GAME PREVIEW

• Sacramento State (6-15, 2-6) will play the second leg of its season-long four game road trip when the Hornets play at Montana (14-8, 7-2) on Saturday afternoon. Tip at Dahlberg Arena is set for 3 p.m. PT.
• The Hornets are coming off a 70-58 road loss at Montana State in a game they trailed by just five points with four minutes to play. Montana has the Big Sky's longest current winning streak at three games after beating Portland State (92-78) at home on Thursday.
• Sacramento State has a plethora of injuries right now as the team has been playing the last six games without starting back court Emil Skytta and Alex Kovatchev. The Hornets have also been playing without one of their rotational forwards Bowyn Beatty the last five games. Skytta and Kovatchev are the team's best two defenders.
• In fact, a pair of walk-ons (Michael Wilson, Leo Ricketts) have received good minutes over the last three games.
• Sacramento State is 1-8 on the road, and has dropped five straight away from home since defeating Air Force, 63-61, on Nov. 27. The Hornets are 0-3 against Big Sky opposition on the road, including 77-53 at Northern Arizona and 68-64 at Northern Colorado.
• Montana is 11-1 at home, and 3-0 on its current four-game homestand. The Grizzlies' lone home loss this season came to Northern Colorado, 81-57, on Jan. 11.
• Former Hornet guard Austin Patterson (2022-24) currently plays at Montana, and is averaging 6.0 points on 39% shooting from deep. Patterson (18.8 mpg) is not getting nearly the amount of minutes he received last season with the Hornets (9.5 ppg, 28.0 mpg).
• In a series that dates back to 1992 (Hornets' first year of Div. I was 1991-92), Sacramento State is 12-50 against Montana. The Grizzlies have won three straight, but each of those three wins have come by seven points or less. That includes sweeping the season series a year ago with a 68-61 win in Missoula, and 70-67 in Sacramento.
• Hornet fans would care to forget last year's 70-67 loss in the Nest, as Montana closed the final 3:31 of the contest on a 10-0 run.
• The Hornets are 3-26 when playing in Missoula, but each of the last four meetings in Dahlberg Arena have been decided by seven points or less, and three of those by two points or less. The last time the two teams didn't play close in Missoula was the 2018-19 season when Montana won by an 87-56 margin.
• The Griz have the best balanced scoring team in the Big Sky. In conference play, they have six players averaging between 8.8 and 13.3 ppg. That includes all five starters.

MULTIMEDIA OPTIONS

• Every game the remainder of the season (home and away) will stream on ESPN+.
• For the fourth straight season, all Hornet home games, and games played at a Big Sky Conference venue, will stream on ESPN+. The subscription-based service streams on watchespn.com and the ESPN App.
• Steve McElroy, in his 28th year as the play-by-play voice, is on the call for home games.
• Links for all multimedia options, including live stats for every game, can be found next to each game on the men's basketball schedule at hornetsports.com.

A LOOK AT THE LAST GAME

• Montana State led for 30 minutes of clock and outscored Sacramento State's bench, 36-5, on the way to a 70-58 win over the Hornets on Thursday evening at Worthington Arena.
• Sacramento State held a brief second half lead at 39-36 with 16:21 remaining, but Montana State answered with a 15-4 run to take an eight-point advantage (51-43).
• The Hornets would get no closer than five points the rest of the way. The 12-point margin of victory was also the Bobcats' largest lead. Montana State had a 34-29 halftime lead.
• Perhaps the biggest difference in the game was the bench, as Montana State had two reserves in double figures, led by Patrick McMahon's 20 points and Jabe Mullins' 10 points. • Conversely, the Hornets had just five bench points as Sacramento State used an eight-man rotation.
• The Bobcats attempted 14 more free throws than the Hornets, connecting on 19-of-26 (73%) while the Hornets were just 8-for-12 (83%).
• Sacramento State, which had 10 offensive rebounds and a 38-32 rebounding advantage, shot 35% (20-57) from the field with eight made treys. MSU was 43% (21-49) with nine made 3-balls. Sacramento State had 15 turnovers - its most in 10 games - and the Bobcats took advantage, outscoring the Hornets, 22-7, in points off miscues.

INJURY BUG GO AWAY

• Sacramento State has played without three key players each of the last five games.
• Guard Alex Kovatchev, after starting each of the first four games, has missed 17 consecutive games with injury.
• Guard Emil Skytta, who had started 41 consecutive games dating back to last season, has missed the past six games.
• Seven-foot forward Bowyn Beatty, a rotational player who had appeared in each of the first 16 games, has missed five straight games.
• All three players are sophomores and each have big roles with the team. Skytta and Kovatchev are the Hornets' top two defenders. Kovatchev is always in the right place at the right time offensively and defensively, and Skytta is one of the team's best at playing downhill. Beatty started vs. Eastern Wash two days prior to injuring himself in practice.

PROVIDING A SPARK

• Due, in part, to the multitude of injuries, a pair of walk-ons have been inserted into the rotation - guards Michael Wilson and Leo Ricketts - and both have played well.
• Ricketts and Wilson both posted career highs on Saturday vs. Weber State. Wilson finished with career highs in points (14), 3-pointers (4-for-6) and was one rebound shy of a career best (6). Ricketts, who did not play each of the first 16 games of the season, had 13 points (5-6 FG, 3-3 3FG), four assists, and was a team-best +15 in plus/minus.
• Over the last four games, Wilson is averaging 9.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 30.9 minutes while shooting 44% (8-18) from 3PT and 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Prior to those four games, he had been averaging  3.2 points, 2.9 rebounds and 12.5 minutes per contest. He is in his second season with the Hornets.
• Ricketts, a true freshman, did not play each of the first 16 games of the season. After playing sparingly for two games on the last road trip, Ricketts was a factor last week. In two games last week, Ricketts, who is not afraid to hoist, averaged 9.5 points and 2.5 assists while shooting 7-for-10 from the field and 5-of-7 from the 3-point line.

INTERNATIONAL ROSTER

• Sacramento State has players representing six different countries - Australia (5), United States (5), Canada (1), England (1), Finland (1) and South Sudan (1).
• In addition, Sacramento State has players from four of the seven continents - North America, Africa, Europe and Australia.
• The Hornets' head coach, Michael Czepil, is from Melbourne, Australia, and took the team on a trip to Sydney, Gold Coast and Melbourne during the summer.

THE CZEPIL ERA

• Sacramento State is under the guidance of interim head Michael Czepil (Zep-pull). David Patrick, who coached the Hornets the previous two seasons, stepped down on May 22 to become the associate head coach at LSU.
• Czepil spent the previous two seasons on Patrick's staff as the associate head coach.
• A native of Melbourne, Australia, Czepil entered the season with 14 years of collegiate, international and professional coaching experience. He arrived at Sacramento State after spending four seasons at UC Riverside (2018-22), including two as associate head coach.

THE TALE OF TWO HALVES

• During Big Sky play, the Hornets have struggled in the first half, before turning things around in the second. However, the large first half deficits have been hard to overcome.
• Sacramento State is being outscored by 10.4 ppg during the first half against Big Sky opposition. The Hornets have done a nice job of turning the tables in the second half, outscoring their Big Sky competition by 2.5 points after halftime.

10 MINUTE MARK TELLS THE TALE

• The 10 minute mark of the second half is a great indicator of whether or not the Hornets will win or lose. When trailing with 10 minutes to play, the team is 0-14. When leading at the 10-minute mark, Sacramento State is 6-1.
• In addition, the team is 5-0 when leading at the five minute mark, but 1-14 when trailing with five minutes to go, and 0-1 when tied at five minutes.

SLOW STARTS

• In four of the team's six conference losses, Sacramento State fell victim to slow starts it could never quite overcome.
• Against Idaho, the Vandals jumped out to a 22-11 lead.
• Eastern Washington had a 27-10 lead as the Hornets did not score their fourth point until the 11:25 mark of the first half.
• Northern Arizona jumped out to a 25-7 lead as Sacramento State did not score its fourth point until the 12:29 mark of the first half.
• Weber State got off to an 18-7 lead in the Nest last weekend.

DEFENSIVELY SPEAKING

• Overall, Sacramento State continues to rank first in the Big Sky Conference in scoring defense (67.5 ppg) and field goal percentage defense (.418).
• That has helped the Hornets stay in games despite an offense that ranks last in the league at 66.5 points per game. However, the team's offense has been on a slight upswing.
• The defense would be even better if not for the current losses of Emil Skytta and Alex Kovatchev to injury - the top two defenders on the team.

VAUNGHS COOKING

• Junior guard Julian Vaughns has scored 10+ points six times in his last seven games, has scored 17+ in four of the last five, and has led the Hornets in scoring in four of the last six.
• Specifically his last three games where he has been one of the best players on the floor. During that three-game stretch, he is averaging 19.0 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists while shooting 55% (11-20) from the 3-point line and 77% (10-13) from the charity stripe.
• His 10 3-pointers over the last three games are nearly 30% of his production from the entire season (36-103). He is now shooting a proficient 41% (18-44) from deep in league play.
• The three-game stretch has seen him post a career-high 21 points vs Idaho State, career-best seven rebounds on two occasions, 17 pts vs Weber State, and 19 at Montana State.
 
HOLT'S BIG SEASON

• Senior forward Jacob Holt has established himself as one of the top players in the Big Sky. In league play, he ranks among the conference's top players in scoring (T-6th, 16.3 ppg), rebounds (4th, 7.8 rpg) and blocks (3rd, 1.1).
• Holt has led the team in scoring in 14 of the Hornets' 21 games.
• That includes 35 points vs. Idaho, the fifth best output in the program's Div. I era. He went 17-for-21 from the line that game, both marks the best in the team's Div. I history.
• He was Big Sky Player of the Week on Dec. 31, and has posted double-doubles in four of his last nine games. Holt has scored in double figures 17 times, including seven 20-point efforts.
• If the season ended today, his 16.3 ppg scoring average would be the highest for a Hornet since Bryce Fowler averaged 19.0 ppg during the 2021-22 season.
• Holt leads the Big Sky in free throws attempted (127), and ranks second in makes (92).
 
FINAL SEASON IN THE NEST

• Sacramento State will embark upon its final year in the Nest. Next season, the team will move into the The Well on campus.
• The project will convert a portion of The Well, an on-campus fitness facility, into a venue for both the men's and women's basketball teams. The Well sits next to the football field on the south end of campus. Seating capacity will likely be around 3,000.
• Built in 1955, the Nest is currently one of the oldest (and smallest) facilities among all NCAA Div. I institutions with a seating capacity of only 1,012.
• The Hornets have played in the Nest every year since 1955, except four seasons (1996-00) when they played at downtown Memorial Auditorium. Those four seasons were also the team's first four in the Big Sky Conference.

OFFENSE ON THE RISE?

• Sacramento State ranks last in the Big Sky (331st in the nation) with 66.5 ppg.
• However, over the last three games, the team is averaging 71.3 points on 39% shooting (32-82) from 3PT. That includes 81 points vs. Weber State (most against a Div. I opponent) and 75 vs. Idaho State (third most vs. a Div. I opponent).