The Central Washington University men's basketball team plays its first Great Northwest Athletic Conference road game of the season when they travel to the "Magic City" to take on Montana State University – Billings this Thursday, Dec. 14 at 6 p.m. Pacific.
 
LIVE STATS AND VIDEO: Wildcatsports.com/live
 
ABOUT THE WILDCATS
The Wildcats are fresh off a dominating 118-67 victory over Langara College last Friday.  Previously, Central dropped its first two GNAC games to Saint Martin's and Seattle Pacific, by a combined margin of six points.
 
Young Guns
Central carries four freshman on their active roster in Khalil Shabazz, Coleman Sparling, Malcolm Cola, and Cameron Williams. 
 
In the Wildcats last game, the quartet combined to score 61 of the Wildcats 118 points, with Cola leading all scorers with 19 points.
 
Shabazz is the Wildcats leading scorer with 17.3 points per game (5^th best in GNAC), and his 2.9 steals per game is second best in the conference.
 
It took Sparling a few games to get going, and in his last three games he is averaging 10.6 points and 5.6 rebounds.
 
 
I Pity the Fu
For opponents, getting to the paint is just half the battle, because CWU center Fuquan Niles lurks down low and is rejecting 3.17 shots per game, which is the 7^th best mark in the nation.  
 
On Dec. 2 Niles redirected nine SPU shot attempts which was the second-most blocks in a single game.  Roby Clyde set the record of 10 blocks on Jan. 1 2011 against Alaska in a game where the Wildcats totaled 16 blocks, also a school record.
 
For his career, Niles ranks 1^st in career blocked shots average at 2.9, and his 99 blocks is the 11^th best in school history.  At his current pace, Niles will break the school record for blocks in a career before the end of the regular season.  The current leader is Kevin Davis (2011-14) with 144 blocks in three seasons.
 
 
ABOUT THE YELLOWJACKETS
Montana State University – Billings started the season hot, winning its first five games of the season, three of which were at home.
 
 
As of late, the Yellowjackets have lost three of its last five games, two in Conference where they stand 0-2. 
 
Offensively, the Yellowjackets launch a large amount of three pointers, 30.1 per game to be exact.  Nearly 48-percent of their shots come from behind the arc where they are shooting 40.2-percent, which calculates to 12.1 threes made per game.  Four MSUB players are responsible for 87.6-percent of the teams made three pointers, the rest of the team has made 16 of the Yellowjackets 121 threes.
 
All four of the players alluded to above score in double-figures led by Tyler Green at 15.5 points per game.     
 
The biggest concern for Billings is their ability to defend the paint.  In their three losses, they have been outscored in the paint by an average of 12 points.
 
The rebounding matchup will be one to keep an eye on.  Central Washington ranks second in the GNAC in offensive rebounds and third in defensive rebounds, while Billings ranks third and eighth, respectively.
 
SERIES HISTORY
The Wildcats hold a healthy 19-5 all-time series record over the Yellowjackets.  The Yellowjackets won the last matchup, however, the Wildcats had won the previous six.  In Billings, Central carries an 8-3 record with the last road loss coming on Dec. 15, 2013.