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OGDEN — On the first day of the new year, Weber State suffered what would be their first and only loss in the Big Sky Conference thus far and went on to win seven straight games following a slim 2-point defeat.
With the Wildcats standing atop the conference standings, the two-game home stand this week might prove to hold the most weight as they host the Bobcats of Montana and the Grizzlies of Montana State, who come into the weekend ranked second and third in the conference, respectively.
But with eyes on a regular season title and a chance to create separation from others in the conference, senior Koby McEwen and freshman Dillon Jones anchored Weber State (18-5, 11-1 Big Sky) to an 80-75 victory over Montana (15-7, 8-3 Big Sky) Thursday night at the Dee Events Center.
McEwen poured in a game-high and season-high 32 points while shooting 19 of 20 from the free throw line and added three rebounds, three assists and a steal. He was joined in double figures by Jones, who had 18 points on an efficient 8-of-11 shooting while also pulling down 11 boards for his 12th double-double of the season.
"I think my team looks for me to attack; it's not even about me scoring," McEwen said on his aggressive play. "If we're in the bonus, I'll shoot free throws; but me being in attack mode is good for our team because it opens up opportunities for everybody else."
Following a first half performance where McEwen scored 21 of the team's 37 total points, open shots and open driving lanes were created for his teammates, but none of the shots were more clutch than 6-foot-9 center Dontay Bassett's corner 3-pointer that came with just three minutes left.
In a game where the largest lead was only 6 points and neither team could put together a run large enough to create a safety cushion, McEwen found himself with the ball and drew a double team on the block. After a quick hesitation dribble on the baseline, he found Bassett standing open in the left corner who sunk the 3-pointer and gave Weber their largest lead of the game.
"I want to give credit to Dontay," Jones said. "Obviously it's a team game, I get it. People might look at Koby's performance, and obviously sometime if it's JJ, and Seikou, and if it's me, but he's been big for us. I just know sometimes guys get lost in the sauce, and I'm not saying he's doing that right now, but he's been huge for us."
Bassett finished with 9 points, six rebounds, and a monster block that was sent to the third row behind the basket, but it's more than his presence on the court that influences the team.
"It's no secret we were searching for some production out of the position for a long time," head coach Randy Rahe said. "I think (Bassett) has been huge, I think he's been absolutely huge. He's a very good player, he's a total team guy, he provides good leadership, he's very confident, and he's very poised."
Although the Grizzlies adjusted defensively on McEwen to start the second half and held him to 1-of-5 shooting in 20 minutes, Jones took over and provided what the Wildcats were in search of late in the game — buckets.
Midway through the second half, Jones single handedly went on a 6-0 scoring run and gave a much-needed spark to the Wildcat offense by pushing the ball in transition and finding himself at the rim. He also had a crucial layup with just one minute left that caused the score to be a two-possession game in favor of the Wildcats.
Jones scored 13 of his 18 points in the second half and grabbed six rebounds to aid the second half back-and-forth game.
"This is a big weekend, obviously, and this was a big game tonight, and then Saturday's a big game as well," Rahe said. "You just got to take one at a time and win. We still got a long ways to go in conference; there's gonna be a lot of tough games to play, but you'd like to be able to take care of those games and get just a little bit of breathing room."
