Big Sky Conference
March 8, 10-12. All games at Reno.
kPOY: Joel Bolomboy, Weber State.
Big Sky action gets underway on Tuesday with four first-round games at the Reno Events Center.
Tournament play is a conflict between fairness and fun and the Big Sky has elected to go in the fun direction this season. The conference abandoned the previous format which awarded home court to the top seed and eliminated the worst teams in the league from even appearing in the bracket. But now, everyone is invited and they’ll all be playing at a very neutral site in Reno.
Weber State is the favorite here, after an eight-loss season where seven losses came by seven points or less. The Wildcats could have been a decent 16-seed if they survived this event, what with a front court of Zach Braxton and Joel Bolomboy that gives the team some power-conference size. However, the mayhem of the last week has nearly assured Weber of getting a 15-seed if they are victorious. Montana is a possibility, as well. The Griz gave Gonzaga a scare earlier in the season, and still had a shot at the top-seed on the final day of the season. A championship game featuring Bolomboy and Montana center Martin Breunig would be entertaining.
Qtrs Semis Final Champ 1 Weber St. 100 79.5 58.0 36.4 2 Montana 100 72.3 44.8 24.5 3 Idaho 100 54.1 24.2 10.4 6 Eastern Washington 84.0 43.1 19.8 8.9 5 North Dakota 82.2 49.6 19.0 8.5 4 Idaho St. 100 46.1 13.7 4.7 7 Montana St. 57.9 17.5 7.3 2.6 8 Portland St. 63.6 15.0 6.9 2.4 10 Sacramento St. 42.1 10.2 3.5 1.0 9 Northern Colorado 36.4 5.5 1.8 0.4 12 Southern Utah 17.8 4.4 0.6 0.08 11 Northern Arizona 16.0 2.8 0.4 0.07
Big Sky tourney records (since 1999)
Montana 19- 7 Weber St. 19-12 North Dakota 3- 2 E. Washington 10- 9 Portland St. 9-10 Northern Arizona 11-13 Northern Colorado 4- 5 Idaho St. 4- 7 Sacramento St. 3- 6 Montana St. 3-12 Southern Utah 0- 1 Idaho 0- 1