Big Sky Basketball: 2022 Conference Tournament preview

Quarterfinals

No. 1 Montana State vs. No. 8 Sacramento State

League champion Montana State has a quarterfinal meeting with Sacramento State, a team they struggled with in their two meetings this season, winning on the road by two and at home by just six.

The Hornets’ Bryce Fowler scored 47 points in those two games and for Montana State it was Admin Adamu who played a key role, scoring 21 points and 15 rebounds. I think this will be another close game, but Xavier Bishop and Abdul Mohamed will lead the top-seeded Bobcats into the semifinals.

Prediction: Montana State 72, Sacramento State 65

No. 4 Weber State vs. No. 5 Montana

In a battle of Big Sky stalwarts, No. 4 Weber State does battle with No. 5 Montana, in a game where the winner could very well end up in the title game. Both teams won on their respective home floors in the regular season, with Weber State coming away with a five-point win in their last meeting.

These two are evenly matched but it is Weber State that has the slight edge in most offensive categories and I think senior guard Koby McEwen will be the difference for Weber State in this one, after netting 56 points in the games against Montana this season.

Prediction: Weber State 77, Montana 73

No. 2 Southern Utah vs. No. 10 Idaho State

Todd Simon’s Southern Utah Thunderbirds finished second in the Big Sky and face No. 10 Idaho State in the quarterfinals. The Thunderbirds won both games in the regular season and I think Southern Utah will have a relatively easy time in this one thanks to an advantage on the glass and Maizen Fausett and John Knight III getting it done on the offensive end.

Prediction: Southern Utah 78, Idaho State 69

No. 3 Northern Colorado vs. No. 6 Eastern Washington

The quarterfinal foe for No. 3 Northern Colorado will be No. 6 Eastern Washington, with whom they split the season series. This game will come down to a battle of backcourts, Dru Kuxhausen and Daylen Kountz for Northern Colorado and Steele Venters and Rylan Bergersen of Eastern Washington. This will be a fun game to watch but I’ll give the edge to Eastern Washington here because Venters and Bergersen combined to score 80 points against the Bears this season.

Prediction: Eastern Washington 82, Northern Colorado 79