A Little Different For the Grizzlies
SALT LAKE CITY – This time around it is certainly different.
About this time of year last year, the Montana Grizzlies were a No. 16 seed going up against the number one seed Washington Huskies.
Just reaching the tournament was a shock and a celebration for the Grizzlies.
This time around things are different.
This time around the Grizzlies are the always favorable No. 12 seed, which is the most common low seed to advance in the NCAA tournament. And, this time around, the Grizzlies have an opponent a little closer to their level of play, the Nevada Wolfpack.
The Grizzlies and Wolfpack will tip-off at approximately at 3 p.m. EST at the Jon M. Huntsman Center on the campus of the University of Utah.
“We have a few guys that have been here before from last year’s team,” Montana’s Kevin Criswell said. “We have an idea of what to expect this year. Hopefully we will just be ready for those first five minutes.”
The comfort level is running all through the Grizzlies’ team as well.
“I think we feel a lot better,” Virgil Matthews said. “We’re a lot more comfortable and a little more relaxed. Being a 12 seed kind of takes that pressure off.”
In last year’s tournament, one of the 12 seeds that upset the five seed, Wisconsin-Milwaukee, reached the regional semifinals. But the Grizzlies know that the task at-hand will not be easy.
“Rebounding is going to have to be one of the focal points for us,” Montana coach Larry Krystkowiak said. “I think Nevada does a really good job guarding – if they’re not the best defensive team we’ve played this year, then I don’t know who is. Our efficiency and our ability to run our offense is going to be one of the keys.”
Montana reached this year’s field of 65 after defeating Northern Arizona in the Big Sky Conference tournament championship game. Nevada held off a gutsy Utah State squad in overtime of the Western Athletic Conference tournament title game to gain its bid.
“They are a very good offensive basketball team,” Nevada coach Mark Fox said of Montana. “They are averaging nearly 80 points (per game). They have a lot of great shooters. But they also have an excellent low block scorer. That is a very dangerous combination.
“We haven’t shown our team as much tape yet because we really wanted to understand what we need to do before we start communicating that to our players.”
Much of the focus will be on Nevada’s Nick Fazekas.
The 6-foot-11 junior out of Arvada, Colo., is averaging 21.8 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. Both categories have him ranked in the top 20 in the country.
Adding to the hype and pressure of the NCAA tournament and the 5/12 match-up, Fazekas has already fielded questions about NBA draft possibilities as well.
“We’re not really too concerned about it,” he said about the history of upsets in the NCAA tournament. “It’s happened every year but to me, it’s not really about seeding, just that we are playing Montana. They are the 12th seed and we are the fifth but that doesn’t really mean anything.
“We don’t really look at it that way. History is history and that’s the way it goes.”
