N. Arizona, Sac State meet in conference play
Northern Arizona (7-5, 1-2) vs. Sacramento State (8-4, 1-2)
The Hornets Nest, Sacramento, California; Thursday, 10:05 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Big Sky foes meet as Northern Arizona faces Sacramento State. Northern Arizona knocked off Weber State by eight in its last outing. Sacramento State is coming off a 68-49 win over Idaho State in its most recent game.
TEAM LEADERSHIP: Sacramento State's Joshua Patton has averaged 13.7 points, five rebounds and 2.2 blocks while Brandon Davis has put up 7.8 points and 5.3 rebounds. For the Lumberjacks, Cameron Shelton has averaged 13.8 points and 6.7 rebounds while Brooks DeBisschop has put up 9.4 points and 7.5 rebounds.
CLAMPING DOWN: The Lumberjacks have given up only 68.7 points per game to conference opponents thus far, an improvement from the 73.9 per game they allowed over seven non-conference games.
KEY CONTRIBUTOR: Shelton has either made or assisted on 40 percent of all Northern Arizona field goals over the last five games. The sophomore guard has accounted for 27 field goals and 23 assists in those games.
TWO STREAKS: Northern Arizona has dropped its last three road games, scoring 68.7 points and allowing 72.3 points during those contests. Sacramento State has won its last five home games, scoring an average of 67 points while giving up 43.4.
ASSIST RATIOS: The Lumberjacks have recently created buckets via assists more often than the Hornets. Sacramento State has 34 assists on 65 field goals (52.3 percent) across its past three contests while Northern Arizona has assists on 42 of 77 field goals (54.5 percent) during its past three games.
DETERMINED DEFENSE: The stout Sacramento State defense has held opposing offenses to a field goal percentage of 35.9 percent, the fourth-lowest mark in Division I. Northern Arizona has allowed opponents to shoot 45 percent through 12 games (ranking the Lumberjacks 281st).
