Montana State will try to test Texas Tech

Lance Hartzler over at Mid-Major Madness (@lance_hartz / @mid_madness) was kind enough answer some questions on the Montana State Bobcats. We always find the goods to keep you up to date. Without further ado, here we go!

First and foremost, who should Tech be watching for in the matchup?

- Got a bit of a wild-card dude here. Xavier Bishop and Jubrile Belo are the major two to keep an eye on, but Big Sky 6th Man of the Year RaeQuan Battle is DYNAMITE off the bench. He played a bit at Washington last year before transferring down and has hit some massive shots — including that nutty deep 3 to beat Northern Colorado in the final regular season game for the Cats.

Breakdown Montana State for us, how can they make this a real game?

- My opinion, if MSU can control the tempo and run their stuff — which is getting all their dudes involved and getting Bishop and Belo to the foul line — things could get interesting. That will be harder than it sounds given Tech’s defense, though.

How was the Big Sky this year? Did the Bobcats get tested?

- The top 5 of the Big Sky was closer than it looked, even with MSU pulling ahead. The Cats were in the mix in January, then went 14-2 over the final 16 as Weber, Southern Utah, Montana and Northern Colorado all battled some major inconsistencies. The Cats were challenged — they lost to UM near the end, survived some close calls against bad teams — but they really dominated NoCo in the title game after handling Weber for the most part.

Lastly, how do you this this plays out? Will Montana State make Teech sweat?

-I think Montana St will make Tech sweat for a half, but if Tech’s defense is as good as it is billed then the Raiders should have no issue.

Thanks again to Lance, and WRECK MONTANA!