Game facts
Paradise Jam — Montana (0-2) vs. NC State (2-0)
Game time: Friday, Nov. 18, 6 p.m. — At UVI Sports and Fitness Center in U.S. Virgin Islands
Television: CBS Sports Network or FloHoops.com
Probable starters
NC State
PG — 4 Dennis Smith Jr. (6-3, 195, Fr., 11.5 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 4.0 apg, 1.0 spg)
SG — 3 Terry Henderson Jr. (6-5, 190, R-Sr., 17.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.0 spg)
SF — 2 Torin Dorn Jr. (6-5, 208, R-Soph., 16.5 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 2.0 apg, 2.0 spg)
PF — 0 Abdul-Malik Abu (6-8, 240, Jr., 13.5 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 1.0 apg, 3.5 bpg)
C — 21 BeeJay Anya (6-9, 344, Sr., 5.0 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 0.5 apg, 1.0 bpg); or SF — 24 Maverick Rowan (6-7, 220, Soph., 17.0 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 1.0 apg)
Montana
PG — 14 Ahmaad Rorie (6-1, 175, R-Soph., 15.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 1.5 apg)
PG — 5 Walter Wright (5-10, 161, Sr., 2.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 1.5 apg)
SF — 31 Jack Lopez (6-5, 208, Sr., 4.0 ppg, 0.0 rpg, 2.0 apg)
F — 24 Bobby Morehead (6-7, 182, Soph., 7.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 0.5 apg)
C — 20 Fabijan Krslovic (6-8, 239, Jr., 8.0 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 3.0 apg, 1.0 spg, 1.5 bpg)
Montana
Location: Missoula, Mont.
Nickname: Grizzlies
2015-16 record: 21-12 overall, 14-4 Big Sky
2016 postseason: Lost 79-75 to Nevada in CBI first round
Coach: Travis DeCuire 41-27 overall and Montana (third year)
Notes
Montana overview: The Grizzlies are pegged to finish third in the Big Sky Conference by Blue Ribbons Basketball Yearbook, and have a long tradition of success.
Montana has become a cradle of coaches due to Jud Heathcote, Mike Montgomery, Stew Morrill, Blaine Taylor, Larry Krystkowiak (currently Utah) and Wayne Tinkle`(Oregon State). The 45-year-old DeCuire is two-for-two in reaching the postseason at Montana. He previously worked for Taylor and Montgomery as an assistant coach.
Montana returns four starters, but three of them are now coming off the bench. The Grizzlies opened the season falling to both USC and Wyoming, and the top three scorers are all newcomers.
Backcourt: Redshirt sophomore point guard Rorie was attending Montverde (Fla.) Academy and set to play for California at the beginning of his senior year, and then things fell apart.
Rorie was dismissed from Montverde, where he was expected to be the floor general while playing with Ben Simmons (Philadelphia 76ers) and D’Angelo Russell (Los Angeles Lakers).
Rorie came back home to Tacoma (Wash.) Lincoln High for his last year, and eventually was released from his letter of intent at California. He ended up signing with Oregon, but lasted one year — he averaged 4.1 points and 1.8 assists per game — before transferring to Montana.
Rorie showed his former Rivals150 talent with five three-pointers and 21 points in the 75-61 season-opening loss to USC on Nov. 11.
Wright had a successful first year at Montana after transferring in from junior college, but is off to a slow start. He averaged 13.2 points and 4.6 assists per game, and shot 36.4 percent from beyond the arc a year ago. Those numbers have plummeted in the first two games. He has scored 4 points and 26 minutes.
Lopez, who is from Australia, is another player who is off to a slow start. He averaged 6.1 points and 2.6 rebounds last year and shot an impressive 46.2 percent from three-point land. He has just eight points in the first two contests.
Freshman wing Sayeed Pridgett is athletic at 6-5 and 195 pounds, and played for the Oakland Soldiers in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League. He exploded off the bench for 20 points on 7 of 9 shooting (plus three blocks) from the field against Wyoming, and could be in line for an expanded role.
Like Wright, senior Brandon Gfeller is struggling through two games. He averaged 8.3 points and 2.2 rebounds in 23.8 minutes per game last year, but is playing 12.8 minutes less in the first two games. The 6-4, 189-pounder has 12 points and has shot 3 of 7 on three-pointers in his reduced role.
Senior point guard Mario Dunn started his sophomore year, and he responded with 8.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. He suffered injuries and his role was reduced last year. The 6-1, 185-pounder has a combined nine points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals off the bench this season.
Sophomore shooting guard Michael Oguine missed the first two games due to a broken bone in his hand. He averaged 11.0 points and 4.4 rebounds per game, and shot 31.3 percent from three-point land.
Frontcourt: Krslovic is the second player from Australia on the roster, joining Lopez. His role has expanded and he has done a good job on the boards.
He averaged 4.4 points and 4.2 rebounds per game a year ago, but is more than doubling his average on the boards. He opened the season with 10 points, seven rebounds and two blocks against USC, and he had six points and 12 boards against Wyoming.
Montana has been playing small ball with Morehead and Lopez at forward. Morehead has seen his playing time rise by 11.3 minutes per game, up to 29.0 minutes this season. He had nine points and seven rebounds against USC in the opener. He averaged 5.6 points and 2.0 rebounds per game a year ago.
Redshirt freshman Jared Samuelson enters the game when Montana needs to add some size. The 6-7, 213-pounder went 7 of 11 from the field for 15 points against Wyoming.
Freshman power forward Alphonso Anderson joins Oguine on the proverbial “injury list.”
