Season Review: Trip to GNAC tourney highlights 2016-17 for MSUB MBB

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Friday, March 10, 2017 Season Review: Trip to GNAC tourney highlights 2016-17 for MSUB MBB

MSUB’s 2016-17 men’s basketball season culminates with a trip to the GNAC Championships, as the Yellowjackets return to the conference tournament for the first time in three seasons.

BILLINGS, Mont. – A return to the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Championships for the first time in three years highlighted the 2016-17 Montana State University Billings men’s basketball season, along with the completion of a pair of memorable five-year careers.

Seniors Marc Matthews and Jace Anderson wrapped up their tenure as Yellowjackets by playing in a playoff game against Western Oregon University on March 2, where MSUB’s season came to a close with a 72-61 defeat at Marcus Pavilion in Lacey, Wash.

The ‘Jackets finished the year 14-15 overall, and earned the No. 6 seed into the conference tournament after tying for sixth place in the GNAC standings at 9-11 in league play. “We feel like we took a step in the right direction, and moved forward from where we were last year,” commented sixth-year head coach Jamie Stevens, who moved to No. 5 in MSUB

history in wins with an overall record of 76-96 (.442) since the 2011-12 campaign. “We played very well in the middle of the year, and even though we didn’t finish as strongly as we would have liked, we feel very good about the progress we made as a whole.”

Sixth-year MSUB head coach Jamie Stevens with assistant coach Brad Schmit to his left and grad. assistant JC Isakson to his right.

MSUB’s season was highlighted by a 3-0 road trip from Nov. 22-26, which resulted in the team being named the GNAC Team of the Week. The ‘Jackets also had signature wins at No. 19 Western Washington, 100-93 on New Year’s Eve, and at home against the University of Alaska Anchorage, 69-68 on Jan. 12 at Alterowitz Gym. The ‘Jackets were the only team in the GNAC outside of the top-5 to defeat each of the top-4 teams, as MSUB beat thirdplace Western Oregon at home 79-71 on Dec. 5, and fourth-place Saint Martin’s at home 92-83 on Senior Night on Feb. 18. The strong performance against the top teams in the league is what ultimately broke a three-way tie for sixth and elevated MSUB into the GNAC tournament.

“How you compete in your league is the sign of how good your program is, and we had some really good wins,” Stevens commented. “We won at Bellingham for the first time and Ellensburg for the second time, and beat Anchorage, Saint Martin’s, and Western Oregon at home. Looking back now, those were five really good wins, and those are victories that can help us build with the group we have coming back.”

MSUB went 7-5 at home, 5-9 on the road and was 2-1 in neutral-site games during the season.

Matthews broke into MSUB’s top-10 in career scoring with the final shot of his career, hitting his 222nd career three in the waning seconds of the season to give him 1,280 points in four years. His 3-point total tied him for sixth-most in MSUB history, and he led the GNAC in 2016-17 with 86 made threes.

The Sierra Vista, Ariz., native earned honorable mention all-league for the second straight year, and ranked second on the team with 14.6 points per game. He was twice named GNAC Player of the Week and earned an unprecedented United States Basketball Writers Association National Player of the Week honor during the season.

Perhaps the most memorable moment of his career, Matthews drained a lastsecond three to give MSUB the crucial 69-68 win over UAA at home in January.

“Marc capped his career by playing his best basketball as a senior, and that’s always the hope when you bring a kid into the program,” Stevens said. “He was loyal to the program, and he touched a lot of his teammates’ lives. He was able to be a part of a lot of good things here.”

MSUB Men’s Basketball All-Time Scoring Leaders Rk. Name Points 1.

Roy McPipe 1883 2.

Cameron Munoz 1879 3.

Les Heins 1726 4.

Jim Soft 1558 5.

Bart Bauer 1547 6.

Markus Hallgrimson 1470 7.

Titus Warmsley 1467 8.

Mark Hamilton 1463 9.

Reece Gliko 1388 10.

Marc Matthews 1280 11.

Buddy Windy Boy 1278 Matthews finished his career No. 10 in MSUB career scoring with 1,280 points.

Like Matthews, Anderson was another five-year senior as the duo redshirted together in 2012-13. Returning from off-season knee surgery, Anderson was one of just two players on the roster to start all 29 games, and he ranked fourth on the team with 9.8 points per game. He finished his career No. 13 in MSUB history with 131 made threes, and was No. 9 in 3-point field-goal percentage at 41.2.

“Jace was about as good as he could have been considering the injury he was coming back from,” said Stevens. “We all know that he didn’t quite have the same quickness or burst as before his injury, and if it were not for that he is a guy who could have averaged 14 or 15 points per game.”

MSUB Men’s Basketball Career 3-Point Field-Goal Percentage Leaders (Min. 50 Made) Rank Name Pct. Made Att. 1.

Pryor Orser 45.33 141 311 2.

Chris Herriford 44.25 154 348 3.

Cameron Munoz 43.30 451 1042 4.

Jaxon Myaer 42.77 136 318 5.

Mark Hamilton 42.56 286 672 6.

Reece Gliko 41.92 231 551 7.

Jonathan Mesghna 41.88 80 191 8.

Mike McDowell 41.40 65 157 9.

Jace Anderson 41.19 131 318 10.

Mitch Cole 40.31 52 129

Though the ‘Jackets say goodbye to a pair of talented seniors, the team will return one of the top overall players in the NCAA D2 west region in sophomore Preston Beverly. The reigning GNAC Freshman of the Year had a stellar sophomore campaign, and was the only player in the league in the top-six in scoring (18.8 ppg, fifth), rebounding (8.2 rpg, sixth) and blocked shots (1.8 per game, fifth).

The high production earned Beverly first-team all-GNAC honors, and he was the only underclassman on the first team and one of just four in the whole league to earn all-conference accolades. Beverly totaled eight double-doubles on the year, was twice named GNAC Player of the Week, and posted a career-best 35 points in MSUB’s home win over Simon Fraser on Jan. 28. Beverly’s 19 rebounds in a win over Rocky Mountain College on Dec. 10 were the most in a single game in the GNAC this season, and his efficiency per game rating of 20.03 was the highest in the GNAC. “Preston took a big step forward this year, and there definitely wasn’t a sophomore slump after his great freshman season,” Stevens said. “For him to come out and get first-team all-league as a sophomore is a huge honor. He played really well in the middle of the year, but didn’t play his best basketball at the end of the season. Hopefully that will ignite his fire Anderson finished his career No. 9 in MSUB history to go out and have with a 3-point field-goal percentage of 41.2. another great offseason, and come back motivated to build on this year.”

MSUB Men’s Basketball Single-Season Blocks Leaders Rank Name Blocks Season 1.

Chris Herriford 55 1992-93 2.

Preston Beverly 51 2016-17 3.

Emmanuel Olufemi 48 2015-16 4.

Kyle Stirmlinger 47 2002-03 5.

Pat Reynolds 46 1986-87 6.

Pat Reynolds 42 1985-86 7.

Robert Mayes 36 2011-12 8.

Brian Cook 31 2000-01 Chris Herriford 31 1991-92 Roy Utterback 31 1987-88 Stepping into a crucial role as the starting 5-man for the ‘Jackets, junior Kamal Tall had one of the most improved seasons among the squad with averages of 6.9 points and 5.0 rebounds. Tall started 28 of 29 games, and had a career-high 19 points at Concordia on Feb. 23 – a game in which he posted his first-ever double-double.

Beverly, guarded here by fellow all-GNAC first-teamer Jeffrey Parker of WWU, is one of the most complete players in the NCAA D2 west region.

The 6-foot-8 Belgian is projected as one of the team’s top returners for next season.

“Kamal took a big step forward in his second year here, and he was playing his best basketball at the end of the season,” Stevens said. “We are really excited about his development, and we know he is going to put a lot of time in during the offseason.

We are expecting big things out of him next year.”

Though junior Kendall Denham was utilized in a different role this season, his overall production was highly improved. The guard led the team with 85 assists, and ranked eighth in the GNAC with 2.9 per game. He was also the fifth-leading scorer on the team with 8.2 points per game, and posted career-highs with 10 rebounds against Western Oregon on Feb. 25 and 10 assists in a double-double at Simon Fraser on Dec. 29.

Tall started 28 of 29 games at center, and played his best basketball at the end of the year.

“Kendall had a different role this year, but it suited him better,” Stevens said. “His first two years he was playing too many minutes, and this year his production went up noticeably. He was able to play multiple positions for us, and he improved in almost every category. We are going to ask him to do a lot more for us next year, specifically offensively, and we are looking forward to him having a great senior season.”

Kendall Denham Improvement by Season Year Class Eff. Eff./Gm. Eff./Min. Ast.-To. Min. 2014-15 Freshman 159 6.36 0.19 1.69 854 2015-16 Sophomore 175 7.29 0.23 1.89 763 2016-17 Junior 263 9.07 0.35 2.50 750 *Efficiency=(Pts.+Reb.+Ast.+Stl.+Blk.)-(TO+Missed FG+Missed 3FG+Missed FT)

Gm. 25 24 29

Min./Gm. 34.2 31.8 25.9

Junior Kendall Denham had his most productive season yet in 2016-17.

Mirroring Denham’s marked improvement was sophomore guard Sven Jeuschede, who started 22 of 29 games and averaged 4.3 points and 2.7 rebounds. The German added 100 or more points to all three of his shooting categories between seasons, and averaged 21.3 minutes per game. Jeuschede shot 37.5 percent from the floor, 37.7 percent from 3point range, and a team-best 89.7 percent from the foul line, compared with totals of 24.6 percent, 25.0 percent, and 66.7 percent in those respective categories as a freshman in 2015-16.

“Sven became our best defensive player, and started more than 20 games for us as a sophomore,” Stevens commented. “His shooting percentages went way up, and his increase in production from his freshman to sophomore seasons was as good as anybody’s on the team.

He is someone who has a chance to help us be very good as a team for the next few years.”

The Yellowjackets also relied on a handful of role players off the bench, including junior Jordan Perry, sophomore Cade Alcorn, and freshmen Zack Lessinger and Cinco Durr.

Early injuries hampered the season for Perry and Alcorn, but both players saw bright spots as the season progressed. Perry had a seasonSophomore Sven Jeuschede drastically improved in all high 17 points and six three shooting categories this season. rebounds at Seattle Pacific on Jan. 21, and saw action in 26 games overall. Alcorn earned minutes in 18 games, providing depth off the bench at the center position.

“Jordan had a great fall, but because of his injury he missed some crucial time early in the season,” Stevens said. “With the way Kamal was playing, it was hard to get Cade a lot of minutes, but we feel good about having three legitimate 5-men. We think both Cade and Jordan can have bounceback years if they have a good offseason.”

Both freshmen on MSUB’s roster started their careers with a bang, as Lessinger had a season-best 18 points in his very first game of the year at Cal Baptist. Durr was right behind with 15 points and three assists in his first college game, and he posted a season-high 21 points against Central Washington on Jan. 5.

Lessinger saw the court in 26 games total, averaging 4.3 points and 2.4 rebounds. His season high on the boards of nine came on Dec. 5 against Western Oregon, and he had a strong 12-point, eight-rebound performance against Seattle Pacific on Feb. 16.

Freshman point guard Cinco Durr played in 28 of 29 games in his first year at MSUB.

Durr was fifth on the team with 45 assists, and reached his season-high of four in a game on five different occasions. The Sacramento, Calif., native played in 28 of 29 games and averaged 13.5 minutes in his first full season.

“Zack and Cinco each had some bigtime games, and there were some ups and downs as you would expect during a freshman season,” said Stevens. “Zack has learned a lot about what it takes to be a college player at this level, and he has a chance to be a great player for us. We envision turning over the keys to the car to Cinco, and we expect him to take over our point guard position for the next few years.”

FINAL TEAM NUMBERS: MSUB finished the year ranked ninth in the GNAC with a scoring margin of minus-0.4, as the team averaged 79.3 points per game while allowing 79.7. The ‘Jackets were 10th in field-goal percentage at 43.1, fifth in 3-point field-goal percentage at 36.2, and second in free-throw percentage at 76.0. In rebounding, MSUB finished fifth in the league with a margin of plus-0.2, grabbing 37.0 boards and giving up 36.8 per game. MSUB was a stellar offensive rebounding team, averaging the second-most in the league at 12.7 per game.

For the second year in-a-row, MSUB set the school record for blocks, and surpassed the century mark for the first time ever with 109. MSUB’s nine blocks at Western Washington on Dec. 31 tied for the fourth-most in MSUB single-game history.

The team’s free-throw percentage of 76.0 was the fourth-best in school history, and its 272 made 3-pointers were the 12th most in the history of Yellowjacket hoops.

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