MBBALL 2025 26 Preseason Men's Poll

[717s7e]

From the Big Sky Conference: something called Blue Ribbon Yearbook has a preseason men's poll with the following:
1 Griz
2 Portland State
3. Idaho State
4. Idaho
5 Weber
6 Eastern Washington
7 Northern Colorado
8 Sac State
9 Montana State
10 Northern Arizona

Preseason 1st all-conference players are:
G Money Williams, Junior, Montana (Preseason Player of the Year)
G Kolton Mitchell, Sophomore, Idaho
G Jaylin Henderson, Senior, Portland State
F Terri Miller, Junior, Portland State
F Caleb Van De Griend, Australian Grad transfer from Minot State, Idaho State

As I said, I known nothing about Blue Ribbon Yearbook, but if this has any validity at all, what explains the Bobcats as the 9th rated team??

 

[AZGrizFan]

From the Big Sky Conference: something called Blue Ribbon Yearbook has a preseason men's poll with the following:
1 Griz
2 Portland State
3. Idaho State
4. Idaho
5 Weber
6 Eastern Washington
7 Northern Colorado
8 Sac State
9 Montana State
10 Northern Arizona

Preseason 1st all-conference players are:
G Money Williams, Junior, Montana (Preseason Player of the Year)
G Kolton Mitchell, Sophomore, Idaho
G Jaylin Henderson, Senior, Portland State
F Terri Miller, Junior, Portland State
F Caleb Van De Griend, Australian Grad transfer from Minot State, Idaho State

As I said, I known nothing about Blue Ribbon Yearbook, but if this has any validity at all, what explains the Bobcats as the 9th rated team??

They know ball?

 

[Griz in Texas]

what explains the Bobcats as the 9th rated team??

Scats Suck!

 

[Griz til I die]

If I had a vote, here's how I'd rank it:

1. Montana - Only 2 returning starters but Money is the best player in the Big Sky and I will be shocked if he's not the preseason MVP. Sawyer being back shores up our front court as well.

2. Idaho - Kolton Mitchell is the second best player in the Big Sky and they return a lot of their core pieces. I also think Alex Pribble is a good coach and this will be his breakout year.

3. Portland State - The Viks return the majority of their team after two of their guys got medical redshirts (Terri Miller, Trevaughn Minott). They also have Jaylin Henderson returning as well and have some decent portal additions as well. The biggest question is can these guys win on the road this year? That's what really alluded them last year.

4. Eastern Washington - This might be a hot take but I think Eastern will be the most improved team in the BSC. I love the addition of Isaiah Moses and was surprised he didn't go P5 or MWC and Eastern got a steal in him. Dan Monson's team will be much more competitive this year.

5. Montana State - The cats will always be an upper half of the league team under Matt Logie. I think Christian King was a great addition as well as Calvin Holden. It's a completely new look team in Bozeman and they got a tough and road heavy non-conference schedule. It could potentially wear on them.

6. Weber State - The time is now for Eric Duft to start winning some games. The only reason he was retained was because Lillard went to bat for him and promised to dump some NIL money into the program. Weber opted not to do much in the portal and will likely rely on some freshmen and underclassmen. That has me skeptical that they will be a contender.

7. Northern Colorado - Steve Smiley is a great coach and I won't be surprised if they end up finding themselves in the mix, but they got crushed by graduation and the portal. None of their portal additions really pop off the page, but again Smiley is good and they could gel at the right time and make some noise.

8. Idaho State - Feels like ISU has to re-invent the wheel every year. Dylan Darling will be a tough one to replace, as will Jake O'Neil. Bengals really didn't do much in the portal.

9. Sacramento State - We're seeing how hiring a flashy new coach and overhauling the roster is working out for Sac in Football, and I expect the same result in Basketball with a coach who has only ever coached high school before.

10. Northern Arizona - How does Shane Burcar still have a job? Couldn't even finish top half with guys like Trent McLaughlin and Jayden Jackson. NAU will be the punching bag of the league this year.

I think it's a 3 horse race between the Griz, Idaho, and PSU. If anybody else wins the Big Sky this year, I'll be very surprised.

 

[717s7e]

Griz Til I Die - thanks for the detailed report. Any chance that you have similar information about the women?

 

[Griz til I die]

Griz Til I Die - thanks for the detailed report. Any chance that you have similar information about the women?

I don't follow the Big Sky outside of the Lady Griz as close as I do the men, but I suspect it'll be a three horse race between the LG, cats, and Idaho.

 

[GrizBall]

From the Big Sky Conference: something called Blue Ribbon Yearbook has a preseason men's poll with the following:
1 Griz
2 Portland State
3. Idaho State
4. Idaho
5 Weber
6 Eastern Washington
7 Northern Colorado
8 Sac State
9 Montana State
10 Northern Arizona

Preseason 1st all-conference players are:
G Money Williams, Junior, Montana (Preseason Player of the Year)
G Kolton Mitchell, Sophomore, Idaho
G Jaylin Henderson, Senior, Portland State
F Terri Miller, Junior, Portland State
F Caleb Van De Griend, Australian Grad transfer from Minot State, Idaho State

As I said, I known nothing about Blue Ribbon Yearbook, but if this has any validity at all, what explains the Bobcats as the 9th rated team??

FWIW I think Blue Ribbon is one of the best. They get experts on each conference to write the reviews. And they are fairly lengthy on each team. In comparison, the big ones like Lindy’s and Athlon only write long detailed reports on the big conferences and the small conferences are an afterthought.

 

[GriznMN]

If I had a vote, here's how I'd rank it:

1. Montana - Only 2 returning starters but Money is the best player in the Big Sky and I will be shocked if he's not the preseason MVP. Sawyer being back shores up our front court as well.

2. Idaho - Kolton Mitchell is the second best player in the Big Sky and they return a lot of their core pieces. I also think Alex Pribble is a good coach and this will be his breakout year.

3. Portland State - The Viks return the majority of their team after two of their guys got medical redshirts (Terri Miller, Trevaughn Minott). They also have Jaylin Henderson returning as well and have some decent portal additions as well. The biggest question is can these guys win on the road this year? That's what really alluded them last year.

4. Eastern Washington - This might be a hot take but I think Eastern will be the most improved team in the BSC. I love the addition of Isaiah Moses and was surprised he didn't go P5 or MWC and Eastern got a steal in him. Dan Monson's team will be much more competitive this year.

5. Montana State - The cats will always be an upper half of the league team under Matt Logie. I think Christian King was a great addition as well as Calvin Holden. It's a completely new look team in Bozeman and they got a tough and road heavy non-conference schedule. It could potentially wear on them.

6. Weber State - The time is now for Eric Duft to start winning some games. The only reason he was retained was because Lillard went to bat for him and promised to dump some NIL money into the program. Weber opted not to do much in the portal and will likely rely on some freshmen and underclassmen. That has me skeptical that they will be a contender.

7. Northern Colorado - Steve Smiley is a great coach and I won't be surprised if they end up finding themselves in the mix, but they got crushed by graduation and the portal. None of their portal additions really pop off the page, but again Smiley is good and they could gel at the right time and make some noise.

8. Idaho State - Feels like ISU has to re-invent the wheel every year. Dylan Darling will be a tough one to replace, as will Jake O'Neil. Bengals really didn't do much in the portal.

9. Sacramento State - We're seeing how hiring a flashy new coach and overhauling the roster is working out for Sac in Football, and I expect the same result in Basketball with a coach who has only ever coached high school before.

10. Northern Arizona - How does Shane Burcar still have a job? Couldn't even finish top half with guys like Trent McLaughlin and Jayden Jackson. NAU will be the punching bag of the league this year.

I think it's a 3 horse race between the Griz, Idaho, and PSU. If anybody else wins the Big Sky this year, I'll be very surprised.

I'm thinking Portland State will be the #1 team heading into the conference tournament, followed by Montana, Montana State, UNC, and Idaho (not necessarily in that order). I don't have much confidence in Eastern with Monson at the helm unless he has or brings in a Mark Few type assistant.

 

[oldrunner]

I'm thinking Portland State will be the #1 team heading into the conference tournament, followed by Montana, Montana State, UNC, and Idaho (not necessarily in that order). I don't have much confidence in Eastern with Monson at the helm unless he has or brings in a Mark Few type assistant.

For the last 10 years or so, PSU has had the most talent, on paper, in the BSC. Every year, they start out hot and then find a way to fizzle in league play. I don't know why this year should be any different. However, they have also proven that they can beat anyone on a given night, just not consistently. My take is that the league is more open this year than most. On paper, there doesn't seem to be any team that is far ahead of the others. There are a couple teams that seem to have fallen a bit.