Big Sky Conference 2007-08 Preview
For the first time in a long time, most of the Big Sky will look like the way it did at the end of last season.
Only Eastern Washington and Northern Colorado have new coaches this season. Therefore this year should be quite competitive now that everyone knows each other.
Weber State was the Big Sky representative in the NCAA tournament last year. Its reward? No. 2 seed UCLA in Sacramento, Calif. Outside of maybe the first few minutes, the game wasn’t even close. But for Weber State to get the NCAA tournament was quite a feat.
In the season prior, the Wildcats finished last in the Big Sky Conference and missed the conference tournament for the first time in more than two decades.
In came Randy Rahe.
Rahe turned a program that was fading quickly around into the Big Sky Conference tournament champions. Players were quitting the program left and right. But Rahe convinced some to stay and brought in a whole new core of players and excelled with them.
Meanwhile, Montana has strong core of players back, led by Andrew Strait and Jordan Hasquet.
Look for the Big Sky to be a two-horse race between Montana and Weber State. But don’t count out teams like Northern Arizona, Portland State and Montana State. Even Idaho State might creep in there as well with a solid season.
Teams (listed by projected finish)
Montana Grizzlies (17-15, 10-6 Big Sky, third place in 2006-07)
Coach: Wayne Tinkle (second season)
Assistants: Nate DuChesne, Brian Marso, Andy Hill
Projected starting five:
Andrew Strait
Jordan Hasquet
Matt Martin
Ceylon Elgin-Taylor
Cameron Rundles
Schedule highlights:
Nov. 11 at Gonzaga
Nov. 23-25 at Hispanic Invitational (Spokane, Wash.)
Dec. 15 at Pacific
Key losses: Bryan Ellis, Matt Dlouhy
Newcomer to watch: Ceylon Elgin-Taylor. A transfer from Irvine Valley College where he was a balanced player. He averaged 13.8 points, 4.7 assists and 4.1 rebounds per game last season. Elgin-Taylor is a guard.
Projection for the season: A tough nonconference schedule will prepare the Grizzlies this season. Three teams which reached the NCAA tournament last season are on the schedule, not counting the conference foe Weber State. The Grizzlies have two of the conference’s best players in Strait and Hasquet. Both were the top two scorers a season ago, and have been with the program for a while.
Weber State Wildcats (20-12, 11-5, tied first)
Coach: Randy Rahe (second season)
Assistants: Eric Duft, Jeff Linder, Tim Gardner
Projected starting five:
Juan Pablo Silveira
Dezmon Harris
Arturas Valeika
Tyler Billings
Daviin Davis
Schedule highlights:
Nov. 12-13 at CBE Tournament, Westwood, Calif.
Nov. 28 vs. Utah
Dec. 1 at Illinois
Dec. 5 at BYU
Key losses: David Patten, Dan Henry
Top newcomer: Kellen McCoy. A small, quick point guard, he only stands 5-foot-6 and 175 pounds. He transferred from Northern Oklahoma College in Tonkawa, Okla., where he averaged 19.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game.
Projection for the season: One of two teams will win the Big Sky Conference this year – Montana or Weber State. Losing Patten will be the difference for the Wildcats, but they will be right in the hunt to at least get to the tournament championship game again. A tough nonconference schedule will certainly help.
Montana State Bobcats (11-19, 8-8, tied fifth)
Coach: Brad Huse (second season)
Assistants: Danny Sprinkle, Shawn Dirden, Ryan Orton
Projected starting five:
Mecklen Davis
Casey Durham
Branden Johnson
Carlos Taylor
Divaldo Mbunga
Schedule highlights:
Nov. 9 at UNLV
Nov. 30-Dec.1 hosting Bobcat GranTree Inn Classic (Alcorn State, Texas-Pan American, Pepperdine also involved)
Dec. 8 at Nevada
Key losses: Nick Dissly, Carson Durr, Ted Morris
Top newcomer: Divaldo Mbunga. Mbunga has a physical presence that is matched by not many teams in the Big Sky. He’s 6-foot-9 and 240 pounds. However, he might be unpolished for the Division I level right away. Will probably make an impact later in the season.
Projection for the season: The Bobcats have two of the best guards in the Big Sky in the same backcourt. Carlos Taylor and Casey Durham have the experience and will need it as they are two of just four seniors on the roster who saw extensive playing time last season. Mecklen Davis will see more than his 19.4 minutes per game last season. A schedule which garnered a 160 in the RPI poses some challenges for the Bobcats. UNLV, a Sweet 16 team a year ago, poses a real challenge.
Northern Arizona Lumberjacks (18-12, 11-5, tied first)
Coach: Mike Adras (ninth season)
Assistants: Rob Bishop, Billy Hix, Kenneth Turner
Projected starting five:
Josh Wilson
Kyle Landry
Ryan McCurdy
Nathan Geiser
Zarko Comagic
Schedule highlights:
Nov. 13 at Arizona
Nov. 21 at Kansas
Dec. 1 Western Kentucky
Dec. 5 UNLV
Dec. 20-21 at Gossner Foods Classic, Logan, Utah
Feb. 23 ESPN BracketBusters
Key losses: Ruben Boykin Jr., Marques Green, Stephen Sir
Top newcomer: Zarko Comagic. A 6-foot-6 junior forward who could step in and be an immediate impact. Averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds per game last season at Central Arizona Junior College.
Projection for the season: Josh Wilson is the best backcourt leader in the Big Sky. He led the conference in assists each of his first two seasons of college basketball. He has 376 assists in 62 career game for average of nearly 6.1 per game. Last season, he ranked ninth in the nation in assists per game at 6.03. Landry will also be big for the Lumberjacks. He averaged 10.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game last season, and recorded four double-doubles. Landry is the team’s leading returning scorer.
Portland State Vikings (19-13, 9-7, fourth)
Coach: Ken Bone (third season)
Assistants: Tyler Geving, Curtis Allen, Erik Harper
Projected starting five:
Dupree Lucas
Scott Morrison
Deonte Huff
Julius Thomas
Jeremiah Dominguez
Schedule highlights:
Nov. 9 at UCLA
Nov. 17-18 at Top of the World Classic, Fairbanks, Alaska
Dec. 9 at Washington State
Dec. 18 at Washington
Feb. 23 ESPN BracketBusters
Key losses: Juma Kamara, Ryan Sommer
Top newcomer: Jeremiah Dominguez. Sat out last season after transferring from the WCC’s University of Portland. He will be a junior this season.
Projection for the season: The Vikings are an increasingly improved program with some talent. They could be the team that flies under the radar this season in the Big Sky Conference. Three starters return for PSU, and a solid bench will help make a run in the conference. Additionally, a tough schedule will really make the Vikings a difficult team to play against when conference gets going.
Idaho State Bengals (13-17, 8-8, tied fifth)
Coach: Joe O’Brien (second season)
Assistants: Steve Swanson, Geoff Alexander, Mike Brown
Projected starting five:
Matt Stucki
Logan Kinghorn
Ammorrow Morgan
Demetrius Monroe
Donnie Carson
Schedule highlights:
Nov. 9 at Iowa
Nov. 14 at BYU
Nov. 17 at Long Beach State
Nov. 23-24 at Oregon State Tournament (Corvallis, Ore.)
Dec. 15 at UCLA
Dec. 27 at Utah
Dec. 31 at Washington
Key losses: Akbar Abdul-Ahad, David Schroeder, John Ofoegbu
Newcomer to watch: Lucas Steijn. Originally signed with Indiana before transferring to John A. Logan Junior college. Steijn, a junior, averaged 10.3 points and 5.5 rebounds per game last season, and shot .543 from the field and 78 percent from the free-throw line.
Projection for the season: For the first time in what seems like an eternity, the Bengals will start the 2007-08 season without David Schroeder. Schroeder was the heart and soul of the Bengals for six years with a number of medical redshirts. But with a year under his belt, O’Brien can really begin to convince his players what he’s trying to do. It won’t be easy as the Bengals have yet another difficult nonconference schedule.
Eastern Washington Eagles (15-14 overall, 8-8, tied for sixth)
Coach: Kirk Earlywine (first season)
Assistants: Grant Leep, Jamie Matthews, Rachi Worthman
Projected starting five:
Kellen Williams
Marcus Hinton
Adris DeLeon
Brandon Moore
Blake Solomon
Schedule highlights:
Nov. 9 at Washington State
Nov. 18 at Washington
Nov. 21-24 at Great Alaska Shootout
Dec. 5 at Kansas
Key losses: Rodney Stuckey, Paul Butorac
Newcomer to watch: Adris DeLeon. A junior transfer from College of Southern Idaho where he averaged 8.3 points and 3.9 assists per game last season. DeLeon is a Bronx, N.Y., native.
Projection for the season: The Eagles will have to learn quickly what life is like without Rodney Stuckey. Stuckey was the No. 15 overall selection in this June’s NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons. In the two years with EWU, Stuckey was the most prolific scorer the conference has ever seen. Had he stayed for his entire four years, he easily could have shreaded every scoring record in Big Sky history. Kellen Williams will be a big factor this season as he returns as the leading scorer (8.4 points per game).
Sacramento State Hornets (10-19, 5-11, eighth)
Coach: Jerome Jenkins (eighth season)
Assistants: Tarvish Felton, Kenya Crandell, Scott Eitelgeorge
Projected starting five:
Roderick Adams
Loren Leath
Justin Williams
Alonzo Young
Schedule highlights:
Nov. 9 at Kansas State
Nov. 21 at Pacific
Nov. 27 at Stanford
Dec. 11 at Oregon
Dev. 15 at Marquette
Key losses: Alex Bausley, Haron Hargrave, Angel Alamo
Top newcomer: Justin Eller. A 6-foot-8 sophomore forward/center who will need some development. Comes in with great numbers from last season (17.7 points, nine rebounds per game), but is untested.
Projection for the season: Jenkins enters this season probably on the hottest seat in the conference. That is mainly because he is the second-longest tenured coach in the conference, only behind NAU’s Adras. But the Hornets have not improved much, going 62-82 since the end of the 2001-02 season, and 30-42 in the conference most importantly. In addition, the Hornets lost a ton of skill. It will probably be another tough year for Sacramento State.
Northern Colorado Bears (4-24, 2-14, ninth)
Coach: Tad Boyle (first season)
Assistants: B.J. Hill, Shawn Ellis, Carlos Daniel
Projected starting five:
Sean Taibi
Kirk Archibeque
Thanasi Panagiotakopoulos
Will Figures
Chris Kaba
Schedule highlights:
Nov. 9-10 at Air Force Classic, Colorado Springs, Colo.
Nov. 14 at Iowa
Dec. 17 at Gonzaga
Key losses: Dwayne Birden, Matt Kline
Top newcomer: Jabril Banks. A 6-foot-7 230 pound forward who transferred from Indian Hills County College. Averaged just a mere 5.1 points and 3.1 rebounds per game last season. He will more than likely come off the bench.
Projection for the season: A weak schedule stands out. Johnson & Wales and Denver are both on the schedule twice. Outside of the tournament at Air Force and road games at Iowa and Gonzaga, this team will not be tested. But the Bears did what about everyone expected them to do, finish last in the Big Sky and they should finish there again this year. There is some decent talent available at UNC, but not good enough. This is still a project a few more years in the making before being competitive in the Big Sky.
