(Conference season recap upcoming)
CHAMPIONSHIP (March 16th – 24 points)
#1 Montana vs #2 Weber St.
We could have all saved a lot of time – and had a pretty fantastic viewing experience – if we had, instead of a Big Sky tournament, we just let these two teams play a best of seven. They are – by a mile – the two best teams in the conference. Now, they have 40 minutes to decide it all. They each won at home in the regular season, but the Grizz were 18-0 against the rest of the league, while Weber was 17-1 (slipping up at Montana St.), so Montana gets the homecourt advantage in this winner-take-all showdown. But, Weber has been playing a lot better, so this could be really good.
Cheryl and PapaCim have already lost this one with North Dakota. The rest of the field favored Weber St. 12 to 10. The ten with Montana are Bry, Dave, Doogan, Gersh, LohseJr, Mac, Primm, RDoc, Scoot, and Waters. Primm and Scoot will share the 2013 CTC Big Sky crown with a Montana win, while Lazarow, Lohse, Lynch, and Rikey will have a four-way if Weber wins.
SEMIFINALS (March 15th – 16 points each)
#2 Weber St. vs #3 North Dakota
Weber pounded Northern Arizona on Thursday night, while North Dakota did pretty much the same to Southern Utah. UND has been playing really well – the best of the rest in the Big Sky – but are they playing well enough to jump a level and take out one (and probably another on Saturday) of the big boys? Unlikely, but that’s why we play the games.
Cheryl, LohseJr, PapaCim, and Waters took a shot at the mild upset here, with Cheryl and PapaCim taking the Fighting Sioux to win this tournament. The other 20 have Weber St., including half the field taking them to win this tournament (Alex, Alexi, Caleb, GrossJr, GrossSr, J, Lazarow, Lohse, Lynch, Rikey, Stumpf, and Teddy).
#1 Montana vs #5 Northern Colorado
While North Dakota finished in 3rd and is playing really well, I think there is a clear delineation in this league not only between the top two and the rest of the pack, but in #3 and the rest of the pack. I don’t think NCU is in the class of Montana and Weber, but I think they are a cut above everyone else. And, who knows, maybe they rise up and take out the Grizz here in Missoula. They sure looked good in taking care of Montana St. here in Missoula. But, the Grizz are a whole different animal. I would take Will Cherry and Kareem Jamar up against any low-major backcourt (and most mid-majors) in the country. Cherry is an incredible defender, and Jamar can score, at will. Throw in their leading scorer, 6’7″ forward Mathias Ward, and you’ve got yourself an incredibly talented team – on any level. So, it should come as no surprise that they rolled through the Big Sky at 19-1 this year – and gave Davidson all they could handle on the road in a great BracketBusters matchup. This is a serious team – at home. Tough spot for the NCU Bears.
23 people have Montana here – the lone dissenting opinion belongs to GrossSr, who is all alone on Northern Colorado and will pick up 40 free points on the rest of the field with a Bears win on Friday night. Ten people have Montana winning this tournament (Bry, Dave, Doogan, Gersh, LohseJr, Mac, Primm, RDoc, Scoot, and Waters).
QUARTERFINALS (March 14th – 8 points each)
#2 Weber St. vs #7 Northern Arizona
With Damian Lillard in the NBA and two stud guards at Montana, Weber St. was supposed to “settle” for second place in the Big Sky this year. But, they had other plans and nearly crashed the Montana party. But, with no margin for error, a 5-point loss at Montana St. cost the Wildcats a conference title, a bye to the semis, and the homecourt advantage for the tournament. A big deal, to say the least. But, WSU has looked like – clearly – the best team in the league for over a month now, so they will take their chances. They will take on a Northern Arizona team that snuck into the Big Sky tournament by the skin of their teeth. Now, the Lumberjacks will have a tall order in the quarters, but all you need is a chance.
PapaCim is all alone here with his upset pick of UNA. Everyone else has Weber, including half the field taking them to win this title.
#3 North Dakota vs #6 Southern Utah
North Dakota proved to be the “best of the rest” in the BSky this year, coming out of nowhere to win 12 conference games and finish in 3rd place. They get to take on a Southern Utah team that looked good for a while, but is reeling entering this tournament. Thunderbirds have lost four in a row, turning what could have been a really good season into a season where they barely hung on to make their first BSky tournament.
Eight people (Alex, Bry, Caleb, Dave, Doogan, GrossJr, J, and RDoc) went for the upset here with the Thunderbirds. LohseJr and Waters have the Fighting Sioux of UND reaching the finals, while Cheryl and PapaCim want to ride the Sioux to a Big Sky title.
#4 Montana St. vs #5 Northern Colorado
This is a really intriguing quarterfinal matchup between a team that was up and down all throughout the year (Montana St.) and a team that was way down early and way up late. If the conference season were another month, I think N.Colorado would easily take that 3rd spot, and it seems – to me – that they are clearly the third-best team in this league. But, I haev thought that all year, while they slogged their way to a 10-10 conference record that included an embarrassing 23-point loss to the worst team in the league (Idaho St.). It is now time to see what they’re actually made of.
15 people took NCU here, leaving only nine (Alexi, Dave, Doogan, Gersh, LohseJr, Mac, Stumpf, Teddy, and Waters) to back the favorite, Montana St. GrossSr is the only one with either of these teams making the finals, as he has NCU going to the title game.
CTC UPDATE
Championship Picks
- #1 Montana (10)
- #2 Weber St. (12)
- #3 North Dakota (2)
Biggest Upsets
- QF – #7 Northern Arizona (PapaCim)
- SF – #5 Northern Colorado (GrossSr)
- Champ – #3 North Dakota (Cheryl & PapaCim)
Previous CTC Champions
- 2008 – Bry
- 2009 – J
- 2010 – Lohse (perfect)
- 2011 – Bry (perfect)
- 2012 – Bry, Lynch, Rikey & RDoc (perfect)
2013 Scores
1).
