A look at the Hornets

Sacramento State is coming off their most inspired homestand of the season — a 77-71 win over Eastern Washington and a 72-58 thumping of Portland State. The Hornets had lost to both teams on the road by a combined 47 points earlier in the season.

If Sac State can carry that momentum with them on the road, they should be able to split with the Weber State Wildcats and Idaho State Bengals. On Jan. 23, the Bengals beat the Hornets, 67-62, in a game where the Hornets trailed by 27 points early in the second half. Two days later, the Wildcats beat the Hornets 65-53.

Head coach Jerome Jenkins will need to rely heavily on a senior class which consists of the Hornets’ top-three scorers: forward Derek Lambeth (11.8 points), point guard Raashad Hooks (9.8) and forward Jimmy White (8.9). If these three players bring their “A” games, a Thursday upset over Weber State is not out of the question and a Saturday win is likely.

Another key for the Hornets is staying out of foul trouble, especially at the point guard position. Hooks and backup DaShawn Freeman, who the Hornets rely on for their defensive intensity, have spent many second halves on the bench due to foul trouble this season.

Jenkins feels the Hornets need at least one road victory to stay in the tournament chase. The Hornets are currently tied with Idaho State and Northern Arizona for fifth place. Idaho State owns the tie-breaker over the Hornets due to their Jan. 23 win. The Hornets own the tie-breaker over Northern Arizona due to a win over No. 2 seed Eastern Washington, and therefore would take the sixth and final tournament seed if the season were to end today.

A look at the Wildcats

Weber State is led by the tandem of forward Slobodan Ocokoljic and guard Jermaine Boyette. In the two teams’ last meeting, the duo combined for 46 points and 21 rebounds. The rest of the team combined for 19 points. If the Hornets can keep the ball away from these two players, they should be in good shape.

The Hornets will also have to test Weber’s interior defense, as the Wildcats made 15 more free throws than the Hornets in their last meeting.

A look at the Bengals

Idaho State uses an offense centered around dribble penetration and outside shooting.

Eight Bengals average over five points, none of which stand over 6-foot-8. In their win over Sac State, the Bengals drained 7-of-15 shots from 3-point range, including 5-of-8 from David Schroeder. Meanwhile, point guard Marquis Poole picked apart the Hornets defense, scoring 14 points while dishing out six assists.

The Hornets will have to stop Poole’s penetration and keep a close watch on Schroeder if they look to come out victorious.