My gut feeling is that Big Sky Conf. play will be extremely competitive this season. Idaho State is still (on paper) the favorite, simply because it returns every player from its title winning team. Junior guard Diaba Konate just returned to the Bengals' lineup after being absent for most of the team's early non-conf games. Idaho is 1-9, but has played a tough non-conf schedule. The Bengals lost its first conf game (minus Konate) at NAU after leading by 10 mid second half. NAU will be tough. And Montana State, after putting the very physical Kola Bad Bear into the starting lineup, has played well with wins in 6 of its last 7 games (minus the loss to BYU). A very balanced NAU squad, with a lights-out 3-pt shooter in Nina Radford, is a legit top-four Big Sky contender. It would be cool if Montana could replace one of these top-4 favorites in the standings.
Montana has had the perfect schedule to prep for Big Sky play and has made quantum leaps after struggling against teams that threw various zone looks at them. But Big Sky competition is another challenge entirely. The Griz will no longer sneak up on anyone. I think Montana's frontcourt combo of Carmen Gfeller and Abby Anderson (including key reserve Dani Bartsch) can match up with any team in the Big Sky... barring foul trouble. On offense, Montana's guard combos (Stiles, Huard, Tsineke and Fatkin) look leathal. But defensively, I think the Griz still need quantum guard-play improvement on the perimeter by defending high post give-n-go action... and baseline drives by opposing guards (where Utah Valley beat them).
Montana's first game as conference play starts up again, will be against defending champ ISU, followed by a loop south to Ogden where the very physical Wildcats have played well on their own floor. I hesitate to even attempt a prediction other than to say that the sky's the limit for this team, simply because it's getting more comfortable (and confident) every week with the new coach's system. But a sweep, or even a split, might be tough this early. More important will be to defend their home court & then add as many road wins (or splits) as possible. What I'd really love to see is Montana in the top four at the completion of conference play, so they can get that elusive first-round bye.
I'm not trying to downplay Montana's early accomplishments. They looked very, very good vs. an overmatched Utah State squad. Montana's perimeter shooting looks to be the real deal (not streaky). And, under coach Holsinger's tutelage, Sophia Stiles is already in a select group of premium Big Sky point guards (with NAU'S Schenk, MSU's White and SACs Tilleman) where her floor vision has improved dramatically (Carmen Gfeller calls her a Stud for obvious reasons). And, I honestly think Montana's full rotation might be the winning key in the long run. Already the Griz have a solid 8-player rotation, with recent sterling play by Kyndall Keller stretching it to a possible 9. Only ISU is that deep.
At this point, I'm pretty jacked to see Montana as the surprise of the Big Sky. Here's hoping they can maintain that momentum. Go Griz.
