Top Departing Players Recap: #11-20

With the throes of the offseason all around us, I thought it would be fun to take a look at the 20 best players that are departing from the Big Sky, either due to graduating, declaring for the draft, or transferring.

Before we take a look at the top ten, just in case you missed any, here are links to 11-20.

11. Art Steward (Montana)
Art Steward was the very definition of a glue guy. He was the least heralded guy in the Montana starting lineup, but he did everything that Wayne Tinkle could have asked from him.

12. Laron Griffin (Eastern Washington)
One of the more underappreciated players in the Big Sky this season was big man Laron Griffin of Eastern Washington. He got overshadowed by some other guys on that team, but he was a steady, reliable player in the frontcourt for them.

13. Kenny McGowen (Idaho State)
During Idaho State's magical run in the middle of the season, it was Kenny McGowen that seemed to hit clutch shot after clutch shot. He hit game-winning shots in multiple games, and had a game of 37 points this year (and a couple games with 30+ points).

14. Mohamed Fall (Montana State)
Much has been made this offseason about the reason that Fall won't be available this year, but not as much has been made about the impact that his loss will have. He was one of the best defensive big men in the conference (if not the best), and was a guy that could at least contribute a bit offensively as well. For a guy that was just coming into his own, it's a shame that we won't get to watch him develop for one more season.

15. Patrick Mitchell (North Dakota)
North Dakota has been one of the youngest teams in the country for the past two seasons, but there has been one major upperclassmen contributor - Patrick Mitchell. He is not a guy that would wow you with his athleticism, or with any one skill, but a guy that did a little bit of everything well.

16. Ray Jones (Southern Utah)
Like Rod Singleton, Jones was a senior leader at the point guard spot, which is always very valuable. With his departure, it will make new coach Nick Robinson's job just a little bit harder. Jones contributed a little bit of everything for the Thunderbirds last season.

17. Rod Singleton (Montana State)
In college basketball, one of the most important things for any roster to have is a veteran leader at the point guard position. Obviously you can with young point guards (just look at Kentucky), but having a guy that knows that ropes and has been through it all before is invaluable. That is what Rod Singleton was for Montana State this year. In a season filled with guys losing their eligibility, or getting injured in off-court issues, Singleton was the steady hand at the PG spot.

18. Durrell Norman (Northern Arizona)
There were very few bright spots for Northern Arizona last season, but Durrell Norman was one of them. By trade, he is a 6'4''' combo wing man, but that is not the role he played for the Lumberjacks. Because they were so desperately short on big men, he was often the guy asked to play the 4 or 5 spot for NAU last year, and he did the dirty work thanklessly.

19. Darin Mahoney (Weber State)
Darin Mahoney is a guy that will be missed by Weber State, because he did all of the little things that a team needs to win. His stat line is not impressive... four points and about six rebounds per game, but that doesn't really signify what he did for the team.

20. Shawn Reid (Montana State)
Last year, Shawn Reid was placed in a difficult situation. He started the year as the first wing man off the bench, but after Jamie Stewart became inelgible, and Xavier Blount got injured in an off-court incident, Reid became the man in the Montana State offense. Suddenly, the offense ran through him, and in games he struggled, the Bobcats generally didn't have much of a chance.

Just Missed: Tremayne Johnson (Eastern Washington), Abner Moreira (Idaho State), Nate Lozeau (Portland State), Matt Massey (Southern Utah)

Thoughts on the list so far?

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Top Departing Players #11: Art Steward

With the throes of the offseason all around us, I thought it would be fun to take a look at the 20 best players that are departing from the Big Sky, either due to graduating, declaring for the draft, or transferring.

Art Steward was the very definition of a glue guy. He was the least heralded guy in the Montana starting lineup, but he did everything that Wayne Tinkle could have asked from him.

For one, he was a very defender from the three spot. This is almost an implied characteristic of any guy that plays for Montana, but it was true for Steward. He added toughness to the team, and brought his best every night.

Offensively, he was not a guy that would create his own shot, but would complement others. He didn't shoot many threes, but he could knock them down, which was just enough to make sure that his guy couldn't help a lot. He could go inside and get some buckets, and didn't force things. He shot 54% from two-point range on the year.

He helped out on the glass though he was not a great rebounder. It is tough to describe all of Steward's impact because so much of what made him a big contributor (and one of my favorite players to watch) were the intangible things he added. Getting a big bucket when needed, a big stop when needed, or just having his toughness rub off. Montana returns more talent than anyone in the conference, but it won't be so easy to replace all of the things that Steward brought to the team.

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Wisconsin Tops Montana in NCAA Tournament

The difference between the Big Sky and Big Ten was never more evident than it was on Thursday. Montana came into the game playing about as well as you could play, having won 14 straight games and winning the Big Sky, but they ran into a Badgers buzzsaw in the first round.

Montana kept things interesting early, but Wisconsin began to pull away late in the first half, and continued after Montana came out a bit listless after the break. By the time things were over, Wisconsin was the winner, 73-49. They were simply the far superior team on this day, and showed it in every aspect of the game.

The thought was that Montana could make things very interesting if they could hold the Badgers in check from the outside, where they get a lot of their offense. However, that didn't happen, as Wisconsin made six of their first nine threes, and finished 10-19 from the field. Simply put, with their defense, they are tough for anyone to beat when they shoot the ball that well.

As mentioned, defensively Wisconsin was outstanding, using their signature man-to-man to shut down the Grizzlies. Montana made just 38% of their shots, and were just 3/9 from downtown. That they only got nine three-point attempts despite trailing most of the game is a testament to the Badgers, who excel in not allowing their opponents to get a lot of good looks from the outside.

In his final collegiate game, Art Steward was their star, with 18 points, as he kept them in it early. Their other senior starter, Derek Selvig also played well in the first half, keeping the Grizzlies within shooting distance. But it was Montana's offensive stars that never got going. Will Cherry was just 3/14, and picking up his second foul in the first half was killer. Kareem Jamar was 3/8 for six points, and Mathias Ward was 1/5 for five points. For a team without much depth, they couldn't have their stars struggle, but that is what happened.

The season ends in disappointment for Montana, but it was still a successful year. They won the outright conference championship for the first time in a long time, and showed by the end of the year that they were the class of the conference. They will finish with a record of 25-7, and have the pieces in place to be even better next year. They simply ran into a better team today.

But we will be hearing much more about Montana in the future.

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Montana Roster Overview

For anyone looking for information on Montana, definitely a sleeper in the NCAA Tournament as they take on Wisconsin. A brief look at the players that make Montana a potentially dangerous 13 seed.

Starters:

Will Cherry (JR) - He is the Defensive Player of the Year in the Big Sky, and arguably one of the best perimeter defenders in the country. He takes great pride in his defense, and is a master at getting steals (he should finish his career at the Big Sky career steals leader). Offensively, he has an improving outside shot, and has good explosion on his drives. He can get at least a decent look almost whenever he wants. He tends to make big plays at the biggest moments, as he definitely showed down the stretch. He is the team leader, and is a very emotional player, which rubs off on everyone else.

Kareem Jamar (SO) - Jamar has taken a big step forward this year, and the argument could be made that he, and not Cherry, is the Grizzlies best player. He was great in the championship against Weber State, and finished as the Grizzlies second leading scorer, second leading rebounder, and leader in assists. He shoots 48% from the field, including 45% from three-point range. He is a varied offensive player that can shoot from the outside, drive, or post up smaller guards. He is also the best passer on the team. He has an extremely bright future.

Art Stewart (SR) - He is the consummate glue guy who does a little bit of everything. Most of all, he adds a lot of toughness to the team. He is a very good defender, and does all of the little things for Montana. Offensively, he picks his spots well, as he very efficiently averaged 9.2 PPG. He can take it inside, and his outside shot is just good enough to keep people honest.

Mathias Ward (JR) - His offensive development has been a revelation this year. He was a solid spot-up shooter in the frontcourt last year, but this year he has become one of the best offensive weapons, as he showed in the championship. His midrange game is probably better than anyone else in the conference, and he shot 55% from two this year. He also has enough range to hit a three. He is not a great rebounder or defender, but he does just enough that he is not a big liability in those areas.

Derek Selvig (SR) - He is possibly the most unique center in America. He is one of the best passing big men I have ever seen, and has very good ballhandling skills. His scoring is down this year, but he has instead focused on the glass and interior defense, where he made big strides this season. Offensively, he can hurt you in a lot of different ways. He is a very good three-point shooter, off the drive, posting up, or finding the open man. His skill set will be tough for Wisconsin to gameplan for.

Bench:
Shawn Stockton (SR) - They don't rely much on their bench (they played their starters all 20 minutes in the second half of the conference championship), but when they do Stockton is usually the guy that enters first. With 15.6 minutes per game that was more than anyone else off the bench. He has struggled with his outside shot this year, making just 13 of his 54 threes. He is more of a combo guard because he is not a natural 1, but Tinkle likes him because he brings the attitude of a senior to the floor.

Keron DeShields (FR) - They have three freshmen wing guards, but DeSheilds has been getting the most time lately (Kevin Henderson and Jordan Gregory are the others). He has a lot of potential on the offensive end, but gets a little too eager at times, like freshmen are want to do.

Mike Weisner (FR) - The redshirt freshman is their first big man off the bench, even though he has the body of a small forward. He had some big moments against Weber State in the regular season finale, and flashed some solid potential. He has a nice outside shot (though he has only made 5 threes this year), and is a good passer.

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Montana Is Going Dancing

Congratulations to the Montana Grizzlies. After beating Weber State 85-66 in the Big Sky title game, they will be headed to the NCAA Tournament.

I thought that if they won, they would do it because they are the best defensive team in the conference. Instead, they did it by being almost literally unstoppable offensively in the second half.

Weber State led 36-31 at the break, but it was all Montana in the second half, as they outscored the Wildcats 54-30 after the intermission. In the second half, they simply could not be stopped. They were 19/32 from the field in the second half, including 8/12 from downtown.

Mathias Ward started out the half by giving them big shot after big shot. He was firing on all cylinders, and finished with 23 points on 10/16 shooting. Offensively he is one of the most diverse big men in the conference, and he showed it in this one. He also had eight rebounds.

From there, it was Kareem Jamar that took over offensively. He seemed to hit from everywhere on the court... at one point the announcer said Damian Lillard just looked over at Randy Rahe and shook his head. Sometimes, there is not much that you can do. Jamar finished with 23 points (on 9/12 FG, 5/8 3PT) and seven assists. He was fantastic all tournament long and was the Big Sky Conference Tournament MVP. Well deserved.

All other starters were in double figures for the Griz. Will Cherry finished with 13 points and six assists. Derek Selvig had 16 points, including 13 in the first half when he kept the Grizzlies in it. Art Steward had 10 points and seven rebounds. The bench played only nine minutes combined, as it was the starters that carried the day.

For Weber State, it's a tough way to go out. Damian Lillard played great for most of the night (had one stretch where he was a bit too passive) and finished with 29 points, ten rebounds, and seven assists. However, he just didn't get a lot of help. Byron Fulton had ten points, and Kyle Tresnak had 12, but nobody else was in double figures. It was the same story for WSU offensively as last week... they simply didn't look like they knew what to do for most of the night against the Montana zone. They stopped being aggressive, and jacked up too many threes. It worked in the second half, but they couldn't keep it going.

Montana has won 14 straight games, and 20 of their last 21. They will head to the tournament as hot as any team in the country. They are currently projected by most pundits as a 15 seed, and I would not want to see them in my bracket if I was a 2 seed. They have the type of balanced offense and stout defense that could make them a candidate to pull a shocker in the NCAA Tournament.

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Weber State, Montana Remain Tied at Top

We are moving closer to the Big Sky dream scenario of a regular season finale featuring 14-1 Weber State traveling to take on 14-1 Montana, as both teams took care of business on Saturday night.

Weber State hosted Eastern Washington, and won a hard-fought contest 84-75 over an Eagles team that could have really used the win. It was the type of game that showed why Eastern Washington could be a dangerous team in the Big Sky tourney if they make it.

Eastern Washington stayed in it despite a poor night from Collin Chiverton, who finished with just seven points. He found time to fire up 13 shots in just 17 minutes, missing 11 of them. Cliff Colimon led the team with 20 points, but he turned it over 7 times. Parker Kelly continued his ascent up the depth chart, as he may have been the best player for them on this night, finishing with 17 points on 10 shots (including 5/8 from downtown). The freshman walk-on has been one of the most pleasant surprises of the conference.

The Wildcats did not get a great shooting night out of Damian Lillard (4/13) but he found different ways to contribute. He got got to the line 12 times (making them all), so he finished with a game-high 22 points. He also had six rebounds and four assists. Continuing their run of nice balance, four other guys were in double figures, led by Byron Fulton's 16 points (and 9 rebounds).

Weber State is now 20-4 on the year. EWU sits at 5-7 in the Big Sky, just a half-game ahead of Northern Colorado, who they host on Wednesday night.

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In the other game, it looked like Montana was in serious trouble against Sacramento State, but they battled back to win 67-58 to finish 7-1 on the road (their best since the mid 1970s). It was their eight straight win and 14 out of 15, stopping Sacramento State's streak of four straight wins.

The Hornets led 32-27 early in the second half, before the Grizzlies went on a 16-2 run helped by their 1-2-2 press, the same thing that was so instrumental in beating Northern Colorado. Eventually, Montana built the lead to 49-37 (helped by a Brian Katz technical), before the Hornets went on a 7-0 run to cut the gap to five. However, just when it looked like they were back in it, they made the kind of mistake that costs team's ballgames.

Konner Veteto swatted a Derek Selvig shot, then taunted Selvig, drawing a technical. As it turned out, that was all she wrote for the Hornets. Montana made the free throws and drained a three, and the lead was never lower than eight the rest of the day. Sacramento State fans are not happy with the refs, but I can't comment too much on that since I did not see enough of the early second half where many of the complaints come from. But it seems to me that Sac State was undone more by lack of composure, both with the Grizzlies press and with frustration by the refs.

Sac State did a nice job on Will Cherry (who still had 17 points) and Kareem Jamar, but it was the seniors that led Montana. Derek Selvig had 14 and 14, and Art Steward had 16 and 8.

The Griz improve to 19-6, and will finish out the regular season at home. The Hornets drop to 4-9 in the Big Sky, and every game is must-win from here on out. Even one more loss could end their chances of making the Big Sky tournament.

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Montana Rolls Over Idaho State

It is not a surprise that Montana beat Idaho State. I predicted them to win, and they are the better team. However, it is a surprise that they beat them by 36, particularly when the Bengals came into the game on as good of a roll as anyone in the Big Sky.

Simply put, Montana dominated in all facets of this game. It started with their defense, where the Grizzlies gave another signature performance. They held ISU to 24.6% shooting from the field, allowing just 40 points in the 76-40 victory. Kenny McGowen had been playing as well as anyone, but Will Cherry showed why he is the best defensive player in the conference, holding McGowen to 9 points. Derek Selvig contributed with a career-high six blocks.

The Grizzlies didn't have a lot of problems on offense either. Cherry was 8/10 from the field for 21 points, continuing his climb up the Montana record books (he is now 24th career scoring for Montana). Art Steward had 14 and Kareem Jamar had 13, each guy also rebounding the ball well. Selvig chipped in 8 assists, and Cherry called him "the best passer on our team."

Montana moves again into a tie with Weber State at 10-1, and they have at least one believer that they are the class of the conference in ISU coach Deane Martin:

"I told them, I think one through five they're the best team in the league, there's no question," Martin said. "Weber State might have a little more depth, but one through five I'd take what (Montana) has out there."

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Nice Article on Art Steward

Bob Meseroll of The Missoulian has a nice profile of Montana senior forward Art Steward. He gives a nice background on Steward and how he came to be at Montana.

He took visits to Utah State and Weber State, but Montana assistants Andy Hill and Bill Evans steered Steward toward the Griz.

"I feel like I made a great decision," Steward said, "with how Montana fit my game and the people I surrounded myself with by being a Grizzly. And the coaching style up here was perfect for me. My game is mostly defense and I feel like when you get a good defense going you get a good offense going. That's what the Grizzlies build their program on, so that's No. 1, and we kind of play fast speed, getting up and down the floor. We can pull it out and play halfcourt, but I like the run and gun."

Check it out, Bob is one of the best beat writers out there and has a great pulse on the Grizzlies program.

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Idaho State, Montana Get Victories on Saturday Night

Having looked at Portland State and Montana State getting huge wins, let's take a look at the last two Big Sky games of the weekend.

It was a big day for Idaho State, who knew that they needed a win at home to stay in the thick of things for the Big Sky tournament. Northern Arizona jumped out to an 11 point lead in the first half, but it was all Bengals after that, as they won 78-62.

ISU was led again by Chase Grabau, who is becoming one of the best players in the Big Sky to follow. He had 19 points, 9 assists, 7 rebounds, and 2 steals, as he simply does it all.

“You never have to worry about Chase,” ISU Interim Head Coach Deane Martin said. “Chase is going to get shots. He doesn't do crazy stuff. He comes off screens hard, he sets good screens and a lot of times when you set good screens you just happen to be the man open. Chase has it figured out. He takes the ball to the basket, he gets fouled, he takes easy shots and when he doesn't have a good shot he dishes it out to his teammates. He plays hard and he plays the game the right way on both ends of the floor.”

Melvin Morgan and Kenny McGowen were also in double figures with 14 and 12 points respectively.

Idaho State now improves to 3-4 in the Big Sky, in a tie with Eastern Washington and Northern Colorado for fifth place. They welcome UNC to Pocatello on Thursday, in what is surprisingly a key game. For Northern Arizona, they fall to 1-6 in the Big Sky and things are looking dire. They got a spark with the coaching change last month, but they are going to need another spark to compete in the conference tournament.

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In the other game, it was Montana jumping all over Sacramento State for an 85-56 victory. There is not a lot that needs to be said... Montana is clearly the better team, and they showed it, as the Hornets were never really in the game.

Art Steward led the team with 20 points, and Kareem Jamar also played an excellent game. The Grizzlies dominated in all facets of the game, and they move to 6-1 in the Big Sky, maintaining their second place status. Sacramento State falls to 0-7, and they are now three games behind everyone else for a chance to go to the Big Sky tournament. They need to turn things around in a hurry. Many fans are already becoming disenchanted with Brian Katz (just read their message boards), but if they don't get some victories, even the diehard Katz supporters may start to have their doubts.

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Montana Holds Court Over Portland State

In the other Big Sky conference game of the day, the road team got off to a great start to secure the victory. Not in this one. Here it was Montana that jumped out to an early 10 point lead, and the game was never really in doubt after that.

Montana shot 58% in the first half (including 7/9 from beyond the arc), which enabled them to get a 19 point lead going into the break. Portland State had a couple solid runs in the second half to cut the deficit down a bit, but they never really made it too interesting.

Kareem Jamar led the team with 17 points, also contributing 4 rebounds and 4 assists. He had a couple of great looks that led the easy baskets for the Griz, and he is really growing to be a great playmaker for them. The announcers of the game were heaping a lot of praise on Jamar near the end of the game, and it was hard to argue with anything. He is very talented offensively, and very advanced for being a sophomore.

Will Cherry also played well, with 15 points, including knocking down some outside shots, which is huge for him. He also had the play of the day... on a fast break, he threw up a beautiful alley oop that was completed by Art Steward (who also had 15) for an athletic finish (highlights can be found here). Cherry had a cramp later in the game, but should be fine for Friday. Cherry opposing Lateef McMullan (0/7, 0 points) was a huge mismatch in this game.

Derek Selvig and Eric Hutchison did not contribute a bunch offensively, but they were very sound defensively against a strong offensive frontcourt of PSU. In particular they played outstanding defense against Nate Lozeau.

It will not be a game Lozeau will want to remember. Coming into the day he was shooting 64%, but he was just 1/8 from the floor for 4 points and 3 rebounds, while also battling foul trouble. Chehales Tapscott didn't do much better offensively with 7 points, but he did have 12 rebounds and is just very active on the glass. Renado Parker had another great effort (16 points, 8 rebounds), and is one heck of a player down low, but it was not enough.

The bright spot for PSU was Charles Odum, who had a very efficient 27 points, taking only 13 shots. He got to the line well, and got into the lane for some easy shots. He is really an excellent player, though some of the points did come in garbage time.

Montana came out firing and played great, setting up an early season game against Eastern Washington to determine who will be #2 in the perception of those following the league. Meanwhile, PSU falls to 0-7 on the road this year, and has to turn around in 2 days to take on Montana State. It is a win they could definitely use.

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Montana Loses Tough One to San Francisco

I don't know Wayne Tinkle, have never met the man. But based on hearing him speak and watching him on the sidelines, I have to imagine he is getting very frustrated with the inconsistency of the Grizzlies this season.

After beating Long Beach State, they collapsed at the end of the game in a 65-62 loss to San Francisco. The Grizzlies trailed by 6 at the half, but came out strong in the second half. They led 59-53 after an Art Steward layup with 4 minutes remaining, but the Dons went on a 12-3 run to end the game, stunning the home crowd.

San Francisco got some huge plays down the stretch, and there were three that really were the difference. First, with Montana up 62-59, San Fran sophomore PG Cody Doolin hit an open three with 1:40 to play. On the ensuing possession, with the shot clock winding down, Doolin simply beat Shawn Stockton off the dribble, hitting a shot in the lane to put the Dons up.

The last big play... after a timeout, the Grizzlies gave the ball to Will Cherry to take to the lane, and it looked like he was going to get an easy layup for the tie. Suddenly, the Dons big man Cole Dickserson came from the weak side for a huge block, and that was essentially the game.

Montana got a desparation three-point attempt from Derek Selvig as time expired, but it wasn't even close.

For Montana, senior Art Steward was the star, notching a double-double with 17 and 10. Other than him, the big guns struggled. Will Cherry had 5 points and 3 assists, Kareem Jamar had 12 points, and Derek Selvig had 6 points. Montana needs 40 points per game from these guys.

Montana will not have time to sit and sulk about this one, as they travel to Oregon State for a game on Sunday. They have the team capable of winning that game. However, they need to be more assertive offensively, and their stars need to make plays. If not, there will be a lot more nights like this one.

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Montana Falls to Colorado State 64-58

I made the trek up to Ft. Collins on Friday night to watch Montana take on Colorado State, and was treated to a defensive slugfest. The Grizzlies shot 41% from the field, the Rams shot 40%, and neither team was in sync offensively (no doubt with help from the opposing defenses). Here are some of the notes from the game that I jotted down.

- The biggest factor in the game was the huge rebounding disparity. CSU outrebounded the Griz 43-24, including 11 offensive rebounds to 3. The biggest of the game was with about 35 seconds left. CSU was up 3 with the ball, and the shot clock was winding down. They had to force a shot, and because of a switch Will Cherry was stuck trying to box out Pierce Hornung (who finished with 12 rebounds), and Hornung rebounded the miss, and that was essentially the ballgame. At the end of the ballgame, the Griz lineup looked like: Cherry-Stockton-Jamar-Steward-Weisner.

- Of the big guys we talked about stepping in, Mathias Ward probably had the best game. He was 4/5 from the field and displayed good range on his jumpshot out to 18 feet. However, I suspect he was on the bench in crunch time because he only had 1 rebound in 20 minutes. Eric Hutchison was solid defensively in his 22 minutes of action, with 5 rebounds and 2 blocks. He is not very skilled offensively, but he did use his body well to get a couple easy buckets. Billy Reader his a nice jump hook on the block early in the first half, but then essentially disappeared the rest of the game. He strangely is not appearing the box score that I got, but he definitely played (trust me!). He was simply not a factor.

- Will Cherry definitely still is inconsistent on his jump shot, which I thought was the biggest thing he needed to work on. He was 1/5 from beyond the arc, and all were good looks. He did hit a big 3 midway through the 2nd half, but missed an open one with the Griz down 59-56 with 2 minutes to play. He struggled a bit with his midrange jumper as well, as he missed a couple of good looks. I suspect that will come in time. He played almost the whole game and drew a tough defensive assignment, so I'm not sure if fatigue was a factor at all. He was assertive at the end of the game, and got to the foul line a couple times late to keep the game tight. I believe his first rest came with about 10 minutes left to play in the second half, and his absence was felt immediately. With Montana down 48-39, he sat on the bench and Montana immediately turned it over before they even got in their set. On the other end, Jesse Carr hit an open 3, and all of a sudden it was 51-39.

- Art Steward and Kareem Jamar were both plagued with first half foul trouble, and that was a big factor. Montana struggled to get good looks without them in there, and the lack of Derek Selvig was definitely felt. They weren't able to get open shots, and it didn't seem like anyone other than Cherry was able to get a shot for himself or for a teammate. It almost seemed at times like the offense was running through Shawn Stockton.

- Kareem Jamar played an excellent second half, and he is a guy that can create shots. He is athletic, and good range on his jumper, and gets down low and battles for rebounds. They also effectively got him the ball on the block, and he showed an ability to score on smaller defenders down there. He was the best on the team last night at getting his own shot. He finished 5/10 with 12 points, and also had 5 rebounds and 3 assists.

- Two guys hit big 3s. With Montana down 30-20, Michael Weisner hit a big 3 to make it 30-23 going into the break, which had to be a nice lift (CSU coach Tim Miles said after the game... "33 hit a big shot at the end of the half... I don't even know his name"). Near the end of the game, Art Steward his a huge 3 to cut the lead to 58-56, and it looked like the Griz had momentum. Unfortunately, Wes Eikmeier responded with an NBA range 3 on the next possession, and Montana would never cut it to 2 again.

- Of the freshman, Kevin Henderson was the first to see action. He played two minutes but had little to no impact. Jordan Gregory played 6 minutes but also was unable to provide any type of spark. Keron DeShields did not play, but he was the guy that is always trying to sit closer to the coach on the bench to get noticed. It didn't work in this game, but I liked his attitude!

- The above photo of Coach Tinkle in the huddle talking to the guys was snapped by my lovely wife! Selvig was off to the left in the black sweatsuit. He was walking gingerly but his limp from the sprain was not too bad.

All in all, it is a disappointing loss but not a bad loss. I think it is definitely a game Montana thinks they could have won, but they were definitely impacted by the loss of Selvig, both in rebounding and in creating some shots for teammates. Miles said that Montana, "Came in a man down and really did a great job," but the Griz won't be taking a moral victory here. They had a chance to win a game on the road against a quality opponent and just came up a little bit short.

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Montana's Frontcourt Without Derek Selvig

The biggest question mark for Montana heading into the season was their frontcourt after the loss of Brian Qvale, and that frontcourt will have a little less depth for the opener on Friday. Derek Selvig, who hurt his ankle in their exhibition game, is a game-time decision according to Griz Central, but I have a hard time believing he will be ready to play.

In case he is not, Wayne Tinkle is going to have to improvise. The guy that will be most relied on is Mathias Ward, a skilled offensive player at 6'7''. Ward had 11 points in 23 minutes against Lewis-Clark State, and looks to be the top option in the post. He is not a great rebounder but he will provide some scoring inside.

A couple other guys that will see significant minutes are Billy Reader and Eric Hutchinson. Hutchinson is a sophomore that is a bit raw, but has a lot of upside as a defender and rebounder. In the exhibition he had 4 rebounds in 6 minutes. I think Reader will get the start, and he has a lot of upside. He is a redshirt freshman, but is offensively skilled.

Colorado State is not deep in the post, and that is a good thing for Montana. Beyond those three guys, the Grizzlies do not have a lot of places to turn to for help. I suspect we will see more than a couple four guard sets, with Art Steward, Kareem Jamar, or Kevin Henderson at the 4.

Safe to say that whether Selvig is able to play a bit or not, we will quickly learn a lot about the rest of the post men for Wayne Tinkle's ballclub.

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