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Committee hands Big Sky runner-up a 12By Andy Katz
ESPN.com
Stop the talk about Air Force. And Utah State. And Cincinnati, Michigan, Florida State, Maryland, the Missouri Valley and the Colonial, just for one second.
What about Montana? How did the Grizzlies get a No. 12 seed? The runner-up in the Big Sky regular season (and the conference tournament champ) got the same seed as the fourth-place team in the Big 12 (Texas A&M), the MAC champ (Kent State) and the runner-up in the WAC (Utah State) -- and a better seed than MWC runner-up Air Force (No. 13), Big West champ Pacific (also No. 13) and A-10 tourney champ Xavier (No. 14).
"Everything we had read [said] we were a 14- or 13-seed, so we were thrilled when we saw the number," Montana coach Larry Krystkowiak said.
A year ago, when Montana stunningly won the Big Sky conference tournament with an 18-13 record (9-5 in league play), the Grizzlies were rewarded with a 16-seed and, as expected, were bounced out by No. 1 Washington in the first round.
This season, the Grizzlies were legit, beating Stanford at home, beating Oral Roberts, sweeping Loyola Marymount and winning at Drake. OK, those wins are not all great, but definitely better than a year ago. They finished 23-6 (10-4 Big Sky).
So, instead of being a 14-seed and possibly playing Gonzaga or a 15-seed and maybe getting UCLA, the Grizzlies will face WAC champ Nevada.
"This isn't a knock against Nevada, but it's a game that we have a better chance of winning than going against the top three seeds," Krystkowiak said. "Our league was a lot better this year."
When ESPN.com quizzed one source who had knowledge of the seeding process, the person couldn't come up with a reason why the Grizzlies were slotted as a No. 12. Playing the game in Salt Lake City could make it an even playing court with Nevada, too.
"Last year we were caught up in the lights of being in the tournament and it was just a matter of which No. 1 was going to thump us," Krystkowiak said. "We were battling [Northern Arizona, the Big Sky champ] for hosting the championship game. But we were able to win this back-to-back [in Krystkowiak's first two years]. Last year, there was complete jubilation, while this year we want to go in and make some noise. Look at the 12[-seed] history in this tournament."
The matchup is also perfect for the Grizzlies because Nevada won't press a ton or run as much. Krystkowiak said the teams' schemes aren't much different, either, with similar approaches offensively.
"There shouldn't be anything new for us, and that could open up the door for us," Krystkowiak said. And if Montana wins as a 12-seed, the committee's decision to award the Big Sky runner-up may open doors for others as well.
Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com.
ESPN.com
Stop the talk about Air Force. And Utah State. And Cincinnati, Michigan, Florida State, Maryland, the Missouri Valley and the Colonial, just for one second.
What about Montana? How did the Grizzlies get a No. 12 seed? The runner-up in the Big Sky regular season (and the conference tournament champ) got the same seed as the fourth-place team in the Big 12 (Texas A&M), the MAC champ (Kent State) and the runner-up in the WAC (Utah State) -- and a better seed than MWC runner-up Air Force (No. 13), Big West champ Pacific (also No. 13) and A-10 tourney champ Xavier (No. 14).
"Everything we had read [said] we were a 14- or 13-seed, so we were thrilled when we saw the number," Montana coach Larry Krystkowiak said.
A year ago, when Montana stunningly won the Big Sky conference tournament with an 18-13 record (9-5 in league play), the Grizzlies were rewarded with a 16-seed and, as expected, were bounced out by No. 1 Washington in the first round.
This season, the Grizzlies were legit, beating Stanford at home, beating Oral Roberts, sweeping Loyola Marymount and winning at Drake. OK, those wins are not all great, but definitely better than a year ago. They finished 23-6 (10-4 Big Sky).
So, instead of being a 14-seed and possibly playing Gonzaga or a 15-seed and maybe getting UCLA, the Grizzlies will face WAC champ Nevada.
"This isn't a knock against Nevada, but it's a game that we have a better chance of winning than going against the top three seeds," Krystkowiak said. "Our league was a lot better this year."
When ESPN.com quizzed one source who had knowledge of the seeding process, the person couldn't come up with a reason why the Grizzlies were slotted as a No. 12. Playing the game in Salt Lake City could make it an even playing court with Nevada, too.
"Last year we were caught up in the lights of being in the tournament and it was just a matter of which No. 1 was going to thump us," Krystkowiak said. "We were battling [Northern Arizona, the Big Sky champ] for hosting the championship game. But we were able to win this back-to-back [in Krystkowiak's first two years]. Last year, there was complete jubilation, while this year we want to go in and make some noise. Look at the 12[-seed] history in this tournament."
The matchup is also perfect for the Grizzlies because Nevada won't press a ton or run as much. Krystkowiak said the teams' schemes aren't much different, either, with similar approaches offensively.
"There shouldn't be anything new for us, and that could open up the door for us," Krystkowiak said. And if Montana wins as a 12-seed, the committee's decision to award the Big Sky runner-up may open doors for others as well.
Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com.