Preview: Stanford Men’s Basketball set to face Montana at Maples
On Saturday at 1:00 PM PT on ACCNX, Stanford men’s basketball will welcome Montana to Maples Pavilion. Stanford comes in at 1-0 overall while Montana comes in at 2-0.
Last time out: Stanford defeated Portland State on Tuesday by a final score of 89-79. Stanford freshman Ebuka Okorie led the way with 26 points while senior Chisom Okpara had 21 points.
RECAP: Stanford Men’s Basketball wins home opener vs. Portland State
On Stanford: Stanford is entering year two of the Kyle Smith era. While they are picked to finish 17th in the ACC, with Okorie and Okpara leading the way, they are hoping to once again have a better season than expected. Check out the basketball news feed tab for more preseason content.
On Montana: The Grizzlies are coached by Travis DeCuire, a Montana alum who has coached them to three NCAA tournament appearances/Big Sky tournament championships in 2018, 2019, and 2025. DeCuire is a really good coach who I’ve always been high on. This year’s Grizzlies squad is looking to get back to the NCAA tournament just like the 2019 team did after their 2018 appearance.
The Grizzlies have three players scoring double figures on average in junior guard Money Williams (10.5 points & 6.5 rebounds), graduate student forward Te’Jon Sawyer (10.5 points & 5.0 rebounds), and junior guard Brookyln Hicks (10.0 points & 4.0 rebounds). Freshman forward Kenyon Aguino is right behind them with his 9.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.
While the Grizzlies are 2-0, their first two opponents Northwest Indian and Ottawa (AZ) are not NCAA schools. Northwest Indian competes at the Tribal College level while Ottawa (AZ) competes at the NAIA level. In that sense, it’s hard to get a sense of how good this Montana team is, but just knowing they were in the tournament last year is enough to know they are dangerous.
Keys to the game: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is make sure Ebuka Okorie has the ball in his hands as much as possible. He’s off to a blistering start this season and looking like one of the top freshmen in the country. Stanford should force Montana to slow him down. If he has a big day, Stanford is going to be tough to stop.
Secondly, Stanford needs to move the ball efficiently. Stanford had just nine assists in their win over Portland State while also having 17 turnovers. Stanford simply needs to play a cleaner game in that area.
Finally, Stanford needs to win the battle in the paint. Stanford had a +6 advantage in rebounding against Portland State. If they win the battle on the boards again and do a good job scoring inside, they’ll be tough to stop. Especially at home.
Prediction: I gotta roll with Stanford in this one given they are at home. However, I have tremendous respect for Montana. An upset is definitely possible. Stanford 77 Montana 70 is how I see this one playing out.
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