.0
G-12 Nick Hansen 6-4 205 Sr. Pocatello, ID 21.0 4.0 3.0
OFF THE BENCH
G-15 Lindsey Hughey 6-3 200 Jr. Grand Prairie, TX 11.0 0.5 1.0
G-21 Josh Noble 6-2 190 Jr. Brooklyn, NY 2.0 2.5 2.0
C-30 Darin Mahoney 6-8 225 So. Heber City, UT 0.0 2.0 0.0
F-33 Matt Washington 6-7 220 Jr. New Orleans, LA 0.0 0.0 1.0
C-55 Trevor Morris 6-9 240 Jr. Nampa, ID 4.0 3.5 0.0
TEAM STATS COMPARISON (Stats From 2008-09 Season)
CATEGORY USU WSU
Record 30-5 21-10
Points Scored 72.4 70.2
Points Allowed 62.0 66.3
Scoring Margin +10.4 +3.9
Field Goal % .496 .472
Field Goal % Defense .419 .425
3-Point Field Goal % .394 .376
3-Point Field Goal % Defense .363 .332
Free Throw % .724 .730
Offensive Rebounds 10.4 7.2
Total Rebounds 34.3 32.2
Rebound Margin +6.6 +0.0
Assists 16.2 12.1
Turnovers 11.2 14.4
Blocked Shots 2.5 3.7
Steals 2.5 3.7
Fouls 15.4 19.2
UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY “Aggies”
HEAD COACH
Utah State’s STEW MORRILL begins his 12th season as head coach at Utah State, and his 24th season overall as a head coach, He is the winningest coach in USU history with a record of 267-91 (.746). ...Morrill is one of only 24 active coaches in NCAA Division I with 450 career victories. ... Morrill has strong roots in the Big Sky Conference. As a collegiate player, Morrill played two seasons at Gonzaga when the Bulldogs were members of the Big Sky Conference. ... He spent three seasons as an assistant at Gonzaga (75-78) before joining Mike Montgomery’s staff at Montana, a Big Sky member, in 1979 and served through the 1985-86 season. In 1986-87, Morrill was named head coach of the Grizzlies. In five seasons in Missoula, Morrill compiled a 97-52 mark (.651). His 1990-91 team posted a 23-8 record, won the Big Sky Conference championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. Morrill was 7-3 vs. Weber State while at UoM. ... In 1991-92, Morrill left to become the head coach at Colorado State where he hired a young, up coming assistant coach named RANDY RAHE to join his staff. In seven seasons in Fort Collins, Morrill’s teams were 121-86 (.585) and made two NIT appearances. Morrill was 0-1 vs. Weber State while at CSU. ... In 1999-2000, Morrill came to Utah State and brought Coach Rahe with him. Rahe spent six years with Morrill in Logan. ... Overall, Morrill is 485-229 (.679) and is 15-8 lifetime vs. Weber State. He is 8-4 vs. Weber State during his tenure at USU.
SERIES HISTORY
Utah State leads the overall series 35-25 and have won eight of the last ten meeting against the Wildcats. ... Weber State holds a 16-13 advantage when playing in Ogden. In the Dee Events Center (since 1977-78), the two teams are 11-11. ... USU and WSU have met three times on neutral courts. The first two were at the Delta Center (now ESA Arena) in 1995-96 (WSU: 81-79 OT) and 1998-99 (WSU: 82-72). In 2006-07, the two teams met in the championship game in the Top of the World Classic in Fairbanks, Alaska. USU won that match up 68-55. ... USU’s largest margin of victory in the series came last year in Logan with the Aggies taking a 75-49 win (26 points). ... WSU largest margin of victory in the series was a 108-76 victory in Ogden on Dec. 14, 1985. ... The two teams did not play each other during the 1994-95 season.
LAST YEAR IN LOGAN - Nov. 25, 2008 USU: 75 WSU: 49
Utah State posted its most lopsided win the series with bizarre 75-49 win over the Wildcats before 7,693 in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. ... The Wildcats took a 35-28 half time lead holding the Aggies to just 7-21 (.333) shooting from the field, including 0-6 from the three-point line. WSU was 13-27 (.481) from the field including 4-7 from beyond the arc. KELLEN McCOY scored 13 and NICK HANSEN added 12. ... But it all came unraveled in the second half as the Aggies pushed back on both ends of the court. ... USU came out and went on an immediate 15-7 scoring run in the first four minutes with TYLER NEWBOLD and JAXON MYAER each hitting threes. STEVE PANOS scored all seven of WSU’s points. His basket with 16:20 left stopped USU’s scoring run and gave the Wildcats a 42-40 lead. ... Incredibly, that would be WSU’s LAST BASKET OF THE GAME. The Wildcats scored just seven points the rest of the way as the Aggies pulled away out scoring the ‘Cats 47-14 in the 2nd half. ... Weber State was just 3-15 from the field in the 2nd half and 16-42 (.381) for the game. ... The Aggies out rebounded the Wildcats 31-24 and had just five turnovers in the game. USU was 19-29 (.655) shooting in the 2nd half. ... All five USU starters scored in double figures led by GARY WILKINSON’s 10 points. TAI WESLEY had 14 points and 10 rebounds. ... STEVE PANOS led the ‘Cats with 17 and KELLEN McCoy had 16, but only
three in the second half.
LAST TIME IN OGDEN - Nov. 10, 2007 WSU: 78 USU: 71
Weber State overcame a 37-33 half time deficit, out scoring the Aggies 45-34 in the 2nd half to post a 78-71 win before 7,797 in the Dee Events Center. ... USU junior center GARY WILKINSON hit 5-7 1st half shots, scoring 13 points to lead the Aggies. WSU’s ARTURAS VALEIKA had 10 first half points and eight rebounds. ... The Aggies led most of the 2nd half taking their final lead, 59-58, with 6:44 left on a three-pointer by JAYCEE CARROLL. ... The Wildcats then went on a 6-0 scoring run ignited by a basket and two free throws from DEZMON HARRIS and a hoop by STEVE PANOS. ... The ‘Cats led 66-62 with 3:46 remaining and then went on a short 5-0 scoring run giving them a 71-62 lead with 1:53 left. ... USU then battled back with an 8-1 scoring run, closing the gap at 72-70 with 34 seconds left on two free throws by DESMOND STEPHENS. ... USU immediately fouled TYLER BILLINGS on the inbounds pass. He made both free throws. ... WSU then got a steal from BRODY VAN BROCKLIN who was then fouled. He made 1-2 free throws. ... TAI WESLEY’s 5th foul with 19 seconds left after an Aggie miss gave HARRIS two free throws making it 77-70. ... Both teams then made 1-2 free throws in the final 17 seconds. ... Wilkinson led all scorers with 21 points. JAYCEE CARROLL, who came in averaging 22 points in his career vs. Weber State, was held to just 3-11 shooting and 14 points. ... DEZMON HARRIS led the Wildcats with 16 points, 7-10 coming at the free throw line. VALEIKA had 15 points/12 rebounds and STEVE PANOS added 13 on 6-10 shooting.
SCOUTING THE AGGIES
Utah State, the reigning WAC champions, have been picked to repeat as champions by the league’s media and coaches. ... JARED QUAYLE (6-2, 180 Sr. Guard) and TAI WESLEY (6-7, 240 Jr. Forward) have been tabbed to the ALL-WAC Pre-Season team. ... Quayle, a former Box Elder High standout and USU’s only senior, was named to the First Team while Wesley was named to the Second Team. ... Quayle is the top returning scorer. He averaged 13.1 points and 6.0 rebounds last season. Wesley averaged 12.0 points and 6.0 rebounds. ... TYLER NEWBOLD (6-4, 210 Jr. Forward) is the third returning starter. He averaged 9.0 points / 4.2 rebounds in 08-09. ... Utah State plays a stifling defense which held opponents last season to just 42 percent shooting from the field. The Aggies are always one of the top rebounding teams in the country. Last year the Aggies grabbed 34.3 boards per game and limited opponents to just 27.7. ... USU had a +12.4 Scoring Margin on its opponents last season, averaging 72.4 points per game and holding opponents to just 62. ... The Aggies have won 18 of their last 23 games against INSTATE OPPONENTS, and is 25-9 (.735) against the state of Utah in the last nine years. ... Stew Morrill is 26-14 (.650) versus teams from the state of Utah during his USU tenure.
VS. THE WAC
Three former Big Sky Conference teams (Boise State, Idaho, Nevada) are now members of the Western Athletic Conference, so the Wildcats have played many games against WAC teams. ... The Wildcats are a collective 150-111 (.574) versus the current WAC.
WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY “Wildcats”
HEAD COACH
Weber State’s RANDY RAHE, begins his 4th season at the Wildcat helm. ... In his three short seasons, Rahe’s teams have captured two Big Sky Conferenc regulars season championships (06-07, 08-09), the Big Sky Post-Season Tournament championship (06-07), and an NCAA post-season berth in 2006-07. ... Rahe was named Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year in both 06-07 and 08-09. ... Rahe is 57-36 (.613) overall in his three seasons as Weber State, and 36-12 (.750) in Big Sky Conference games. ... Rahe’s teams have posted a HOME COURT record of 34-7 (.829) during his tenure. ... He is 3-9 vs. teams from the state of Utah and is 1-3 in his career vs. Utah State.
2006-07 20-12 overall 11-5 Big Sky
2007-08 16-14 overall 10-6 Big Sky
2008-09 21-10 overall 15-1 Big Sky.
MORRILL / RAHE BOND
When the Wildcats face the Aggies on Friday, many of the same plays, sideline mannerisms and post-game talk will probably look and sound the same. ... WSU head coach Randy Rahe spent 13 seasons as an assistant to USU’s Stew Morrill. ... Morrill hired Rahe when he took the position at Colorado State and they spent seven seasons together. ... When Morrill took the Utah State position, he brought Rahe along and he spent six seasons in Logan with Morrill before heading south to spend two seasons as an assistant at Utah under Ray Giaccoletti. ... The other differenc between the two is most likely their stature. Morrill stands at around 6-8 while Rahe is 5-7 (program height). ... Both coaches have immense respect for one another.
WILDCATS PICKED TO REPEAT IN THE ‘SKY
Weber State has been picked by both the coaches and media in the Big Sky Conference to repeat as champions. ... They received four first place votes from the coaches and had 60 points. Montana was second with three first place votes and 57 points. ... In the media poll, the Wildcats garnered 23 of the 25 votes cast and had 251 points. Portland State was picked second by the voices and scribes with two first place votes and 202 points. ... Idaho State and Portland State each had one first place vote in the coaches poll and Montana had two in the media poll.
48TH SEASON OF DIVISION I BASKETBALL
Weber State begins its 48TH season playing men’s basketball on the NCAA Division I level. ... In 1962-63, Weber State became the first junior college in the country to move from the juco ranks directly into Division I basketball. ... This will be WSU’s 47th season as a member of the Big Sky Conference. Weber State became a charter member of the league formed in 1963-64. ... The Wildcats have won 18 Big Sky Conference titles and made 15 appearances in the NCAA Division I men’s basketball championship. ... WSU has also made two NIT Post-Season Tournaments and two pre-season NIT’s.
ALL - TIME RECORD
Weber State has an overall record in 47 seasons of 853-495 (.632). ... In those 47 seasons, the Wildcats have had just EIGHT LOSING campaigns! ... The Wildcats have won 20 OR MORE games in 22 of those 47 seasons.
HOME UNDER THE DOME OF THE DEE
The 2009-10 season marks the 31st season of Wildcat basketball inside the 12,000 seat Dee Events Center which opened on Nov. 1, 1977. ... WSU defeated Long Beach State, 99-96 OT in the first game ever played under the dome. ... The Wildcats are 352-96 (.786) playing in the Dee Events Center. . . . Weber State’s overall home court record, counting the 15 seasons in the old Swenson Gym is a solid 532-114 (.823)!
SEASON OPENERS / HOME OPENERS
Weber State is 39-8 (.829) in men’s basketball season opening games. ... Last the Wildcats lost to Miami (Ohio), 70-66, in the season opening game which was played at the 2K Sports Tournament in Los Angeles. That marked the 6th time the Wildcats opened a season on a neutral court. WSU is 4-2 in those games. ... The Wildcats are 29-2 when opening the season AT HOME. The only losses came in 1991-92 vs. St. Mary’s (Ron Abegglen’s 1st game at WSU 79-71) and 1997-98 to Utah (87-72). ... WSU is 4-8 when opening the season on an opponent’s home court and 4-1 in neutral court season openers. ... Friday’s game marks the 3rd time the Wildcats have opened up their season facing Utah State. In 1979-80, WSU traveled to Logan and lost 91-84 in overtime. The Wildcats then went on to win 18 straight, then finished the season 26-3. ... In 2007-08, WSU hosted USU in the season opener which the Wildcats won 78-71.
STAFF RETURNS
Head Coach Randy Rahe has his current staff back for a second season. Last Spring, Rahe elevated Coach Eric Duft to Associate Head Coach. Duft has been with Rahe all four seasons at WSU as has Tim Gardner. ... Charles Harral is back for his 2nd season as is Director of Basketball Operations, Phil Beckner.
WHO IS BACK?
The Wildcats return six lettermen and four starters off of last year’s team which posted a 21-10 record overall and had a near perfect 15-1 mark in Big Sky Conference regular season play. ... Gone are Kellen McCoy (5-6, 180 Sr. Guard) who was the 2009-09 Big Sky Conference MVP. McCoy averaged 14.0 points and 2.7 assists per game last season. ... Also gone is Daviin Davis (6-4, 200 Sr. Forward) who was named the 2008-09 Big Sky Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Davis averaged 9.5 points a game.
DAMIAN LILLARD (6-2, 185 Soph. Guard) is WSU’s top returning scorer. Lillard became the first TRUE FRESHMAN in Big Sky Conference history to earn First Team All-Big Sky Conference honors. He also was named the 2008-00 Big Sky Conference Newcomer of the Year. ... Lillard started in 26 of WSU’s 31 games, averaging 11.5 points a game and shooting 84 percent from the free throw line. ...STEVE PANOS (6-8, 245 Sr. Center) is the only player on the team with three varsity letters, and joins NICK HANSEN (6-4, 205 Sr. Guard) as one of only two seniors on the team. Panos started all 31 games in the post last season averaging 9.4 points and 4.4 rebounds, while Hansen averaged 8.5 points and 2.3 rebounds per game knocking down 67-175 three-pointers (.383). ... KYLE BULLINGER (6-6, 215 Soph. Forward) is the other returning starter. Like Panos, he started in all 31 games averaging 8.7 points and 4.5 rebounds a contest.
THREE DASH DATA
Every team in the Big Sky Conference comes into the 2009-10 season having lost their last game of the 2008-09 season. The Wildcats enter 09-10 on a two-game losing streak having lost to Montana State in the semifinals of the 08-09 Big Sky Post-Season Tournament and at San Diego State in the first round of the NIT. - - - Three Wildcat freshmen: Pablo Coro (6-3, 190 Guard), Blake Davis (6-6, 210 Forward) and Byron Fulton (6-7, 220 Forward) will red-shirt the 2009-10 season. - - - BYU’s Lee Cummard was the only individual opponent to score 30 or more points vs. Weber State last season. Cummard had 30 in BYU’s 92-62 win in Ogden. - - - No player is three seasons under Coach Randy Rahe, has had a 30-point scoring game. Dezmon Harris’ 28 points at Sacramento State in 2006-07 is the most individual points by a Wildcat in the last three seasons.
NEXT GAME
Weber State gets its first taste of the road on Tuesday, Nov. 17 in Santa Barbara, California, facing the Gauchos of UC Santa Barbara. ... Tip off is set in the Thunderdome at 7:05 p.m. (PST).
RANDY RAHE QUOTES
ON UTAH STATE: “Obviously I have all the admiration and respect for Coach Morrill. I wouldn’t be in my present position if it weren’t for him. I learned, and continue to learn, much about the game from him. The Aggies are who they are. They rebound, play unbelievable defense, they share the ball and they don’t make mistakes. That’s why they are difficult to play, let alone beating them. Jared Quayle is a great player. He wants the ball with the game on the line, or will make the great defensive play with the game on the line. All five of their starters can score, so that’s makes doubling on the ball scary notion. But, we love to play these instate games and I can’t wait to tip it up.”
ON THE WILDCATS: “We are excited and ready to go. I wasn’t overly pleased with our play in the last exhibition game, especially from our veterans, but we are now all on the same page. We need to come ready to play no matter who we are playing. That’s the mind set you need to be successful.”
