Weber State Wildcats
Big Sky (20-11, 11-5)
Seed: #15
West Region
RPI: 143
Big Wins:
12/30 at Northern Arizona (81-73), 1/25 at Idaho State (71-58), 1/27 Eastern
Washington (93-84)
Bad Losses:
1/18 at Montana State (48-63), 1/20 at Montana (86-90), 2/26 at
Sacramento State (83-105)
Last NCAA
Appearance: 2003, First Round loss to Wisconsin
Coach:
Randy Rahe (First NCAA appearance)
Probable
Starters:
Juan Pablo
Silveira, Sophomore, Guard, 11.2 ppg, 3.3 apg
Dezmon Harris,
Junior, Guard, 10.9 ppg, 2.5 apg
Dan Henry,
Senior, Guard, 7.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg
David Patten,
Senior, Forward, 14.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 1.1 bpg
Arturas Valeika,
Junior, Forward, 8.1 ppg, 6.6 rpg
Key
Roleplayers:
Brody Van
Brocklin, Junior, Guard, 3.8 ppg, 1.7 apg
Daviin Davis,
Sophomore, Forward, 4.8 ppg, 1.8 rpg
Tyler Billings,
Junior, Forward, 8.2 ppg, 2.8 rpg
Why They Can
Surprise:
Weber State has
had a history of great NCAA tournaments. In 1995, as a 14 seed, they beat
Michigan State and only lost the following game to Georgetown by two points.
In 1999 they did exactly the same thing, beating North Carolina and falling
in overtime to Florida. It is a whole new group obviously, but these guys
run an efficient offense through their forwards and are looking to make more
history this time around. Starters Dezmon Harris, David Patten and Arturas
Valeika, along with roleplayer Tyler Billings, all shoot over 50% from the
floor. Patten leads Weber State’s balanced scoring attack with 14.4 points
per game and will do some work on the glass as well.
Valeika shoots
nearly 60% from the floor, and would be among the nation’s leaders in that
category if he would take enough shots to qualify. The 6-9 junior is a
scoring threat when he does become involved in the offense and can put up 20
points on any given night, yet most of his accolades come from his ability
to rebound. Billings has developed into a solid option off the bench and is
an invaluable resource when the starters need a rest or run into foul
trouble.
Why They Can
Disappoint:
Point guard
Juan Pablo Silveira and roleplayer Brody Van Brocklin are the only two
players that dish out more assists than turnovers. The team turns it over
16.1 times per game and for a group that does not have an extremely high
paced offense and wants to play through the post, that is way too many.
Who To
Watch:
While the
Wildcats are not dependent on the three-ball, Silveira and his backcourt
mate Dezmon Harris knock them down with consistency. Silveira is a smart
guard and a good scorer, but he tends to hang around the perimeter too much
instead of driving to the basket looking to score. Harris’ numbers on the
season do not do him justice. After becoming a full-time starter in January,
the 6-1 junior has become more involved in the offense and provides another
big scoring threat for the Wildcats.
Joel’s
Bracket Says: First Round loss to UCLA
