2008 Woodie Awards
Bears to collide with in-state rival Rams
Jordan Freemyer
Issue date: 11/30/07 Section: Sports
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In comparison, the Bears didn't earn their third win of last season until Jan. 11, an 88-86 victory over Northern Arizona that moved the team's record to 3-14.
The Bears will face their toughest home test to date in the 2007-08 season on Saturday when they take on the Colorado State Rams. CSU will enter the game with a record of 3-3. The game will also be aired on Altitude TV.
"Any kind of TV exposure is great," Bears coach Tad Boyle said. "When we played Iowa we were on the Big Ten Network and a lot of people around the country got to see us play and this game is on Altitude, so a lot of people in this region will get to see us play."
The UNC women's team defeated the CSU women earlier in the season, and Boyle would like his team to follow suit.
"That would be a good way to handle this (non-conference) season, with both of us taking them out," Boyle said.
The Bears defeated Johnson & Wales in their last game on Tuesday by a 62-51 score, despite 31 turnovers. After the game, some of the Bears attributed the number of turnovers to a lack of mental preparation; something they said would not be a problem against CSU.
"I'm pretty sure we'll be mentally ready for Colorado State," junior forward Jabril Banks said.
The Bears said the game will not only be big for the team, but UNC and Greeley in general.
"I'm definitely excited," said freshman forward Taylor Montgomery, who notched the Bears' first double-double of the season with 14 points and 13 rebounds against Johnson and Wales. "It's a big game for the team as well as the town."
A key for the Bears will be stopping the Ram's senior center Stuart Creason, who is a 7-footer and averages 12.8 points and 7.7 rebounds per game for the Rams. This makes the availability of the Bears' senior center Kirk Archibeque an even bigger issue. Archibeque, along with guards Sean Taibi and Will Figures, missed Tuesday's game with injuries.
"We'd like to have all hands on deck for CSU, but I'm not sure if that's going to happen or not," Boyle said.
Even the newcomers to the Bears know that the proximity of the two schools makes Saturday night's game, which tips off at 6:05 p.m. at the Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion, a big one.
"This game's bigger," Banks said. "It's a rivalry."
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