Big Sky Basketball: Top 10 head coaches of the century (2000-20)
By Joey Loose
3. Big Sky Basketball coach rankings – Wayne Tinkle (Montana, 2006-2014)
Following a long professional playing career, Tinkle returned to college basketball as an assistant at his alma mater, becoming the head coach in 2006 without any other experience. The Grizzlies were fresh off a pair of NCAA Tournament bids and were a program in great shape in the Big Sky. With expectations sky-high for Tinkle, he did a pretty solid job in those eight years back in Missoula.
Montana finished in the top 4 of the Big Sky in each of Tinkle’s eight seasons, remaining a force in the conference. They won three conference tournaments, returning to the NCAA Tournament in 2010, 2012, and 2013. Overall, Tinkle won 158 games in just eight seasons, winning an impressive 71% of Big Sky games during that time span. He didn’t lead the Grizzlies to an upset in any of those Tourney appearances, but certainly solidified Montana’s place atop the Big Sky.
Tinkle accepted the job at Oregon State in 2014 and led the Beavers to their first NCAA Tournament in nearly three decades in 2016. Had he stayed in Montana, it’s not unreal to expect additional success and a few more Tourney appearances. He didn’t light the world on fire with Montana, but he certainly had the conference’s best program during his eight years in charge.