Men’s basketball welcomes preseason favorite Eastern Washington to Greeley
Northern Colorado faces preseason Big Sky favorite Eastern Wash
By Ryan Pfeifer, UNCBears.com
Game Notes Attached
GREELEY, Colo. – Fresh off a sweep of Idaho last week, Northern Colorado men’s basketball looks to keep the momentum rolling when they welcome Eastern Washington to town. The Bears and Eagles will tip-off at 6:30 pm on Thursday and noon on Saturday.
Opening Tip
– Northern Colorado earned its first sweep of the Big Sky season defeating Idaho 74-54 and 75-61 last week.
– Matt Johnson II had another strong weekend averaging 18.0 points. He made eight three pointers in the two games shooting 52.4% from the field. He added on 2.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists per contest. He has led the team scoring in five straight games.
– Bodie Hume enters Thursday with a streak of six-games scoring in double figures. He had games of 14 and 12 points against Idaho. Hume stuffed the stat sheet against the Vandals averaging 7.0 rebounds, 3.0 steals, 2.0 assists and 1.5 blocks. He enters Thursday 19 points away from 1,000 for his career.
– Kur Jockuch matched his season-high scoring with 14 points and led the team with 9 rebounds on Saturday against UI.
– Northern Colorado made 23 three-point shots over the two games against Idaho.
– UNC is holding its opponents to 22.3% from behind the arc over its past six games.
– Eastern Washington returned to action last week after almost a months break due to COVID issues.
– The Eagles split their series against Southern Utah with a 75-63 win on Thursday before falling in an offensive slug fest 99-94 on Saturday.
– Northern Colorado aims to end a three-game losing streak to the Eagles.
Scouting the Eagles
Eastern Washington entered the season as the favorite to repeat as Big Sky champions in 2020-21. They are led by the 1-2 punch of Preseason MVP Jacob Davison and Kim Aiken Jr.
Forward Tanner Groves leads the team averaging 16.6 points a game with Davision (14.6), Aiken Jr (11.8) and Tyler Robertson (11.6) all averaging double figures scoring.
The Eagles have only played three Big Sky games after having one game against Northern Arizona and both series against Portland State and Weber State canceled.
Around the Big Sky
And then their was one. Montana State is the only undefeated team left in Big Sky play. The Bobcats swept Portland State last week to improve to 4-0. This weekend they travel to Northern Arizona.
Three teams enter the week with just one loss in Big Sky play in Southern Utah, Sacramento State and Eastern Washington.
What’s Ahead
It’s a split week for the Bears next week with one game at home and one on the road. UNC will start the week in Flagstaff, Arizona to face Northern Arizona before both teams make their way to Greeley for Saturday’s contest.
To stay up to date on all things UNC Men’s Basketball, visit UNCBears.com, follow the team on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the new UNC Athletics app by clicking here.
Ryan Pfeifer
Director of Strategic Communication
O: 970-351-3645 | C: 720-290-8886
#Bears Strong | @Rpfeifer82
