After what has been a successful season for the Weber State men’s basketball team, the Wildcats are starting to diminish, as they have lost their last three games.
The losing streak began when the Wildcats took on the University of North Dakota at the Dee Events Center on Feb. 18, for what was the battle for the No. 1 spot in the Big Sky Conference.
The Fighting Hawks took down the Wildcats 77–68.
“North Dakota is a very good basketball team,” head coach Randy Rahe said in a post-game press conference. “This is one of the best teams they’ve had in about 15 years, and they were ready to go.”
The Wildcats were 9–2 all-time against North Dakota and had a perfect 4–0 record against them at home before Feb. 18.
The Fighting Hawks delivered Weber State their first loss of the conference season back on Jan. 19 in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
Despite the minor setback, the Wildcats hit the road for their final two road games of the regular
season with their heads held high.
The Wildcats put up a fight in Cheney, Washington but ultimately lost to the Eastern Washington
Eagles 82–72.
“Our kids fought like crazy,” Rahe told Brandon Garside of the Standard Examiner. “They played their tails off. We just came up a
little bit short.”
Weber State led for only 1:13 of the game, while the Eagles led for 30:09, and the game was tied for 8:24.
Because of the loss, Weber State and Eastern Washington were tied for the No. 2 spot in the Big Sky Conference.
The Wildcats continued their road trip as they headed to Moscow, Idaho to take on University of Idaho who was 9–6 in conference play.
Weber State was 54–22 overall against the Vandals and 2–2 since the Vandals rejoined the Big Sky Conference in 2014.
Despite overcoming a deficit of 12 points in the first half, the Wildcats rallied and forced an overtime game against the Vandals. However, that was not enough to snap their two-game losing streak.
Idaho defeated the Wildcats 83–78.
“We fought like crazy to get back into it and gave ourselves an opportunity. We were probably one shot away from winning that game,” Rahe told Weber State Athletics in a post-game press conference. “We didn’t play great, but they played so hard and tough. I am proud of their efforts.”
Senior Jeremy Senglin had 21 points, with five of those being 3-point shots. Senglin is the eighth player in Big Sky Conference history to reach 1,900 career points.
Senglin now has a total of 1,914 points for his career, just 21 shy of WSU Alumnus Damian Lillard, who holds the second place record for all-time points at Weber State.
Senglin is 106 points away from passing WSU Alumnus Bruce Collins, who has held the first place spot since 1980.
With the loss to Idaho, the Wildcats sit at third place in the Big Sky Conference standings.
According to the Jason Ashcraft of the Big Sky Conference, Weber State will clench a first-round bye with a win over Montana or
Montana State.
Weber State return to the Dee Events Center on March 2 to host the University of Montana. The final home game of the season is on March 4 as they host Montana State University.
The Wildcats have an overall record of 16–11, and a conference
record of 11–5.
