MEN'S BASKETBALL HOSTS WEBER STATE SATURDAY IN MUST-WIN SITUATION

2/25/2011

Seniors Duro Bjegovic (left) and Sultan Toles-Bey (right) will be honored for their contributions to the program prior to Saturday evening's game

GAME PREVIEW

There’s no other way to put it, Sacramento State (7-19, 4-10) will play its biggest game of the season Saturday night when the team welcomes Weber State (16-10, 10-4) to the Nest for a 7:05 p.m. tip…with just two games remaining on the regular season schedule (including next Wednesday’s road contest at Northern Colorado), Sacramento State desperately needs to beat Weber State for Big Sky Conference Tournament purposes…the top six teams in the nine-member Big Sky qualify for the league’s postseason event, and Eastern Washington (5-9) currently holds the sixth and final spot…Sacramento State and Idaho State (4-10) both sit a game behind Eastern Washington and all three teams have just two games left…Eastern Washington hosts Montana on Saturday night and Idaho State hosts Northern Colorado on Monday…the Hornets are attempting to reach the Big Sky Tournament for the first time since the 2005-06 season…things looked bleak for a Hornet squad that began the Big Sky season with an 0-7 conference record, but has rebounded to win four of its last seven league games to jump into postseason contention…Sacramento State, however, is coming off a 63-42 loss to Northern Arizona on Thursday, its most lopsided home defeat of the season…prior to the NAU loss, the Hornets had won three straight at home, and currently hold a 6-6 record inside the friendly confines…Weber State, which is currently third in the conference standings, has won seven of its last eight games, including a 63-39 win at Idaho State on Tuesday…more impressively, the Wildcats are 11-6 since losing arguably the Big Sky’s top player in guard Damian Lillard to a broken foot…the Wildcats are 5-8 on the road, and 3-4 against Big Sky teams…Weber State has owned the Hornets over the years, compiling a 30-4 all-time record against Sacramento State, including seven straight victories in the series…that includes a 13-3 record when playing the Hornets in Sacramento…Saturday’s game can be seen live and free via webcast at www.bigskytv.org…the game can also be heard live locally on KRJY 1240 AM, and on the internet at www.hornetsports.com with play-by-play announcer Steve McElroy calling the action...live stats for the game are available at www.hornetsports.com.

Sacramento State's complete set of game notes can be found by clicking on the link above the story.