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GAME PHOTOS: first round CBI tourney; Montana vs. Duquesne

Game photos of Duquesne's 87-76 first-round College Basketball Invitational win over Montana, held in Missoula Mar. 16 are now online at Grizzly Journal's photo site.

To view the 50 game photos, simply click on one of the photos to the right, or click on the header at the bottom.

PHOTOS: (Top) Montana freshman wing Kareem Jamar drives for two of his game-high 22 points against Dukes defender Damian Saunders in first-half action. Jamar also had five rebounds, an assist in three steals in the loss. (Bottom) Montana center Brian Qvale battles for a loose ball against Dukes player Damian Saunders, while Bill Clark (#30) looks on. Qvale set the Big Sky Conf. record for blocked shots in a single season with his third block of the game. Qvale is now the all-time career and single season Big Sky Conference shot-blocker. Qvale added 15 points and six rebounds to his three blocks in his final game as a Montana Grizzly.

GRIZZLY JOURNAL GAME PHOTOS: first round CBI tourney; Montana vs. Duquesne.

 

 

Wayne Tinkle discusses Montana's 87-76 CBI loss to Duquesne

Most Montana fans by now know that the Grizzlies lost a first-round College Basketball Invitational home-court game to the Duquesne Dukes Wednesday.

The Dukes pounced early and withstood two Griz rallies for an 87-76 win which ended Montana's season. Duquesne now moves to a second-round clash with the Oregon Ducks. Though Montana lost, the view here is that was a good experience for a young Montana team that will return every player but senior center Brian Qvale in 2011-12.

Grizzly Journal was courtside and will post analysis and game photos of Montana's -- and its All-Big Sky Conference senior center Qvale -- final game of the 2011 season.

First, we'll run a series of post-game videos where Montana coach Wayne Tinkle, Duquesne coach Ron Everhart and Montana players Qvale and Kareem Jamar discuss the game and their reactions. We couldn't get any quotes from Duquesne players because none appeared at the post-game Q&A session.

The video below (click on the photo panel OR the link below the photo) features Tinkle's game analysis. Next up will be a game analysis featuring Duquesne coach Ron Everhart and Tinkle. Tomorrow we'll run the post-game comments of Qvale and Jamar. Game photos will be posted soon.

 

Wayne Tinkle discussed Montana's 87-76 CBI loss to Duquesne.

 

 

Grizzly Journal Q&A with Duquesne blogger YukuDukes

By GLENN JUNKERT

Most Montana Grizzly fans know by now that the Griz will be first-round hosts of the Duquesne Dukes of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the 16-team College Basketball Invitational that tips off with four games tonight.

Wednesday at 7 p.m. the Griz will try to inject some life into their post-season against the high scoring Dukes, who despite an 18-12 record, were eliminated early in the Atlantic 10 post-season tourney.

On paper the Dukes are considered the stronger team, due most likely to their membership in the hoops-competitive Atlantic 10 Conference, which for the fourth-straight year has three teams -- this year it’s Xavier, Temple and Richmond -- in the NCAA Division I tournament. Additionally, an average of this week’s RPI ratings shows the Dukes rated significantly higher than Montana. The KenPom Rating services shows Duquesne rated 64th and the Griz at 108; USA Today’s Sagarin Ratings has Duquesne rated 75th compared to Montana’s 116th. Only the NCAA RPI ratings gives Montana an edge -- 108th to 109th for the Dukes.

I’ll confess that I know very little about Duquesne or the Atlantic 10 Conference. But I was contacted by Duquesne blogger YukuDukes with a request for a Question-Answer style preview of Wednesday’s game. We exchanged questions and are publishing the answers on each site.

If you’re interested in my Grizzly Journal answers for Dukes fans, you can check them out here: YukeDukes

Below, and through the page jump, you can read YukuDuke’s answers here:

Feel free to amend, correct or otherwise add your own contributions to each Q&A preview. Go Griz!

YukuDukes Q&A with Grizzly Journal

Grizzly Journal -- Give Montana fans a glimpse of Duquesne Dukes greatness. Who are the best-known players and coaches. What are their greatest basketball wins?  Any famous Dukes of lore?

YukuDukes -- Unfortunately, the Dukes best years were a long time ago. Some poor decisions were made by administration and we hit a 30-year dry spell. Ron Everhart (photo right) has put new life into the program, with 4 consecutive winning regular season records and now three consecutive postseason appearances. DU has it's history, though. Chuck Cooper was the first African American in the NBA. Norm Nixon is another popular name from the 70s, a successful NBA player after his time at DU. The most successful Duke in recent memory is Mike James, a guard who made it to the NBA the hard way and had a nice ten year career, including a spot on the 2004 Pistons championship team. Aaron Jackson (more on him soon) is working on making it the Mike James way. He's playing in Spain now and with his leadership and drive would be a boon to any team.

I wasn't alive for it - it was 30 years before I was born - but the greatest win was the 1955 NIT Championship win against Dayton.  This was back when the NIT was the big time, as big if not bigger than the NCAA. Dudey Moore was the coach, and he was a great one.

GJ -- What are the Dukes’ best recent post-season accomplishments and how has fifth-year coach Ron Everhart transformed this team?

YukuDukes -- The best was, without question, a run into the A10 tourney two years ago, spearheaded by then-senior Aaron Jackson. The Dukes ran all the way to the championship game but lost to Temple by 6. They earned an NIT berth and played at Virginia Tech, where we lost after multiple overtimes. Aaron Jackson nearly willed the team to victory himself that night, and once he fouled out that was it. Still, it was a sign that DU could do it after years of being thought of as a graveyard. This is a program on the rise.

The Everhart transformation is undeniable. The year before he was hired, the Danny Nee-coached Dukes (of Nebraska fame) were a dismal 3-24. Everhart was hired, all players but two transferred, and then five players were shot. Two of those players never saw the court for the Dukes - one due to injury from the shooting, another due to idiocy. After his first year, we lost an A10 rookie of the year in Robert Mitchell, a head case who refused to play defense and was a hot dog. He amounted to nothing at Seton Hall and I believe he is in jail now. We won 10 games that first year anyway, then 17 the next. Its been a nice change!

GJ -- Based on several RPI ranking services, Duquesne enters Wednesday’s game as a distinct favorite. What did the Dukes do to earn their ranking and why (no jab intended) are they in the CBI instead of the NCAAs or the NIT?

YukuDukes -- Simple. We lost too many close games, both early on and down the stretch. We were barely beat by - and in fact led at the half - WVU, Geo. Mason, and PSU, all NCAA teams. Throw in two one point losses to Dayton and Saint Bona and there you have it. The first round loss in the A10 tourney did us no favors either. Turn two losses around and we are likely an NIT team. We are glad to be playing more, though we did have some NIT (at least) aspirations.

GJ -- Western basketball fans constantly hear about the atmosphere and style of eastern teams. Just how do Pittsburgh fans get into their college basketball teams and what kind of atmosphere/tradition/fan base do the Dukes generate?

YukuDukes -- Well, as you may have guessed from the years of futility described above, Duquesne Basketball has been working to carve out it's niche amongst college ball fans. The students are coming around - I was a part of the restructured and restarted student section that began my Junior year with Everhart's hire. Attendance has grown year by year at home - not as fast as the impatient would like, but it is getting better. Our home arena, the AJ Palumbo Center, was recently renovated in a way that reduced capacity but added more chair back seats and a custom Daktronics video board. We really are a new brand in town and while it hasn't been easy, we've been making a dent. Pitt, who is right down the road, has a lot of support and "stole" some of our alumni who grew disgusted with the stagnation of DU. Their student section is cookie-cutter though, rigidly coordinated and mechanical. Ours-- led by some students in skintight body socks and some other crazies-- is more organic and improvisational. I think that makes it more fun.

BIG SKY TOURNEY NOTEBOOK: Great action; puzzling officiating

NOTE: Royce Bidwell -- who has written game previews for the Grizzly Journal this season -- attended this year's Big Sky Conference men's semifinal and championship games. Bidwell filed this report for Grizzly Journal and its readers.

BY: ROYCE BIDWELL

GRIZ Nation and Big Sky fans, sorry for the delay in getting this posted. Between working full time, and the tournament, I have been going from 5:30 AM to midnight Tuesday and Wednesday. Like the teams, I had no energy left, but well worth it. After taking some time to analyze this tournament, I feel it be best to give readers a mixed bag, of most good, yet bad too, which I feel needs covered. I am going to be critical, yet honest as well.

First of all, thank you to Northern Colorado and Greeley for a great hospitality, organization, effort, and most importantly great environment. An environment which I hope becomes the normal for Northern Colorado basketball/athletics... all the way from the parking lot attendant who greeted and helped me late Tuesday afternoon, to the final staff member that greeted me on my out late Wednesday night. 
And as a Griz fan, I appreciated UNC fans letting Griz fans be GRIZ fans. 

I enjoyed the friendly banter I experienced with UNC fans. To the UNC fans sitting four to five rows behind the Griz bench, "Thank you" for an even better experience. They did not have a problem with me cheering on the Griz, nor cheering against UNC. In the closing moments it was nice to hear Griz  fans and UNC fans interact in friendly tones, as it should be in sports. Speaking of fans, we see the best and worst of fans on message boards. But in this year’s Big Sky Tourney, whether they were Northern Colorado, Montana, Weber State, or Northern Arizona supporters, ALL fans, teams and coaches all were class acts.

As for Northern Colorado, and the Greeley community, be very proud of this moment.  It was well earned. Because of your fans, and team, I will be pulling for Northern Colorado, as loud and proud as I can in the NCAA tournament. Speaking of tournament, let's get to the Big Sky Conference Tournament.

As a fan, it was great to see five of six games be tightly contested battles, decided in the final minutes. The outcome was AS expected, but not HOW I expected. Kudos to each team for playing each game with 40 minutes of heart, hustle, and passion.  Congratulations to Northern Colorado for being the last team standing.

Montana 57, Weber State 40:  If there were ever a game to be titled "The Tale of Two Halves" this would be the that game. The first half was the worst offensive half all year for the Griz, in scoring only 12 points on 3-for-23 (13%) shooting from the field. Despite that, excellent Griz  defense kept the game within 10 points at the half, which ended at 22-12 WSU... thanks to holding Weber State to a pedestrian 7-for-27 (25.9%) first half shooting percentage.

Exactly what was said to the players at halftime, we will never know. Whatever and/or however it was said, the Griz  responded with a dominating second half.  The Griz  responded with a 45-18 scoring margin on 16-of-26 (61.5%) shooting, and continued to stifle Weber State from the field, 5-for-29 (17.2%) shooting in the second half.

In my opinion, and as Weber State Coach, Randy Rahe eluded to, Weber State "Ran out of gas, and hit a wall" with about 10 minutes left in the second half. Playing three games in seven days took its toll on Weber State. That certainly worked to Montana's advantage.

Will Cherry, Brian Qvale, and Kareem Jamar all had great games. A timely block and a few baskets from Derek Selvig, all led the GRIZ to a decisive victory. How much more decisive can a game be than ending it with 17-0 run?  Well done Griz .

Northern Colorado 73, Northern Arizona 70: In a sense this game was a tale of two halves as well. The 1st half was an exciting offensive shoot out, which appealed to fans. The second half was oen of hustle, grit, toughness, and stifling defense. It only catered to the hardcore basketball junkies, who can appreciate defense and effort. The first half ended 45-43, Northern Arizona on top. Each team shot well, both notching over 50% from the field.

The second half still had a frantic pace, but neither team could shoot consistently enough to pull away. The Lumberjacks hit 10-of-31 (32.3%) in the second half, and only 1-of-11 (9.1%) from dthree-point range. Northern Colorado shot only 8-of-29 (27.6%) , and 1-of-8  (12.5%) in the second half. Each defense played hard with a lot of energy. It looked to me each team had no legs, or energy left going into the second half.

Great individual performances by Gabe Rogers and Cameron Jones, scoring 24 and 19 points respectively, with only 11 combined second half points though. A nice lift off the NAU bench by sophomore forward, Austin Smith was huge in keeping this game close to the end.

As expected, Devon Beitzel led Northern Colorado with a clutch offensive performance with 25 points. Chris Kaba, Neal Kingman, and Mike Proctor played their roles to perfection as well. Proctor's energy led the Bears with eight rebounds, many of which kept possessions alive for his team.  Proctor made big play after big play, and big rebound after big rebound, not only in this game, but both games. Proctor's performance separated the Bears from the rest in this game, and tournament.

This difference in this game was Northern Colorado taking advantage and cashing in from the free throw line. Northern Colorado was 32-of-35 (91.4% from the line) compared to 14-of-17 (82.4%) for Northern Arizona.That alone made for 18-point swing in this game. Kudos to Northern Colorado for an excellent free throw shooting display. It was the biggest difference in this game.

Northern Colorado 65, Montana 60:  ESPN, the Big Sky Conference, and fans have to be happy. Finally, a host tournament held serve to make the final game.  What more could be asked for to start the game?  A full house with a great environment sure made for better television. Once the ball tipped off, it only got better. Each team played 40 minutes with heart, determination, and toughness. Neither team gave in to the other.

As expected, Northern Colorado's home court advantage and senior Leadership impacted the game greatly. The Bears’ seniors, consisting of Kaba, Kingman, and Beitzel -- along with Proctor -- led the way. Beitzel hit big shot after big shot in the second half, with 27 points for the game. Kaba and Kingman hit timely shots, rebounded well, and played tough defense. Proctor, once again got timely rebound after rebound, gave his team energy, and was the x factor in leading the Bears over Montana.

The Bears keyed on Montana center Brian Qvale all game, and forced Montana to beat them with other weapons. For the Griz , each game, the other weapon turned out to be freshman, Kareem Jamar. With the absence of an injured Shawn Stockton, and foul trouble, Jamar was put in position to show his versatility and value to his team. His response -- 10 and 13 points respectively -- was just part of the story.  In the final four minutes of the first half, with Cherry out due to foul trouble, Northern Colorado pressured the Griz .  How would the GRIZ respond without their top two ball handlers?   Jamar was used as a point forward to break the press. In his new role, he answered with ZERO turnovers, and kept the game close going into half time. For an encore, what did he do?  He only hit back-to-back contested 3-point shots in the final minute to put his team in position to win. He also played great defense, rebounded, and scored in the post. Despite the loss, the Griz had another leader and star emerge in Kareem Jamar. He has joined Art Steward as “Mr Do Anything when asked.” Too bad that Kareem, and the Griz  ran out of time.

The difference in the championship was Northern Colorado out rebounding Montana 37 to 26, thanks to the effort and energy of Proctor. Also, Northern Colorado cashed in with a 21-to-12-point advantage from the line. The foul disparity was 29 fouls against Montana to 16 against Northern Colorado. Some of the disparity from the GRIZ being forced to foul in the final minute of the game. The Bears hit the clutch free throws down the stretch, and took advantage of their opportunity.

This leads to some criticism.

Part of the reason for a late report was for me to justify (or not) the officiating I witnessed during the tournament. To be fair, I wanted to find out if I was being skewed by a Griz loss or not. So I took the time to reflect and research before this report. I took the time to read message boards, and watched the games I recorded. During the semifinal games, I witnessed fans of each team comment on how bad the officiating was. I even heard this from fans of the eventual champion Northern Colorado squad. I heard a few times, and agreed, the hope was for officiating to not play a role in determining the champion. Hate to say it, but It played a larger role than it should have in any conference tournament, or game for that matter.

During any game -- at all levels -- officials will make mistakes. For the most part, that is understood, and respected by coaches, players, and most open-minded fans. The least that can be asked for them to call the game the same for both teams. I did not see that being the case in this year's tournament. Teams aside, Big Sky officials need to quit rewarding offensive players for forcing bad shots, or putting themselves in bad position. The defense has done its part, yet time, and time again in the tourney, Big Sky officials bailed out the offensive player by whistling the defense.

Why were certain players allowed to play at full force and -- with often subtle or normally accepted contact... draw a foul? Devon Beitzel made 23-of-27 freethrows in two games. Meanwhile, players like Will Cherry (9-for-10), Brian Qvale (7-for-12), Shane Johannsen (2-for-2), Cameron Jones (4-for-4), Gabe Rogers (2-for-2), drew just as much, and often more contact... yet the whistle was not blown.  The disparity in who was being called for what this tournament was evident, and did take away from an otherwise great tournament. It is a shame, seniors such as Jones, Qvale, and Johannssen ended their Big Sky careers as victims of that lopsided officiating, while Devon Beitzel stepped to the line a whopping 27 times in two games of the tourney.  Northern Colorado has the talent, coaching, and leadership to have won this tournament without lopsided officiating.

There is nothing that can be done this year. So, the question remains: Can the Big Sky Conference please learn from this, and expect more evenly officiated games from this point forward?  It is time to truly let the teams determine the champion, not the officiating. Whether it be regular season, or tournament, can we have games officiated without the ticky tack calls?  Can we stop bailing out players forcing the action?  Can defenders get a few more charges called?

I am well aware of even bigger conferences having badly officiated games, it happens.  The difference is, the badly officiated games are the exception, not the norm in those conferences. Well officiated Big Sky Conference games have to somehow become the norm as well. How that is done is not for me to determine. If the conference wants to build a conference with truly better basketball, better officiating would be a great start.

I hope Big Sky officials are reading message boards, fan forums, etc. to see our teams deserve better and more consistent officiating. If that is not enough, they need to take the time to review game videos from our conference games, then compare those videos to bigger conference game videos, and learn how to make officiating better.

One of my major conclusions after watching this year’s Big Sky tourney would be to ask its officials to please take the time to ask for honest feed back from all conference coaches and athletic directors, I am confident the majority of feedback given will echo that of mine. We shall see next season. One which returns some very dynamic players. Who else cannot wait for two years of epic Will Cherry vs. Damian Lillard battles?

Finally, Northern Colorado, you earned the NCAA tournament bid all year.  Myself and most Big Sky conference fans will be pulling for you, to be this year's NCAA Cinderella. I hope you take full advantage of the spotlight you earned. GO BEARS!!!!!!!

BIG SKY PREVIEW: Montana's inside power vs. an arsenal of threes

BY: ROYCE BIDWELL

What will the Big Sky Conference's final four -- Northern Colorado, Montana, Weber State, and Northern Arizona --  do for an encore from the quarter finals?

Two amazing gut wrenching heart felt comebacks by Northern Arizona and Weber State to set the final stage in Greeley, Colorado will be hard to match. Or will it? 

NOTE: Grizzly Journal's Royce Bidwell will be covering the Big Sky Conference post-season tournament, which runs Tuesday and Wednesday in Greeley, Colorado. Check back for courtside reports from Bidwell.

The Big Sky Conference certainly got all it could  have expected from the quarterfinal games. I am hoping it was a prelude of things to come from Greeley over the next few days. Great quarterfinal games combined with Northern Colorado, Montana, Weber State, and NAU all splitting their head-to-head regular season match ups adds intrigue, and interest for basketball fans. These four programs, their coaches, and players have given Big Sky fans every reason to believe the final two rounds will come down to the final few possessions. I for one, will not be surprised to see any of the four teams win the conference championship... they’re that evenly matched.

So: What or who will separate the winner from the rest of the pack in the Big Sky Conference 2011 Tournament?

Each team has struggled for consecutive games throughout conference play. Each team has all-conference players. Three of the four teams have proven to be quite productive from the perimeter. And the team that hasn’t -- Montana, has proven dominant in the low blocks, with the league's premier Big Man, senior Brian Qvale, and dominating defense. Two teams are very good free throw shooting teams, and two have been inconsistent. Two teams -- Northern Colorado and Northern Arizona -- are senior dominant. One team has a promising balance of youth and experience. All but one have more than one senior.

Will offense or defense win out?  Will young talent be served? Or will experience prevail?

EXPERIENCE
Northern Colorado has the edge in leadership by far, with seniors Chris Kaba, Neal Kingman, Taylor Montgomery, and League MVP Devon Beitzel as experienced capable players all capable of scoring.

Despite the Bears’ senior lineup, the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks have more: with Deangelo Jones, Julian Olubuyi, Eric Platt, Shane Johannsen, and all everything guard Cameron Jones logging majority minutes.

Weber State has three seniors in Lindsey Hughey, Josh Noble, and Trevor Morris.

Montana only has Brian Qvale for Senior leadership. But what a better Senior to have than the league's premiere big man, rebounder the conference’s all-time leading shot blocker?

PHOTOS: (Top) Montana's all-conference center scores over Northern Colorado defender Chris Kaba in the Griz' 55-42 win early this season. (Middle) Griz point guard Will Cherry drives to the bucket against Weber State defender Trevor Morris in Montana's 75-56 win. (Bottom) Derek Selvig drives against a Bears' Chris Kaba in Montana's 55-42 win over Northern Colorado.

OFFENSE
There is nothing complicated to figure out here. The Bears, Wildcats and Lumberjacks feature potent perimeter-oriented offenses. The Grizzlies’ offensive attack revolves around the paint, and their inside-oriented offense that keys on Qvale. Montana may have the biggest challenge: to shut down any of three outstanding perimeter shooting teams, two of which have a couple of the country’s best long-range shooters (NAU’s Eric Platt and Weber State’s Scott Bamforth). Meanwhile, the other will be challenged to erect a blockade around Qvale... and force Montana to beat them from the perimeter. With Montana's inside game, and defense, the Grizzlies only have to get timely perimeter shooting, to loosen things up. They have proven successful at winning hard-fought games by coaxing as few as 5-to-7 threes to fall. But for the Griz, especially since sophomore point guard Will Cherry’s severe ankle sprain, that has been much easier said than done. Quite simply, when the perimeter game has contributed, Montana has been outright dominating. Yet when the perimeter game has struggled, so have the GRIZ.

• The advantage on offense will go to the team that has better-than-their-own-average success from the perimeter.

DEFENSE
Montana has the league’s best paint defense, keyed by one of the nation’s best shot blockers in Qvale, who’s matched up with one of the nation’s best ball hawking thiefs in Will Cherry. Each of which has wreaked havoc on opponents this season. Their supporting cast of Shawn Stockton, Art Steward, Kareem Jamar, and Derek Selvig also gets their hands on many passes, and loose balls. Montana will need that to continue if they have any hopes of advancing.

Northern Colorado, Weber State, and Northern Arizona -- while not as efficient as the Grizzlies -- are all solid defensively. Expect them to play man against each other... and zone against the Griz.

• The advantage on defense will be claimed by the team which takes its defense to a new level.

HOME COURT
This can only favor one team. Northern Colorado earned this advantage, and as the season played out, home court has been huge this season in conference play. In a tight game -- which fans will likely see -- this very well could be the determining factor.

In my opinion the Northern Colorado vs. Northern Arizona semi may boil down to which team hits more 3-point shots, and which can hit clutch free throws. The Bears are a great free throw shooting team; the Jacks have been inconsistent. With Northern Colorado at home -- and with league MVP Devon Beitzel likely to perform well -- the Lumberjacks will need dynamic shooting from Jones, Rogers, and Platt  to get a win. Too many factors favor Northern Colorado here. • Advantage Bears.

Montana and Weber State is the game many would like to have seen in the championship. But outstanding and consistent play from Northern Colorado trumped what many were hoping for. If Brian Qvale's supporting cast can hit consistently from outside, Montana has the advantage. Montana will be the fresher team. They got the time they needed to prepare, to get Will Cherry healthy, and to practice perimeter shooting. Will the long break hurt Montana?  Hard for a team to get any rustier from outside than Montana has been in two of its last three games. I honestly do not see how a long break could have hurt Montana. Improved perimeter shooting, more energy, and the interior leadership of Qvale, Derek Selvig, and Will Cherry should prevail in this match up. On a neutral court, I see this game coming down to the last few possessions. • Advantage Montana in a very tight game.

Montana vs. Northern Colorado for the championship. Who wins in a game featuring youth against experience, home versus visitors, and inside verses outside?  Experience and home court usually prevail.  Northern Colorado wins another tight game, and sends" thank you"s to Eastern Washington for the home court advantage.

I hate picking against Montana in anything. So please prove me wrong Griz.

I will happily eat crow to see the GRIZ in the NCAA tournament for a second-straight year.

Portland State cages Montana Lady Griz 70-65

Though the final statistics and the final score hint that the Portland State Vikings and the Montana Lady Griz played an evenly matched game, it was anything but.

The fourth-place Vikings caged-in the third-place Lady Griz with a suffocating zone defense and surged to double-digit first-and-second half leads before settling on a 70-65 win over Montana at Missoula's Dahlberg Arena Thursday.

The win evened the teams' Big Sky Conference records at 9-4 each with three games remaining, including a rematch next week in Portland.

The Vikings left little doubt they were the agressor, slapping a suffocating zone against Montana, and forcing 16 turnovers, many on deflected passes on the edge of Montana's zone offense passing lanes.

At the other end of the floor, the Vikings shot 42 percent from the field and 52 percent from beyond the hree-point arc to take commanding leads midway through both halves. Though the Lady Griz pulled within 38-30 at halftime, and narrowed the gap to four early in the second half, the Vikings eased to a commanding 21 point lead that they maintained until the final six minutes of the game.

PHOTOS: (Top) Senior guard Stephanie Stender battles for control fo the ball against Portland State guard Shauneice Samms in first half action. Stender scored six points on two treys for Montana. (Bottom) Alexandra Hurley has her shot blocked by Viking defender Allie Brock while Stephanie Egwuatu defends. Hurley scored six points for Montana.

Four Vikings players scored in double digits, led by 20 from Eryn Jones. Lexi Bishop scored 15, Courtney Van Brocklin had 13 and Kelli Valentine netted 11.

Montana was led by sophomore center Katie Baker, who scored 13, and sophomore guard Kenzie DeBoer, who scored 12.

Montana appeared confused and stymied by the Vikings defense at times, struggling to get the ball into the paint through much of the first half, and struggling with shots in the paint when they finally penetrated the Vikings' zone in the second half.

The loss snapped a six-game Montana win streak and severely damaged any Lady Griz hopes of hosting the Big Sky Post-season tournament.

The Vikings now head to Bozeman where they'll challenge the Montana State Bobcats -- who arevtied for first with Northern colorado --  Saturday. Montana hosts the fifth place Eastern Washington Eagles.

 

GAME PHOTOS: Montana defeats Bengals, 71-52

Game action photos of the Montana Grizzlies' 71-52 Big Sky Conference victory over the Idaho State Bengals are now available at the Grizzly Journal photo site.

To view the photos, simply click on either of the photos displayed to the right. Or, simply click on the header below for direct access to the photo gallery.

PHOTOS: Montana center Brian Qvale posts up against pressure from Idaho State defenders Broderick Gilchrest (left) and Deividas Busma (behind Qvale). Qvale scored 21 points, cleared nine rebounds and had a single block in Montana's victory. (Below) Montana wing Kareem Jamar in a scrum for the ball with Idaho State defenders Deividas Busma, Chase Grabau and Abner Moreira. Jamar scored 11 points, tied Qvale for game-high rebounds with nine, and had one block and three steals in 31 mnutes of play.

MONTANA 71, BENGALS 52

 

Post-game video interview with Montana center Brian Qvale

Montana center Brian Qvale talks about his final regular-season home game as a Montana Grizzly, about Montana's 71-52 conference win over the Idaho State Bengals, and about Montana's Saturday clash with Long Beach State in a nationally televised Bracket Buster Game.

To view the 2-minute video, simply click on the photo panel. Or, get direct access by clicking on the header below:

Post-game video interview with Montana center Brian Qvale

 

Montana defense smothers Idaho State in 71-52 Big Sky win

BY GLENN JUNKERT

The Montana Grizzlies spent the first eight minutes or so of their 71-52 thrashing of the Idaho State Bengals trying to solve yet another tightly erected zone defense.

When they did -- with the offensive help of reserve freshman guard Kareem Jamar and backup sophomore center Mathias Ward -- the Grizzlies flipped an early five-point deficit into a 10-point, 29-19 halftime lead and the runaway win from there.

Ward made 5-of-7 field goals -- three during a first-half stretch where the Grizzlies edged to a 24-17 lead -- and then Jamar sank an arcing trey as the first half expired, to give the Griz their 10-point halftime lead.

But the game -- and all sorts of game honors -- tilted toward Montana Senior Brian Qvale throughout. Qvale -- under brutal defensive pressure by Bengal defenders -- made 7-of-10 field goals and 7-of-11 free throws for 21 points in leading the Griz to their convincing final home conference game of the season.

Qvale -- who along with his parents was feted in a brief pre-game ceremony to note his final regularly scheduled home game as a Griz -- took everything that both Bengal defenders, and his teammates could give him.

PHOTOS: (Top) Montana center Brian Qvale is fouled by Abner Moreira in first half action. (Middle) Freshman wing Kareem Jamar posts up for two of his 11 points in first half action. (Bottom ) Mathias Ward drives on Bengal Mike Lacey for two of his 13 points in second half action.

He dished the punishment right back at his Bengal defenders...  and usually scored when his teammates fed him the ball in the low blocks... particularly during an early second half Montana surge that saw the Griz outscore the Bengals 17-2 and take a commanding 46-21 lead with 12 minutes to play.

Montana extended its lead to a 24-point margin with 8:47 remaining in the game and coasted to the final 19-point win.

As aggresive as the Bengals defense was, it was Montana’s defense that once again won out. For the third straight game the Griz held their opponents well below their nationally ranked scoring defensive average (59.6), allowing 52 to the Bengals, after holding Northern Colorado to 42 and Sacramento State to 44.

The Bengals launched 17 more shots than the Griz, but made only 19-of-their 58 attempts, for a freezing 32.8 percent, compared to Montana’s 56.1 percent and 5-of-11 shots from three point range.

Ward finished with 13 points on several smooth jumpers from the high post, while Jamar scored 11, several on slashing drives down the right edge of the free throw lane. The freshman wing tied Qvale for game rebounding honors with nine.

Shooting guard Shawn Stockton nailed two treys over the Bengal defense and finished with eight points, while power forward Derek Selvig scored seven while dshing two assists.

Sophomore point guard Will Cherry, visibly slowed by his still tender ankle, made only five points, but dished out 8 of Montana’s 14 assists and had six rebounds.

Junior guard Jordan Wood had one of his best games as a Griz, scoring six points on darting drives into the key and dishing two assists.

The Bengals were led by 13 points apiece from guards Broderick Gilchrest and Kenny  McGowen, while center Deividas Busma scored 10.

The Bengals outrebounded Montana by one, and forced an uncharacteristic 16 Griz turnovers.

Montana now preps for a nationally televised Bracket Buster matchup at Long Beach State Saturday before focusing their attention on their final two Big Sky games at Portland State next Thursday and at Eastern Washington next Saturday.

The Bengals host Cal Fullerton in another Bracket Buster match Friday.

But the Bengals now need to win at least two of their final three conference games (they host Weber State and Northern Colorado and travel to Montana State) or face elimination from the Big Sky post season tourney.

GAME NOTES: Hutch ready in the clutch; cranking up the 'D'

BY; GLENN JUNKERT

Montana Coach Wayne Tinkle often talks about the sometimes fragile tension between starters and reserves -- those players who see a lot of on-court game time and those  who are not as experienced, not as skilled -- but who are still expected to compete hard in daily practice.

Tinkle refers to those bench players as equally important to starters. But it’s a message that’s hard for reserves to absorb. Especially if a player hasn’t seen game action for several games. Those five or six younger players, are expected to compete at full throttle in daily practice, and then, when game-time approaches, turn around and cheer-on their teammate starters, the guys they battle against each day in practice.

Usually a sub’s best hope is to play at least a couple of minutes at the end of a game or -- on rare occasions when a starter gets into foul trouble -- be prepared to step in and play at their highest level.

Two such players on this year’s team are post players Billy Reader and Eric Hutchison (pictured shooting in photo right) Tinkle has frequently described the two as important players in Montana’s future... a high compliment, but also a way of saying that neither would probably see much action this season... particularly when senior center Brian Qvale was on the floor.

But Thursday, redshirt freshman Hutchison got a shout from Tinkle early in Montana’s 64-44 win over Sacramento State. Qvale collected two early fouls. Time for the young center to step into the fray.

Hutchison was ready and -- in 11 minutes of action -- played tough physical defense, snared seven rebounds, and scored two points. Tinkle praised Hutchison for his readiness:

“Hutch gave us a huge boost,” said Tinkle with admiration. “Hutch came in when we needed to get a little toughness under the rim and gave us a huge, huge boost.”

Then Tinkle elaborated: “It’s a credit to Eric for buying in, keeping a positive attitude through it all. He hasn’t played a ton, and because of that, when we called on him, he responded in a positive way.

“We send that message all the time (to younger players). Sometimes kids get caught up in minutes, and this-and-that... and then harbor some negative thoughts. And when it’s their turn, there’s no way they can have success.

“So that’s what makes me proud of his contributions tonight,” said Tinkle.


CRANKING UP THE DEFENSE -- The Grizzlies -- the best defensive team in the Big Sky -- cinched up their defensive intensity with last week’s sweep of Sacramento State and Northern Colorado. Montana held the Hornets to 44 points and the Bears to 42, their best defensive efforts since holding Eastern Washington to 47 points on January 13th and Idaho to a season’s best 33 points on Dec. 18.

Montana lowered its Scoring Defense to a sparkling 59.6 points per game, best in the Big Sky by a whopping 5.4 points per game (Northern Colorado is second at 65 ppg allowd), and good enough for a national NCAA Division 1 rank of 15th. Montana’s national Field Goal Percentage allowed of 38.8 percent is even better, a NCAA rank of 13th. Montana is also ranked 30th nationally in blocked shots.
 
“Our guys really bought-in to the defensive game plan, and just showed a lot of heart and discipline and toughness out there,” said Tinkle.

The Bears... “were the team that out-toughed us down in Greeley and we were kind of ashamed of that, so we challenged our guys to kind of flip that around this time and I thought they did a nice job.

“It didn’t necessarily come from me,” Tinkle asserted. “Derek Selvig, since we beat Sac State, told our guys, ‘Now is the time to step it up.’  Derek was the real leader for us over the last day and a half and it’s no surprise he had the success that he did out on the court tonight.

“One thing about this group,” said Tinkle. “They’re not going to get content. They’ve learned some lessons, so we’ll keep our feet on the ground and keep chipping away because we know we can play even better than we did tonight."

FAN FRENZIED?

Despite Montana’s championship caliber play this year, it wasn’t until 6542 fans showed up for Saturday’s win over Northern Colorado that Montana officials were able to celebrate the results. Thursday’s attendance was a disappointing 3725, which had several officials puzzled. PHOTO ABOVE: Student fans at Saturday's Griz-UNC game.

Several Griz players specifically noted Saturday’s fan support. “The crowd was great and we love em, and we feed off of their energy,” said freshman guard Kareem Jamar afterwards.

“The crowd was great,” said Qvale. “We all noticed them in warmups. They get us going and we usually get off to a great start when we have a crowd like this. It’s great to see... Coach Tinks talks about it all the time to see basketball back in Missoula.”

With Saturday’s attendance added, Montana is now averaging 4081 per game in conference play, good enough for second behind Big Sky leader Weber State (6000 per-game average), and well above the next best team, Montana State (at 3260 per game).

But when non-conference games are added to the totals, attendance drops considerably at Dahlberg Arena. Montana's per-game average of 3647 stands at third in the Big Sky behind Idaho State (3672) and first place Weber State (4889) whose average of all games is significantly higher than Montana's conference numbers.

NCAA DIVISION 1 BASKETBALL STATISTICS FOR FEB. 15

TEAM STATISTICS
• Montana is ranked 15th in team Scoring Defense with a per-game average of 59.6
• Montana is ranked 13th in team Field Goal Percentage allowed with a per-game average of 38.

• Tied for 30th in team blocks with a per-game average of 5.0

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
• Brian Qvale is ranked 6th nationally in Blocked Shots with a per-game average of 3.2
• Will Cherry is ranked 9th nationally in steals with a per-game average of 2.8


BIG SKY STATISTICS
The Grizzlies are ranked in the top three in 13 of the 22 Big Sky Conference Team statistical categories:

First -- Scoring Defense: 59.6 allowed per game
First -- Scoring Margin:  +8.1
Third -- Field Goal percentage: .462
First -- FG percentage Defense: .388
First -- 3-Point Field Goal percentage defense: .321
Third -- Field Goal Rebounding Offense: 35.3
Second -- Rebounding Margin: +2.4
First -- Blocked Shots: 5.0
Second -- Assists: 13.2
First -- Steals: 6.8
Second -- Turnover margin: +1.20
Second -- Assist-to-Turnover Ratio: 1.1
Second -- Defensive Rebounds: 24.7

PHOTOS: (TOP) Brian Selvig scores, (Bottom) Will Cherry Drives against UNC's Devon Beitzel.

BIG SKY INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
• Scoring average: Will Cherry ranked fourth with a 15.0 per-game average, Brian Qvale ranked 6th with a 14.8 per-game average
• Rebounding Average: Brian Qvale is ranked first with an 8.8 per-game average
• Field Goal Percentage: Qvale is ranked second with a .631 per-game average
• Assists: Cherry is ranked third with a 4.1 per-game average, while Derek Selvig is ranked 9th with a 2.9 per-game average
• Steals: Will Cherry is ranked first with a 2.8 per-game average
• 3-Point Field Goal Average: Selvig is ranked 8th with a .425 average
• Blocked Shots: Qvale is ranked first with a 3.2 prer-game average
• Assist-to-Turnover Ratio: Cherry is ranked second with a 2.0 ratio
• Offensive Rebounds: Qvale is ranked second with a 3.2 per-game average
• Defensive Rebounds: Qvale is ranked second with a 5.6 per-game average

GRIZ MOVE UP to 16th IN MID-MAJOR POLL
Montana moved up one notch in the College Insider’s Mid-Major Poll for Feb. 15. The Grizzlies are  ranked #16th, up one from 17 last week. Montana is the only Big Sky team to receive points in this week’s ranking. Other western Mid-Major teams to earn rankings are: Gonzaga at 10th, Portland (which beat the Griz 58-54 Dec. 3) at 21st, and Long Beach State at 27th. The Griz travel to Long Beach State in a televised marquee Bracket Buster game on Saturday.