Brandon Stinson

Men's Basketball 1/10/2024 6:15:00 PM Brandon Stinson | Sports Information & Media Coordinator

GAME NOTES: Rocky Men’s Basketball Hosts the University of Providence on Thursday Evening

BILLINGS, Mont.- The Battlin' Bears will match up with another explosive offense in their conference home opener on Thursday evening.

Matchup

#15 Rocky Mountain College (9-5) vs University of Providence (7-7)
Thursday, November 11th | 7:00pm (MT) | Fortin Education Center

Battlin' Bear Recap

The Battlin' Bears won two of their three matchups with the Argos a season ago. Both of their wins came in the Fortin Education Center, while their lone loss was in Great Falls.

Senior Maxim Stephens will be honored on Thursday for surpassing 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in his Rocky career. Stephens scored his 1,000th point in the Battlin' Bears' 108-107 overtime victory over Dickinson State and grabbed his 500th rebound amid a 19-rebound performance against Arizona Christian.

Rebounding was a large factor in Rocky's overtime bout with #7 Montana Tech, as the Battlin' Bears tied a season-high with 50 total rebounds and grabbed 15 offensive rebounds. Maxim Stephens finished 16 rebounds total including eight offensive boards in the first half. Jesse Owens tallied a career-high 10 rebounds against the Orediggers, which paved the way to his first career double-double. Kael Robinson also finished Saturday's game with 10 total rebounds, marking his eighth game this season with 10 or more rebounds, all of which have resulted in double-doubles.

A.J. Wilson led Rocky with 21 points, marking his second game of the season with 20 or more points. His four made three-pointers were a season-high. Wilson is one of four Battlin' Bears averaging 10 or more points per game, making Rocky one of three teams in the Frontier Conference to have four players scoring 10 or more points per game so far this season.

Preview

The Argos enter Thursday's game with a 7-7 overall record so far this season. The Battlin' Bears share a chunk of common opponents so far this season, as both teams have played the University of Jamestown, Dickinson State, MSU Billings, Marian University, Arizona Christian, Ottawa University-Arizona, and Southern Alberta Institute of Technology. While the Battlin' Bears picked up victories against OUAZ, MSU Billings, and SAIT, Providence lost those matchups. The teams had the same results against the remainder of their common opponents.

Providence, the 2022-23 Frontier Conference runner-ups, features a lineup full of players who can score in bunches, featuring six players averaging nine or more points per game and eight total players that average seven or more points per game. They are led by senior Davien Harris-Williams, who averages 15.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game. Harris-Williams has four games this season of 20 or more points and can score at all three levels.

The Argos have the third-highest-scoring offense in the Frontier Conference, averaging 84.6 points per game. They are the top three-point shooting team in makes and attempts, averaging 9.9 made threes per game on 27.2 attempts. The Argos are also the leading rebounding team in the conference, grabbing 40.9 total rebounds, including 11.2 offensive rebounds per game, second most in the conference.

Both teams are searching for their first conference victory on Thursday after Providence dropped their opener to Carroll College at home, 67-65.

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