Bracket Buster: Griz get Pacific in matchup that's been waiting to happen

Posted on January 31, 2007 by Colin O'Keefe
As announced yesterday, the University of Montana will face Pacific as part of ESPNU's BracketBusters series. Both teams probably wish this game would've come sooner, after each time had actually busted some brackets.

These two teams almost met last year as the Griz pulled off the 12-5 upset over Nevada and Pacific was close to pulling off an even bigger upset over 4th seeded Boston College. The Tigers were up 6 in overtime before losing in a second OT, which was forced by a controversial call.
The Tigers led 74-72 with five seconds to play in overtime when Christian Maraker fouled Boston College's Craig Smith. Smith, a poor foul shooter who was 3 of 7 on the day, made two free throws to send the game into double overtime. Thomason insisted Maraker hadn't committed a foul and later said video replays provided proof, but the call stood.
This was the second time the Griz and Tigers almost faced eachother in the second round of the tournament. In 2005, the Griz hung with 1 seed Washington for a bit before eventually getting beat by double-digits while the 8th seeded Tigers beat 9th seeded Pittsburgh before losing to UW in the next round.

Many Griz fans see this game as kind of a letdown, as they play a struggling team in a non-televised game but the Tigers are a better foe than most realize. I know they lost a lot of players after last year but this team has made the tournament the last three seasons, and advanced the second round twice in the span. This team is one to be reckoned with, and head coach Tinkle knows that.
"Yesterday, when we walked out of the office, the last thing I said is, 'I sure hope we don't get Pacific,' " Tinkle told reporters Tuesday in Missoula. "My first year here, I think in '01, they beat us by 20 (actually 77-64). They've gotten better. They're just a great, great program.

"I know they're a little down this year. Their record reflects that, but they're still a very, very talented team, and it's going to be a big challenge for us."
This matchup also means the Griz will have to face Pacific on the road next year. They could combine this with a game or two against a couple good California foes to make an exceptional road trip.
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Montana Grizzlies holiday plans now smell better.

Posted on July 26, 2006 by Colin O'Keefe
The Missoulian reports that the preseason tournament the Griz men's basketball team is playing in over Thanksgiving weekend will now be called the first annual Old Spice Classic. Does anyone else find it a little ridiculous when the words "first annual" and "classic" are the bookends of some corporate sponsored event? It'll be the same teams, same place, same tournament, just a little less pungent.
The first-ever Old Spice Classic, formerly called the ESPNU Classic, will tip off Nov. 23 at 10 a.m. MST on ESPN2. The inaugural tournament field will feature Montana along with Arkansas, Marist, Minnesota, Southern Illinois, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and Western Michigan. There will be four games each day with each team playing daily. The two undefeated teams will face off in a championship match on the final day.

Montana will play West Virginia at 7:30 p.m. MST Nov. 23. Other opening games feature Arkansas against Southern Illinois, Marist vs. Minnesota and Virginia Tech against Western Michigan.
It's great to see that the Montana basketball team will finally be getting some television exposure. I was very disappointed when NAU's Bracket Buster game ended up being televised while the Griz were snubbed.

I will be watching this game from a Los Angeles hotel room on the eve of attending the Notre Dame/USC football game; which actually is a classic.
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Bracket Busters Impress Heads of Conference

Posted on May 25, 2006 by Colin O'Keefe
If the clouds opened up and the God of sports, none other than "Superfan" Todd O'Connor, granted us the Ten Commandments of Sports Fanatics, I guarantee one of them would be "Thou shalt pick at least one 12-5 upset when filling out a NCAA Tournament Bracket."

Last year, the Griz basketball team took part in one of these annual upsets  as they beat the Nevada Wolf Pack and severely damaged the bracket of almost everyone outside the 406 (the entire state of Montana).

One of the reasons the Griz earned their high (for the Big Sky Conference) seed was their win over Oral Roberts as part of ESPN's Bracket Buster Series. According to an article in the Billings Gazette the Big Sky Conference's presidents are taking a look at these games and discussing their benefits and the effect it had on Montana:
Big Sky Conference Commissioner Doug Fullerton thinks playing BracketBuster games were good for league schools this season, especially Montana.

He believes Montana's 88-74 win over Oral Roberts on Feb. 18 and a connection between the BracketBusters selection committee and the NCAA tournament selection committee helped Montana get its No. 12 seed in the NCAA tournament.

"Two guys on the BracketBusters committee are on the NCAA committee," said Fullerton, in Missoula for the league's annual spring meeting. "The BracketBuster is designed to improve your ability to get into the (NCAA) tournament, or to get a better seed into the tournament. I think that's what it did for Montana this year."

This game, plain and simple, was a good win over a bad team. These are games that need to be won in order for the Griz, and the Big Sky Conference, to gain any legitimacy. Oral Roberts won 21 games and made the NCAA Tournament as the winner of the Mid-Continent Conference. The fact that they earned a 16 seed and the Griz earned a 12 seed says a great deal about the steady rise of the program and the conference; in 2004, the Griz won the Big Sky and only earned a 16 seed.

If the Griz, and the conference, continue to participate in events like ESPN's Bracket Buster Series then maybe they'll eventually be the bustees instead of busters.
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