SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Sacramento State's trip to the "Treasure State" comes to an end on Saturday (Jan. 31) as the Hornets make the three-hour drive from Bozeman to Missoula to take on Montana for a 1 p.m. PT tip-off at Dahlberg Arena. The game marks the end of the first-round of Big Sky Conference play. Saturday's contest is the second of a three-game "weekend" for Sacramento State, which travels to Weber State on Monday (Feb. 2).

GAME #22
WHAT: Sacramento State (10-11, 4-4 Big Sky) at Montana (7-13, 4-5 Big Sky) 
WHEN: Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026
TIME: 1 PM PT
WHERE: Missoula, Mont.
ARENA: Dahlberg Arena
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: GoGriz.com
GAME NOTES: Sacramento State | Montana | Big Sky Conference

THE COACHES
• Sacramento State's Aaron Kallhoff enters his third year at the helm of the Hornets' program, posting a 31-54 mark and a 109-130 overall record in seven-plus seasons as a head coach
• Kallhoff claimed his 100th career win as a head coach in Sacramento State's 2025-26 season-opening win over Stanton University
• Nate Harris is in his first full season as head coach at Montana after serving as the interim head coach with the Grizzlies for the final 17 games of last season (9-8 record)

ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES
• Montana enters the weekend with a 7-13 overall record and a 4-5 mark in league play
• The Grizzlies are one of the hottest teams in the Big Sky at the moment, having won four straight -- the second-longest active winning streak behind only Idaho's five-straight victories
• Saturday marks the ninth home game for Montana this season where it has posted a 3-5 record at Dahlberg Arena, winning two straight
• Sophomore guard Avery Waddington has taken over the mantle of leading scorer at 12.8 ppg in the absence of senior Mack Konig (17.4 ppg), who has missed the team's last seven games dating back to Jan. 3 against Northern Colorado
• Waddington also leads the team on the glass at 7.5 rpg and has 47 assists, 18 steals, and a team-high 21 blocked shots
• Sophomore forward Jocelyn Land is also in double figures, averaging 11.8 ppg to go with 17 blocked shots
• As a team, the Grizzlies are averaging 62.6 ppg and shooting .384 from the field, while opponents are averaging 71.5 ppg and shooting .424 from the floor overall

SERIES NOTABLES
• Montana has dominated the series with Sacramento State, winning 51 of the 60 all-time meetings since the first in 1997
• The Grizzlies have won four straight against the Hornets, sweeping the regular season series with a 69-63 victory in Sacramento and a 71-63 triumph in Missoula last year
• Sacramento State's last win in the series came at home in 2023, posting a 63-56 victory at The Nest on Feb. 25
• The Hornets have won only once in 31 tries in Missoula in the history of the series, posting a 73-60 victory on Jan. 21, 2017
• Since then, Montana has won nine straight in the series on its home floor
• Each of the last three games have been decided eight points or fewer, while six of the last seven have ended with a single-digit margin of victory for the winning team

LAST TIME OUT
• Sacramento State's trip to the state of Montana got off to a rocky start on Thursday, held to just 26 percent in a 66-31 loss at first-place Montana State
• No Hornet finished in double figures for the first time in almost a year to the day as sophomore guard Rubi Gray led the way with a team-high eight points
• Senior forward Fatoumata Jaiteh led the way for Sacramento State on the glass, grabbing a game-high eight rebounds to go with four points in 21 minutes
• Montana State led wire-to-wire, leading by as many as 37 points after opening the contest on a 13-0 run and holding the Hornets scoreless for the first six minutes

PICTON EARNS BIG SKY WEEKLY HONORS
• Junior guard Natalie Picton was named the Big Sky Conference Player of the Week on Tuesday (Jan. 27) after a pair of standout performances against Idaho and Eastern Washington last week
• It is the first career award for the Welland, Ontario, native and the first for a Hornet since teammate Benthe Versteeg shared the league's final regular season honor last year
• In helping her team to a split against the Vandals and Eagles, Picton averaged 18.0 ppg and shot 41 percent from the field, including draining six of her 13 makes from beyond the arc while also averaging 3.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 2.5 steals per game