Big Sky

Poll: Who Will Win the Big Sky?

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 09:40:40 -0400

College Basketball: Preseason Conference Ranking

CHN — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:43:04 -0400

After finishing 1st in the RPI the last two years, the ACC should fall back slightly thanks to the big-name departures at UNC & Wake Forest. This should allow one of the Big 12, Big Ten, or even SEC a shot at being #1. The Pac-10 is weak enough that a high-major like the A-10, MVC, or MWC could surpass it.

Chime in with your thoughts below if you agree or disagree with CHN's preseason conference ranking.

2009-10 Conference Ranking

*08-09 is last year's conference RPI. Commentary by Shawn Siegel, ranking by CHN.

	Conference	08-09*
1	Big Ten 9 of 11 teams go into season with ncaa hopes, and as many as 7 may reach that goal	2
2	Big 12 ku is the clear title contender. the bottom few teams are weak though and the middle-tier is hit or miss	3
3	ACC no dominant team like last year, but solid as always.	1
4	SEC rise of uk brings league back to prominence after down year..	6
5	Big East lose tons of big name players, and still held down by likes of depual, rutgers, etc	4
6	Pac-10 conceivable the pac-10 only receives 3 tourney bids.	5
7	Atlantic 10 should get at least 2 invites to the ncaa tournament	8
8	MVC with improvement expected from usual leaders creighton & siu, mvc should be solid all-around	9
9	MWC just about every top team loses a top player, but mwc should be one of the more entertaining leagues	7
10	Conference USA though memphis takes step back, rest of league is better than usual.	10
11	WAC after some down years, wac will once again be compeititve league	11
12	Horizon butler has top 10 hopes, but squads like csu and green bay lose key seniors.	12
13	Colonial while still 1 bid league, likes of odu, n'eastern, gmu, and vcu are all quality	14
14	Sun Belt more then just wku, the entire east division is solid	17
15	MAAC siena, niagara, and rider all have postseason hopes	13
16	WCC gonzaga and smc both worse then season ago	15
17	MAC #'s should be better than last year, but west division still a struggle	21
18	Big West led by up-and-coming long beach state. always finish around this #.	18
19	Summit darling ndsu loses a lot, so usual contenders like oru and oakland should be at forefront again	26
20	Big Sky with exception of sacramento st, this is a solid league top to bottom.	24
21	Southland underrated league always good for some non-conference upsets	19
22	Ivy cornell will be the best the ivy has offered in quite some years	29
23	Southern steph curry's departure opens up door for charleston	20
24	America East decimation of binghamton will hurt league #'s	16
25	Atlantic Sun the league's upper half is as solid as it's been for a few years	27
26	Patriot could use a rebound from former top gun bucknell.	22
27	OVC morehead st continues its improbable rise..	23
28	Big South outside of radford, not much to get excited about here..	25
29	NEC nec hasn't had much going for it in recent years	28
30	MEAC as usual, will battle swac for title of country's worst	30
31	SWAC solid jackson st gives swac hope of surpassing meac	31

College Basketball Preview - 144 Teams in 144 Days - Alphabetical Ranks/Previews

Conference Tournament Odds: Mid-Majors

Evan Dorey — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 10:47:53 -0400

Tournament Odds: Mid-Major Conferences

These are conference tournament log5 projections, using in-conference offensive and defensive efficiency. The basic log5 methodology comes from Bill James, and this is an area Ken Pomeroy has looked at in the past as well. I claim nothing new in the application, but obviously with slightly different methodologies, these numbers may differ from others you find.

- more odds coming soon!

America East - March 6-14

The first three rounds will be played in Albany’s home court, SECFU Arena, with the final happening on Saturday morning at the higher remaining seed.

#	Team	QF	SF	F	W
1	Binghamton	100.00%	85.45%	53.64%	26.52%
2	Vermont	100.00%	87.92%	62.85%	45.92%
3	Boston University	100.00%	86.45%	32.33%	18.97%
4	New Hampshire	100.00%	28.09%	7.94%	0.82%
5	Stony Brook	100.00%	71.91%	34.71%	6.86%
6	UMBC	100.00%	13.55%	1.39%	0.19%
7	Albany	100.00%	12.08%	3.43%	0.47%
8	Maine	75.37%	12.98%	3.54%	0.24%
9	Hartford	24.63%	1.57%	0.18%	0.00%

Hometown team Albany got the worst possible opening draw, as the favorite, #2 Vermont will be a tough task. Binghamton and BU should be the main challengers, with Stony Brook a team from outside the top 4 that could cause a big surprise.

Atlantic Sun - March 4-7

With only seven eligible teams, champions Jacksonville get an opening round bye, while the bottom 6 teams play for the other semifinal spots. All games are held at the Allen Center, home to #4 Lipscomb.

#	Team	SF	F	W
1	Jacksonville	100.00%	54.37%	35.75%
2	East Tennessee St.	84.10%	52.47%	20.87%
3	Belmont	76.41%	37.58%	12.64%
4	Lipscomb	84.83%	43.25%	28.80%
5	Campbell	15.17%	2.38%	0.66%
6	Mercer	23.59%	5.87%	0.81%
7	Stetson	15.90%	4.07%	0.46%

Jacksonville’s first round bye doesn’t help them a whole lot, while Lipscomb’s home court advantage will give them a serious shot of breaking through to steal the bid.

(Ed: ETSU ended up winning, one of the few upset conference champions so far.)

Big Sky - March 7-11

The Big Sky Tournament features just 6 of the conference’s 9 teams, with the top two teams getting automatic semifinal byes. The first round games are played at campus sites, while Weber St. hosts the semis and final at the Dee Events Center.

#	Team	SF	F	W
1	Weber St.	100.00%	87.17%	73.11%
2	Portland St.	100.00%	58.13%	13.29%
3	Montana	94.12%	41.37%	7.97%
4	Idaho St.	70.40%	9.54%	4.30%
5	Northern Colorado	29.60%	3.30%	1.31%
6	Montana St.	5.88%	0.50%	0.02%

Weber would have been favorites at a neutral site. At home, they should be able to win the two games they’ll need.

Big South - March 3-7

The semis and finals will be hosted at regular season champs Radford.

#	Team	F	W
1	Radford	86.18%	69.39%
2	Virginia Military Inst	47.51%	12.44%
3	Liberty	52.49%	14.59%
4	NC Asheville	13.82%	3.58%

Radford’s home advantage should see them through, but the Liberty-VMI winner will give the Highlanders a tough fight

(Ed: As expected, Radford locked up the title.)

Big West - March 11-14

Hosted in Anaheim, the Big West conference tournament uses a bizarre style, which I don’t faithfully reproduce here, as they have a two-team double-level bye, just like the WCC, but also re-seeded at each level. These odds reflect the tournament without reseeding, so they somewhat hurt the top teams, but still give a basic idea of the overall picture.

#	Team	QF	SF	F	W
1	CS Northridge	100.00%	100.00%	59.70%	32.34%
2	Long Beach St.	100.00%	100.00%	58.41%	30.28%
3	Pacific	100.00%	73.63%	35.02%	17.31%
4	UC Santa Barbara	100.00%	60.42%	26.20%	12.48%
5	UC Irvine	71.81%	32.63%	12.71%	5.48%
6	UC Riverside	58.88%	17.18%	4.67%	1.35%
7	Cal St. Fullerton	41.12%	9.19%	1.90%	0.42%
8	UC Davis	28.19%	6.95%	1.39%	0.32%

The top two seeds get a huge boost by avoiding the opening two rounds, and look the likeliest to advance to the NCAA tournament. The two teams with single byes also have decent chances.

MAC - March 10-14

The MAC Tournament, held in Cleveland, gives four first round byes, and is mostly notable for the fact that the two division champs get the top two seeds, which elevates a below-.500 Ball St. team out of the first round up to #2.

#	Team	QF	SF	F	W
1	Bowling Green	100.00%	57.17%	18.32%	7.90%
2	Ball St.	100.00%	52.39%	13.83%	3.75%
3	Buffalo	100.00%	43.91%	30.38%	13.72%
4	Miami OH	100.00%	43.91%	29.09%	16.40%
5	Akron	94.36%	55.65%	41.06%	26.52%
6	Kent St.	90.15%	54.67%	42.38%	23.49%
7	Central Michigan	77.03%	41.65%	12.33%	3.74%
8	Western Michigan	39.43%	14.41%	3.09%	0.96%
9	Ohio	60.57%	28.42%	8.37%	3.38%
10	Eastern Michigan	22.97%	5.97%	0.68%	0.08%
11	Northern Illinois	9.85%	1.42%	0.40%	0.05%
12	Toledo	5.64%	0.45%	0.07%	0.01%

This conference is simply insane. The top two favorites don’t even get a bye, and Akron fans in particular must be steamed at the division winners rule. There look to be five teams that can potentially win the tournament, all from the East division, and no matter who gets it in the end, the MAC will retain its reputation for eating its own. Don’t be too surprised if you see the #5 or #6 seed make a long run in Cleveland.

MEAC- March 9-14

The MEAC Tournament features the 11 eligible teams meeting in Winston Salem, with the bottom six playing for spots in the quarterfinals.

#	Team	QF	SF	F	W
1	Morgan St.	100.00%	95.15%	83.06%	69.88%
2	South Carolina St.	100.00%	67.26%	36.98%	9.43%
3	Norfolk St.	100.00%	61.85%	33.51%	8.22%
4	NC A&T	100.00%	50.79%	8.05%	3.58%
5	Coppin St.	100.00%	49.21%	7.62%	3.33%
6	Bethune Cookman	90.11%	37.43%	17.18%	3.35%
7	Hampton	48.95%	15.79%	5.84%	0.90%
8	Florida A&M	41.68%	1.66%	0.37%	0.07%
9	Howard	58.32%	3.19%	0.91%	0.22%
10	Delaware St.	51.05%	16.95%	6.43%	1.02%
11	MD Eastern Shore	9.89%	0.72%	0.06%	0.00%

Morgan St. is a dominant favorite, but after that, its truly a free-for-all. Delaware St. is a fascinating potential long-shot, should it survive its first round game.

Northeast - March 5-11

The NEC Tournament has all game played at the higher seed with 8 of the 11 teams making the quarters.

#	Team	SF	F	W
1	Robert Morris	94.76%	82.61%	64.72%
2	Mount St. Mary's	91.99%	66.85%	22.16%
3	Sacred Heart	91.38%	31.18%	9.09%
4	Long Island	72.84%	12.75%	3.11%
5	Quinnipiac	27.16%	3.76%	0.71%
6	Central Connecticut	8.62%	0.98%	0.06%
7	Wagner	8.01%	0.99%	0.07%
8	St. Francis NY	5.24%	0.88%	0.09%

Robert Morris has separated itself from the rest of the conference all season, and with it hosting every game it plays, it should be on course for the NCAA bid.

Ohio Valley - March 3-7

With the semifinals set, all games will be played in Nashville from now on in the tournament.

#	Team	F	W
1	Tennessee Martin	62.54%	31.86%
2	Austin Peay	28.48%	10.72%
3	Murray St.	71.52%	42.86%
4	Morehead St.	37.46%	14.56%

Murray and Martin are both favored to make the final, where a battle between the two would be a lot of fun.

(Ed: Like ETSU above, Morehead St managed to defy the odds.)

Patriot League - March 4-13

All games in the Patriot League tournament are at the higher seed’s arena.

#	Team	SF	F	W
1	American	99.07%	97.22%	86.03%
2	Holy Cross	93.81%	80.21%	12.37%
3	Navy	85.31%	17.26%	1.28%
4	Army	66.79%	1.75%	0.16%
5	Lehigh	33.21%	0.83%	0.08%
6	Colgate	14.69%	1.39%	0.04%
7	Bucknell	6.19%	1.14%	0.03%
8	Lafayette	0.93%	0.19%	0.01%

American has had an excellent season, and should head back to the NCAA tournament, especially with all its games at home.

Southland - March 12-15

Eight of the league’s 12 teams meet in Katy, TX to decide the Southland title.

#	Team	SF	F	W
1	Stephen F. Austin	70.74%	46.69%	28.36%
2	Nicholls St.	80.97%	40.99%	19.77%
3	Sam Houston St.	76.46%	46.90%	25.31%
4	Texas A&M Corpus Christi	63.42%	28.37%	14.03%
5	Texas Arlington	36.58%	11.81%	4.32%
6	Texas San Antonio	23.54%	8.15%	2.23%
7	Texas St.	19.03%	3.96%	0.74%
8	Southeastern Louisiana	29.26%	13.13%	5.23%

Prepare for good four-way battle between the top seeds, with the #8 Southeastern Louisiana potentially poised to bust some brackets.

Summit League - March 7-10

The Summit League Tournament is a pretty simple 8-team affair, with all games in Sioux Falls, SD.

#	Team	SF	F	W
1	North Dakota St.	92.48%	83.64%	52.90%
2	Oral Roberts	88.37%	61.87%	31.48%
3	Oakland	81.52%	32.35%	12.02%
4	IUPUI	54.58%	7.58%	1.39%
5	Southern Utah	45.42%	5.50%	0.87%
6	IUPU Fort Wayne	18.48%	2.75%	0.41%
7	South Dakota St.	11.63%	3.04%	0.48%
8	Centenary	7.52%	3.28%	0.46%

North Dakota St. will be a team to watch for an upset in the NCAA tournament, but only if they can get by tough challenges from the winner of an ORU-Oakland semifinal.

SWAC - March 11-14

Eight teams meet in Birmingham to determine the SWAC automatic bid.

#	Team	SF	F	W
1	Alabama St.	94.70%	81.39%	63.36%
2	Jackson St.	84.03%	57.22%	20.15%
3	Prairie View A&M	72.56%	31.36%	8.01%
4	Arkansas Pine Bluff	70.73%	14.11%	6.07%
5	Southern	29.27%	3.05%	0.75%
6	MVSU	27.44%	6.57%	0.84%
7	Texas Southern	15.97%	4.84%	0.55%
8	Alabama A&M	5.30%	1.44%	0.27%

Alabama St. is a big favorite, with only the top four looking to have any kind of shot, and the top two in particular dominant favorites to meet in the title game.

Also: BCS Tournament Odds

Also: High-Major Tournament Odds

More: Championship Week Coverage

+2009 NCAA Tournament
	• All Tournament Coverage • NCAA Tournament Capsules • NIT Capsules • NCAA Tournament Schedule • Venue Info & Tickets • Bracketology

Big Sky Tournament: Preview & Odds

Evan Dorey — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 21:00:51 -0500

This is one in a series of conference tournament previews, in which I run down all the teams involved, give a brief statistical review and present the log5 projections, using in-conference offensive and defensive efficiency. The basic log5 methodology comes from Bill James, and this is an area Ken Pomeroy has looked at in the past as well. I claim nothing new in the application, but obviously with slightly different methodologies, these numbers may differ from others you find. I don’t claim to be an expert on any particular conference, and I’m sure there are some mis-characterizations on some players I’ve seen sparingly at best, so please add your thoughts in the comments. Anyway, with no further ado, the preview follows below:

Big Sky Conference

#	Team	SF	F	W
1	Weber St.	100.00%	87.17%	73.11%
2	Portland St.	100.00%	58.13%	13.29%
3	Montana	94.12%	41.37%	7.97%
4	Idaho St.	70.40%	9.54%	4.30%
5	Northern Colorado	29.60%	3.30%	1.31%
6	Montana St.	5.88%	0.50%	0.02%

Weber would have been favorites at a neutral site. At home, they should be able to win the two games they’ll need.

#1 – Weber St. Wildcats (21-8, 15-1) ; Efficiency Margin: +0.173

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 2007 (1^st Round)

There’s little question which team was the best in the Big Sky, as Weber St. has dominated its conference competition, entering the tournament with an 11-game winning streak. With the tournament being hosted in Ogden, the Wildcats should be heavy favorites, though it is worth noting that their only loss of the season came on their home court. They’ve taken the league thanks to their spectacular play on the offensive end, as they have put up one of the best eFG percentages in the nation. They take a lot of three-pointers, and hit more than 41% of those attempts, while also managing to make 55% of their attempts inside. They are poor offensive rebounders, but they don’t get much chance to practice, given how they make shots. Weber St. also has the best defensive team in the conference, dominating the boards and stopping shots well in all areas of the floor.

Players to watch:

5-6 SR Kellen McCoy, 14.1 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 1.4 SPG, 58.2 eFG% - The Big Sky MVP, McCoy is the Wildcats’ top scorer and best three-point shooter, and can easily go for twenty points in a game. His free-throw shooting is also excellent, but the Wildcats must be concerned that he hasn’t been to the line in either of the last two games.

6-2 FR Damian Lillard, 11.7 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 3.0 APG, 53.6 eFG% - Lillard is coming in on a huge high, after finishing his regular season with a career-high 27 point effort against Montana St. He’s one of a large cast of strong shooters the Wildcats can call upon.

#2 – Portland St. Vikings (21-9, 11-5) ; Efficiency Margin: +0.093

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 2008 (1^st Round)

The defending champions got a couple of big results in the non-conference schedule, losing a close one against Washington and winning at Gonzaga, but struggled with their form on the road in the last month of the season, winning just one of five games. The Vikings have a three-heavy offense, and do a pretty good job with it, hitting more than 38% of their attempts, and are a solid team inside as well. Their strength is their defense, and while they aren’t great at stopping opponents’ shots, they force a lot of turnovers and rarely send opponents to the line.

Players to watch:

6-1 JR Dominic Waters, 11.9 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 58.9 eFG% - Waters is the best three-point shooter on a team of quality shooters, hitting 46% of his long range attempts, and while he tends to be a inconsistent scorer, he has had a strong run in the games leading up to the tournament.

5-6 SR Jeremiah Dominguez, 12.6 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 3.1 APG, 1.8 SPG, 54.0 eFG% - Portland St.’s leading scorer is another player who hits more than 40% of his three-pointers, but unlike Waters, he hits just a third of his shots from inside the arc. He also leads the team in assists and steals.

#3 –Montana Grizzlies (17-11, 11-5) ; Efficiency Margin: +0.071

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 2006 (2^nd Round)

The Grizzlies ran off a seven-game winning streak in the middle of the conference season, and that was enough to power them up to third in the league. They are the last of the Big Sky’s teams to hold opponents under a point-per-possession, as they stop opponents from making shots, including allowing just 45% from two-point range. They need to force a lot of misses, as they don’t take the ball away from their opponents too often. The Montana offense hasn’t been that good; it hasn’t been able to transfer its obvious shooting ability, nearly 78% from the free throw line, into shots from the field. It is a poor offensive rebounding team, but this is somewhat mitigated by how well it holds onto the ball.

Players to watch:

6-2 JR Anthony Johnson, 17.5 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 3.1 APG, 54.0 eFG% - Johnson is the conference’s best scorer, and leads the Grizzlies in assists. He shoots 54% on his two-point attempts, and leads the conference in shooting from the free throw line, at 87%.

6-9 SR Jordan Hasquet, 10.9 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 50.6 eFG% - Hasquet leads the team in rebounding, is one of the team’s better three-point shooters, and has committed just 9 turnovers in 2009.

#4 – Idaho St. Bengals (12-18, 9-7) ; Efficiency Margin: +0.068

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 1987 (1^st Round)

Idaho St. should be able to make the semi-finals, as it is has had a very good record at home in conference play, only losing to Weber St. With the Wildcats waiting in the semis, though, any further would be a big surprise. The Bengals are a slow, deliberate, interior focused team, and make 54% of attempts from inside the arc, good enough to make them the conference’s second best offense. Idaho St. has been average defensively, though they have had problems with sending opponents to the free throw line.

Players to watch:

6-6 SR Matt Stucki, 12.1 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 3.9 APG, 1.4 SPG, 55.2 eFG% - Stucki is a 6-6 player whose style is a lot like a guard’s; he’s not a great rebounder, but leads the conference in assists and leads the team in three-point shooting.

6-5 JR Amorrow Morgan, 13.8 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 50.7 eFG% - Morgan plays more minutes than anyone else in the Big Sky, and leads the Bengals in scoring, a good inside player who can also hit threes pretty well.

#5 – Northern Colorado Bears (14-17, 8-8) ; Efficiency Margin: +0.047

Last NCAA Tournament bid: None

Just five years into its Division I history, Northern Colorado has made its first Big Sky tournament, and will have a decent shot against an Idaho St. team that it split a tight pair of games with in the regular season. The Bears’ games tend to feature a lot of threes being hit, as they make 42% of their attempts and allow opponents 38%. Despite these extremes, they are average on both ends of the floor, as they are excellent defensive rebounders, but commit a fair number of turnovers. They also get to the free throw line a lot, an area where they earn a lot of points.

Players to watch:

6-7 JR Jabril Banks, 12.3 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 64.4 eFG% - Banks leads the Bears in scoring, and is an excellent inside shooter, with one of the conference’s best field goal percentages. He also get to the free throw line a lot, and shoots a very respectable 73% once there.

6-0 SO Devon Beitzel, 11.9 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 61.8 eFG% - Beitzel had a magical four game stretch just before the holiday break in which he averaged more than 25 points, but since then he’s been pretty up-and-down with his scoring. He’s a very good shooter, well over 40% from outside and nearly at 60% inside the arc.

#6 – Montana St. Bobcats (9-19, 5-9) ; Efficiency Margin: -0.060

Last NCAA Tournament bid: 1996 (1^st Round)

Montana St. snuck into the tournament despite going 1-6 to close the conference season, and sitting 8^th in the league in efficiency margin, so an early exit should be expected. The Bobcats are the conference’s worst shooters, and allow opponents to make a high percentage of shots inside, so their strength on the glass doesn’t help them that much. They lost both of their games with Montana fairly handily, and I’d expect a third defeat in a similar vein.

Players to watch:

6-9 SR Divaldo Mbunga, 10.1 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 1.6 BPG, 54.4 eFG% - Mbunga has been a very efficient player over the season, but has seen his role in the offense decrease over recent weeks, something that’s not caused a lot of trouble for the Bobcats. Still, he leads the conference in rebounds and blocks, and is a critical player inside.

6-3 JR Will Bynum, 10.9 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 2.1 SPG, 49.8 eFG% - No, not that Will Bynum. Leading the team in scoring, and the Big Sky in steals, he’s an solid inside scorer, over 50% from two-point range.

My statistical all-Big Sky team:

Montana JR G Anthony Johnson, 17.5 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 3.1 APG, 54.0 eFG%

Weber St. SR G Kellen McCoy, 14.1 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 1.4 SPG, 58.2 eFG%

Idaho St. SR G Matt Stucki, 12.1 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 3.9 APG, 1.4 SPG, 55.2 eFG%

Northern Colorado JR F Jabril Banks, 12.3 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 64.4 eFG%

Northern Arizona SO F Shane Johannsen, 9.9 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 72.7 eFG%

NCAA Basketball Conference Ranking: 2008-09

CHN — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 00:30:46 -0500

CHN's 31 conference ranking, including 10 year historical averages based on average RPI finish. For more information on historical RPI averages, check out the Conference Data Page. Links lead to league preview pages.

Big East

10 Year Average: 3

10 Year Average: 1

10 Year Average: 2

10 Year Average: 5

10 Year Average: 6

10 Year Average: 4

10 Year Average: 10

10 Year Average: 7

10 Year Average: 9

WCC

10 Year Average: 12

11 Conference USA

10 Year Average: 8

12 Colonial

10 Year Average: 14

13 MAC

10 Year Average: 13

14 WAC

10 Year Average: 11

15 MAAC

10 Year Average: 17

16 Horizon

10 Year Average: 15

17 Southern

10 Year Average: 19

18 Sun Belt

10 Year Average: 16

19 Big West

10 Year Average: 18

20 Patriot

10 Year Average: 23

21 Southland

10 Year Average: 27

22 Ivy

10 Year Average: 24

23 Big Sky

10 Year Average: 20

24 America East

10 Year Average: 21

25 Summit

10 Year Average: 26

26 OVC

10 Year Average: 22

27 NEC

10 Year Average: 28

28 Atlantic Sun

10 Year Average: 25

29 Big South

10 Year Average: 29

30 MEAC

10 Year Average: 30

-Independents

31 SWAC

10 Year Average: 31

Big Sky Basketball Preview: 08-09

CHN — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 21:15:40 -0500

Conference Rank: 23rd

Conference Page

All-BIG SKY Team
Pos.	Player	Team	Yr.

G	Jeremiah Dominguez	Portland St	Sr
G	Josh Wilson	NAU	Sr
F	Phil Nelson	Portland St	So
F	Jabril Banks	No. Colorado	Sr
F	Jordan Hasquet	Montana	Sr
CHN Award Winners		Returning Leaders
none		Points: Jeremiah Dominguez 14.2 Rebounds: Jordan Hasquet 7.2 Assists: Josh Wilson 5.4

BIG SKY Standings
Nat'l	Team	League	Tourney

112	Montana	Big Sky	1	NCAA
149	Portland State**	Big Sky	2
181	Northern Arizona	Big Sky	3
203	Weber State	Big Sky	4
243	Idaho State	Big Sky	5
265	Eastern Wash	Big Sky	6
279	Northern Colorado	Big Sky	7
308	Montana State	Big Sky	8
327	Sacramento St	Big Sky	9

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Poll: Who Do You Think Will Win the Big Sky?

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Rise & Fall: Big Sky

Daily Conference Poll: Who Will Win the Big Sky?

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 09:40:51 -0400

2008-09 Montana Basketball Preview: #112

Joel Welser — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 10:53:06 -0400

Montana Grizzlies

Overall Rank: #112

Conference Rank: #1 Big Sky

2007-08: 14-16, 8-8, 4^th

2007-08 postseason: none

Heading into his third year as the leader of the Montana Grizzlies, Coach Wayne Tinkle is building something special in Missoula. The recruiting has been very good over the last few years and it is about time for that talent to turn into conference championships. However, the championships will not start rolling in until the defense improves.

Who’s Out:

Besides the defense, a lack of experience may be the only thing that could keep the Grizzlies away from the Big Sky championship. Andrew Strait was the big man under the basket and averaged 13.3 points and 6.6 rebounds, ranking second on the team in both categories. Guard Matt Martin started a dozen games and was a solid shooter, usually off the bench and Cameron Rundles has transferred after averaging 6.6 points per game last year. Dave Vanderjagt, Greg Spurgetis and Zach Graves will also not be returning this season after seeing limited action last year.

Who’s In:

Only five players return to the squad, so the newcomers will have to be ready to at least play an important role off the bench. Jack McGillis, a transfer from Oregon State, probably will not have to spend much time on the bench. The former Mr. Basketball in the state of Montana, McGillis spent two years with the Beavers before heading back home. Two years ago he started six games in Corvallis and averaged 5.9 points per game. The 6-6 forward is a decent rebounder as well and should play a big role on this year’s team. Another transfer joins the Grizzlies from Eastern Washington. Michael Taylor started 25 games for the Eagles two years ago and has the experience to contribute immediately. Guard Anthony Johnson and wing Vassy Banny have some experience too. Johnson, a 6-3 guard from Yakima Valley Community College, will add some much needed depth at the point guard position and shooting guard spots and Banny can do a little bit of everything. The large group of incoming freshmen are led by point guard Shawn Stockton and small forward Mathias Ward. Those two, along with wing Tyler Hurley, forward Mathias Ward and big man Derek Selvig, might need some time to adjust to playing in the Big Sky, but there will be some minutes to be had if they can quickly show they are ready.

Who to Watch:

The duo of Strait and Jordan Hasquet dominated the opposing frontcourts in the conference. Now that Strait is gone, the pressure falls on Hasquet. The 6-9 senior led the team with 13.7 points and 7.2 rebounds, is a consistent outside shooter and a decent passer, but he needs to find his partner in crime in the paint. Enter Brian Qvale. The 6-11, 245 pound Williston, North Dakota product averaged 4.0 points and 3.3 rebounds as a freshman last season. Given more playing time, those numbers should increase, but more important than scoring or rebounding is his defense. Qvale tallied 1.5 blocks per game and can spearhead the improved defensive initiative with his long arms and ability to alter shots. Add senior Kyle Sharp, who can play the three, four or five spot, and the Grizzlies have plenty of potential and talent in the frontcourt…even without Strait.

Final Projection:

Ceylon Elgin-Taylor and Ryan Staudacher started a majority of the games in the backcourt during the 2007-2008 campaign. Elgin-Taylor is not a great shooter, but he is a steady floor leader, a good passer and a senior leader. Staudacher is a great shooter. The 6-3 junior knocked down over 45 percent of his attempts from long range as a sophomore and rarely misses a free-throw. Without Matt Martin and Cameron Rundles around, Staudacher carries the scoring burden of the backcourt. And with a frontcourt that can dominate again and a senior running the point, Staudacher and the entire Montana team should be looking at a very successful season.

Projected Post-season Tournament: NCAA

Projected Starting Five:

Ceylon Elgin-Taylor, Senior, Guard, 6.2 points per game

Ryan Staudacher, Junior, Guard, 9.0 points per game

Jack McGillis, Junior, Forward, DNP last season

Jordan Hasquet, Senior, Forward, 13.7 points per game

Brian Qvale, Sophomore, Center, 4.0 points per game

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