The Big Sky Conference is a one-bid league and the league has been dominated by the state of Montana over the last five seasons. The state has accounted for 4 of the 5 NCAA Tournament bids and regular season conference championships. Montana State won the first three and this year the Montana Grizzlies are headed back to the NCAA Tournament after beating the top seeded Northern Colorado Bears in the conference title game.
Montana is making their 13th appearance of all time in the NCAA Tournament. This is their first appearance since the 2018-2019 season and the third overall appearance for head coach Travis DeCuire. The Grizzlies had a fantastic season finishing at 25-9 overall and 15-3 in the Big Sky. The Grizzlies didn’t earn the top seed in the Big Sky tournament but did share the regular season title with Northern Colorado and completed the conference sweep with the tournament title.
The Grizzlies earned a 14 seed in the Tournament. They will have their work cut out for them to beat a 3 seed, but Montana does do a few things better than most other teams in the country, and they are good enough to win a game in March Madness if they can exploit some matchups. Every team in the tournament is there for a reason and Montana has won before in the NCAA tournament. Here are some reasons the Grizzlies can win a game in the NCAA Tournament.
Efficiency
It’s one thing to be a great offensive team who runs up and down the floor get’s as many shots up as possible, and scores a ton of points. It is another to play as Montana does. They play slow on offense and run more of a ball-control style where they try and get the best possible shot. It has worked, Montana is one of the most efficient teams in the country on the offensive end of the floor. They are second overall in the country in field goal percentage at just over 50% from the floor. The Grizzlies shot 59% from inside the three-point line and 36% from deep. They stay in games because they don’t miss very many shots, and they take open threes. Efficiency is key and it’s a huge advantage in this game for the Grizzlies.
Money Williams
There was a point in the season where the point guard was the starter. He was having a good year and was leading the team, but Montana was struggling. Coach DeCuire decided to bring his star player off the bench. The Grizzlies have gone 13-1 since that point, and Williams won the Big Sky Sixth Man of the Year. He is a do-everything point guard who impacts the game in every facet. Williams is one of the best defenders for the Grizzlies. He leads the team in scoring and assists and is a great rebounder for a 6’4” point guard. The point guard gets to the free-throw line a lot, where he shoots 80%. Williams is everything to Montana. They are much better with him on the floor, and when he comes off the bench, which he will continue to do, they are 13-1.
Pride
This is a weird one but I can promise you that Montana is going into the NCAA Tournament with a chip on their shoulder for the entire conference. The Big Sky has not faired well over the last 10 years in the event and has gotten blown out a lot. The Grizzlies know how competitive the conference is and know that some of those games were outliers. They are looking to prove to the entire country that the Big Sky has good basketball and they can fare well against the big boys. Montana is a team that is built to play hard and avoid a blowout and will be playing for the state of Montana. Let's see if it can happen.
Montana is an interesting team because of the things they can do. They have a deep roster and one of the best point guards in the country. Can they represent the Big Sky better than anyone else has in a decade? Time will tell.