Montana Grizzlies Sports, Football and Basketball : Grizzoulian

The complete 2008-2009 Montana men's basketball schedule has yet to be released but we may already have our two marquee games. Last year, it was Gonzaga and Washington State. This season, the Montana Grizzlies will face off against the Duke Blue Devils and the Washington Huskies.

It's been rumored for a few weeks that the Griz would travel to Cameron Indoor but an abcmontana interview with Wayne Tinkle makes it official. The game is set for November 23rd.
 
"It's not like we were trying to send a statement," Tinkle said in the interview. "As a student-athlete, you want to play teams that you kind of grow up idolizing and we just kind of thought it'd be a neat experience."

There hadn't been any word on a matchup with the Huskies, official or otherwise, but UW released their schedule yesterday and the Grizzlies are on it. Montana will play at Hec Edmundson Pavilion on December 28th.

The two games present two different experiences. Duke will once again be one of the best teams in the ACC and the nation. Andy Katz of ESPN has them as the 6th best team in the country with the Blue Devils only losing two players from last year's squad. The Griz will be playing in one of the college basketball's most intimidating venues. No matter who you are, walking onto the floor at Cameron Indoor will be something to remember for the rest of your life. Last season, the Griz faced off against a similar crazed atmosphere against Gonzaga in Spokane and it did not go well. The Griz will need to have more than a "gee, isn't it neat being here?" if they don't want to get embarrassed again.

The game at Hec Ed will be very different. The Huskies should be in the middle to bottom half of the PAC 10 again as they continue their rebuilding since the Nate Robinson and Brandon Roy days. They have solid recruits coming in but won't have nearly the talent level of Duke.

This game will also be drastically different in terms of atmosphere. It's three days after Christmas and many students will be far away from campus. I went to a UW/Loyola Marymount game two years ago over winter break; the student section was half empty and the arena was far from sold out. Unlike last season's game in Spokanistan, any Griz fans wanting tickets to this matchup should be able to get them fairly easily. If a conscious effort was made amongst Seattle-area Griz fans and others willing to make the drive, we could have a very respectable cheering section. More than Duke, Gonzaga and WSU, this game is the most likely for an upset.

Lastly, major props to Tinkle for putting together what's looking like a very tough schedule. This is the most talented and athletic Griz squad since LK's tourney teams. Tinks could've easily laid out a few cupcakes and tried to put together a 20-25 win season in an effort to get some fans off his back but he didn't. Ballsy. He's challenging himself and his players while trying to force this program to take a step forward. For the Griz to get quality opponents coming to the Zoo on a regular basis, they'll have to beat a few on the road first.

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Two straight NCAA Tournament appearances in 2005 and 2006 should've been enough of a base for the Montana Grizzly basketball program to build upon. It was not.

The legacy Larry Krystkowiak left behind before leaving for the NBA fizzled over the next two seasons, Wayne Tinkle's first as a head coach, as the Griz went 31-31 over that stretch. Only two seasons after Krystkowiak's departure, just a couple of his recruits remain with the program as numerous players transferred to play their hoops at schools in lower divisions, a sign to many that they couldn't cut it at this level.

Through the strife, clashes in chemistry and failure to meet expectations, Tinkle has found the team's foundation: a pair of near 7-footers ready to put the program on their backs. Derek Selvig and Brian Qvale are not the first prominent big-man tandem in the history of Griz hoops. Decades ago, Krystkowiak and Tinkle themselves led the Grizzlies. What recent success the program has seen is due, in large-part, to bigs Andrew Strait and Jordan Hasquet. Those four did great things for the program but none came in with the size, skill and history these two have.

Qvale and Selvig have known each other since they were in elementary school but were not always as buddy-buddy as they are now.

“We really did not like each other when we were growing up” said Qvale, the 6-foot-11 center from Williston N.D. “We were mortal enemies.”

Speaking not only of their familiarity, but also their ability and willingness to play at a higher level, the two first met in 3rd grade when their traveling select teams played regularly in weekend tournaments, usually in the championship game.

While the two played each other numerous times during elementary and middle school—upwards of 20 games—their high schools teams only met once. Selvig's Dawson County High School beat Qvale's Williston High School by 13 during their senior years. Selvig remembers Qvale getting a technical for hanging on the rim. Qvale says he hardly touched it.

The two even faced each other in Little League baseball, with both Qvale and Selvig playing first base and pitcher. Selvig stopped playing after elementary school while Qvale continued through high school. He said his fastball eventually topped out around 85 mph.

Besides basketball and baseball, both lettered three times in football, but the pair never faced each other in a game. Qvale did receive offers to play college football as a tight-end and defensive end from North and South Dakota schools but most colleges shied away as they knew he would eventually choose hoops.

While the two played and saw each other often in both baseball and basketball, it wasn’t until they joined ECI Select—an AAU team out of North Dakota—following their sophomore year that they became friends.

“We were good for a bunch of western North Dakota and eastern Montana kids,” Qvale said. “We beat some highly recruited teams with Division I scouts all around them and us just playing against the world. We beat them and that got us some recognition too.”

These two, a couple "big, giant, skinny white guys" as their coach Nathan Stover described them, would outwork other guys for wins over teams they weren't supposed to beat.

Stover tells of Selvig dropping 30 points on close to 10 3-pointers at a gym in Fort Wayne, Ind. This was in front of a Bob Knight assistant and with Selvig coming off a bad ankle sprain. Of course, "The General" offered him a scholarship to play at Texas Tech, one of the many universities interested in his services.

Qvale and Selvig spoke frequently throughout the recruiting process, discussing offers that came in, the merit of different colleges and how sick they were getting of the all the phone-calls.

Despite similar statistics and accolades, Selvig was the more highly regarded recruit. According to recruiting website Rivals.com, Selvig was a 3-star prospect coming out of high school while Qvale was only a 1-star.

Selvig eventually signed with Montana after limiting his choices to five schools: the University of Montana, University of Oregon, Washington State, USC and West Virginia.

“Derek was being recruited nationally and we knew that he was going to be a tough get, but we outworked everyone and won him over,” Tinkle said. “I think being a small town Montana kid helped our cause as well.”

He was right. Selvig, whose parents Doug and Anita Novak both played for the Griz while his uncle, Robin, also played and has now coached the Lady Griz for 30 years, was dedicated to staying close to home.

“It came down to family, just knowing people and staying in the state of Montana,” said Selvig, whose only school visit was to UM.

Even though family and tradition were a big part of Selvig coming to Montana, he was never pushed by his family to attend their alma mater.

“That was his decision, I basically wanted him to take his time and think about it,” said the elder Selvig, who even pushed for his son to visit a few more schools.

While the two were rated on different levels by some, they both received offers from a lot of the same schools including Washington State, who’s now ranked 21st in the nation.

The whole recruiting process got stale before Selvig told Qvale “I’m just gonna do it.” He committed to Montana in late October of 2006. Qvale committed two weeks later.

A lot of schools drool over 7-foot prospects, but they knew that while they were trying to get two guys similar in stature, they were also trying to pull in two very different players.

With his developed perimeter game, Selvig is not the typical 7-footer. Think Dirk Nowitzki as far as style of play. As far as looks and build, think white Kenyan runner with 15 to 20 more pounds stretched over an extra foot. He's not built to play down low and tailors his around it.

"I could not get him to post up," said Stover, "I'd run isolation things where he'd put it on the floor then pull up and shoot over someone...He's kind of a floater, it's sort of annoying. Sometimes you thought he should get in there and be more of a physical presence and try to use his size to get easy baskets but it just never seemed to evolve that way and in the end he was still being pretty darn effective."

Coach Tinkle said he will start playing Selvig at the post, in the power forward and center positions, with the possibility of moving him out to small forward.

"I'll play wherever he puts me, I'm just happy to be on the floor and get some playing time," said Selvig, who spent the season practicing at power forward and center.

Derek’s father Doug said he also sees his son eventually playing out at the wing because of his ability to pass the ball.

"Derek has always seen the court very well and I thought that would be an advantage being as tall as he is," Selvig said.

Stover compared Selvig's ability to make an outlet pass to UCLA's Kevin Love.

"He'd get the rebound and throw a long outlet pass so as soon as Derek would get the rebound Brian Qvale would just start running the floor like a deer. Just one pass, lay-up."

Selvig also had other ways of getting Qvale the ball: through a lob play he'd drawn up. With his dad being his high school coach and uncle Robin Selvig one of the best college coaches in the nation, it was a skill he no doubt picked up from them. Stover said of the few plays his team ran that summer, the alley-oop was used the most. When you have a guy with Selvig's passing ability and Qvale's athleticism, of which Stover raves about, why wouldn't you?

Where Selvig is the gifted aberration, Qvale is the prototypical 7-foot shot-altering center.

"When guys get to the rim, he's there to block shots," Tinkle said.

Qvale established this from the beginning, starting in the preseason Maroon-Silver game.

In an early possession, senior forward Andrew Strait had Qvale on the low post and gave the true frosh a move Griz fans had seen hundreds of times: with his back to the basket, he'd make one short fake left towards the hoop, pivot hard to the right as if he was going up for a baby hook before going all the way back to the left and laying it up off the glass. Qvale bit hard on the ball fake to the right, but as Strait went back to the left for the up and under, Qvale was there. He smacked the ball hard the backboard.

Qvale said he learned a lot about playing the post from the veteran Strait but Strait called it a “two-way street” with the bigger Qvale improving his play as well. This was one of those times then the mentor gave the teacher a lesson.

For the many memorable blocks, there's one miss that stands out the most. In an early-season game against Gonzaga, guard Jeremy Pargo went up and over Qvale like a dunk competition finalist leaping over a ball cart.

Qvale said teammates still rib him about it every time the Bulldogs are on TV. "I'm just waiting for him to graduate so I don't have to see that anymore," said Qvale as he laughed about the incident.

Simply put: if the Gonzaga bookstore sold Jeremy Pargo posters, Brian Qvale's face would be on dorm room walls all over campus. Instead, he'll have to settle for Selvig mockingly putting the picture up on Facebook. That is, of course, what good roommates do.

The pair shares a dorm room on campus, where their cleaning habits tend to differ.

“I’m a little more messy,” Selvig said of their living arrangement. “Brian’s kind of a neat freak.”

Brian described it as a little more than that: “He’ll never do laundry, he’ll leave his shoes everywhere, just walk into the room and throw his stuff down and just leave it.”

Misty Atkinson, a friend of both and a freshman redshirting with the Lady Griz, agreed and added that Selvig likes to stay up until 3 a.m. doing homework and drinking Mountain Dew.

Atkinson also said that while the pair hangs out all they time they do have their disagreements as well: “They argue sometimes and Derek always thinks he’s right.”

Inside the dorm, the two spend time playing video games like Halo and College Hoops 2K8. In College Hoops, the two fair a little differently according to the game’s rankings. In the game, Selvig starts while Qvale is the self-proclaimed “worst player on the team.”

In real life, things were different.

Selvig decided, with input from coaches, to redshirt his first year on campus. Selvig sat out while Qvale played as a true freshman, cutting their years together in a Griz uniform from four to three before either had played a game.

“It would’ve been nice to have four years together,” said Selvig, “but I know I needed a redshirt year.”

Sitting out was hard on him at first but as it settled in, he and others acknowledged it was the best thing to do.

“I think it was tough at first just because anyone that competes would like to be out there playing,” said Doug Selvig “but I think it’s certainly going to help him.”

While Selvig played only in practice, Qvale saw minutes in games early on and eventually started several games during Big Sky Conference play before an ankle injury sidelined him for a couple weeks. Even after the shin-high plastic boot came off, his playing time was hindered and he says he still hasn’t completely recovered.

As both Qvale and Selvig’s first years as part of the Grizzly basketball program were not what they might’ve expected, they and their coaches try to anticipate the impact they’ll have in the coming seasons.

“We play well together,” Qvale said. “We always know where each other are. If I roll [to the basket,] he’ll see me and if he throws it into me and he gets wide open on the outside I’ll kick it back to him.”

The duo’s presence will also alter the overall style of play: Tinkle said next season the team will “will spread the floor and play more motion next year with our improved skill and athleticism.” Exactly what Qvale and Selvig are looking for.

“More picks, more screens, get everybody involved,” Selvig said while Qvale agreed, saying he’d like to see the team get out and run more.

With established leaders already present in senior Jordan Hasquet and junior transfer Jack McGillis, their role right now may only be to play ball but they’ll be the ones leading this team in the future.

Their two styles of leadership may be different in the coming years. Selvig is the more laid-back of the two, with his attitude toward picking up his room reflecting his personality. It’s not laziness or carelessness; it’s just not being worried about it. He sits back in his chair and speaks quietly. He’ll be type of senior who offers tactics while leading by example, letting his game give the pep talks.

Qvale will be the motivator. He speaks with fire as he discusses playing and competing with teams like Washington State and Gonzaga, an atmosphere where AAU coach Stoven said he could play “on a different level.”

His tapping of fingernails stops, “It’s not that we can’t do it, it’s just mentally knowing we can.”

Just like the last few Griz basketball teams, the squads that come over the next couple years will be seen by many as some of the most talented in the Big Sky. It remains to be seen whether this base of Qvale and Selvig will prove sturdier than the ones that came before it. The duo is convinced it will.

“We’re going to play well.” Qvale said. “We’re going to be good later. We play well together. We’re definitely going to win some Big Sky Championships and head to the tournament and see what we can do there.”

The foundation is set. Now it’s time for them to build on it.

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It's been speculated for a while now—especially with Zach Graves and Cameron Rundles—but as of Tuesday evening, it's official: these three players will not be returning to play basketball for the 2008-2009 season.

Most Griz fans never got a chance to see what "Big Dave" or Zach could do. Everyone raved about Graves' athleticism and Vanderjagt's potential presence inside but it was never realized. With Cam, it was different.

Cameron Rundles was recruited by Larry Krystkowiak as a point guard, a gritty floor general. But the point guard spot already had depth in senior Bryan Ellis and junior Matt Martin. At the beginning of the season, these two started at the guard positions but by the ninth game Rundles made the starting lineup. In a December 9th, 72-65 win over UC Riverside, he scored 13 points in 32 minutes.

By conference play, he was a major contributor. He earned Freshman of the Year honors and was the Big Sky's best three-point shooter, beating out Stephen Sir with a .481 clip during the regular season.

On top of the numbers, there were all the intangibles. From the beginning, it seemed as though he would inevitably become the leader the Griz needed. Maybe that had something to do with his downfall. Every time I spoke to him, he referenced being a leader, a coach on the floor. It'd be near impossible to get upper-classmen to listen to a struggling sophomore.

The slump was bad, no one can deny that, but I never thought it'd do him in. This kid once re-entered a high school playoff game and rallied his team from a 12-point deficit after suffering a concussion and gashing his face but he can't overcome a run-of-the-mill sophomore slump? Come on.

To him, it's undoubtedly more than that. There's probably some tension between he and Coach Tinkle over playing time and the like. To this Griz fan, that complaint seems unwarranted. Unlike some other players—see: Zach Graves, Matt Martin—he got minutes when he played well. You don't need to look any further than end of the last regular season match-up against Idaho State and the two games that followed to see this is the case.

Fans will bash his sometimes immature ways and poor decisions but no one can deny that he played with a lot of passion and tried to spread it to others. It usually looked like he was having some fun. He always took the big shots, the daggers. When a statement was needed, he'd try to make it.

I'm not going to lie, I think it's a terrible decision. I do not know what goes on behind closed doors so my judgement could be far, far off but I believe if he averaged 15 and 5 (assists) in limited minutes in the early games next season, a starting guard spot would his before Thanksgiving.

In summary: his freshman season was amazing, the slump was too much and both sides will regret this happened.

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I cannot imagine how that could've possibly gone any worse. Here are Tinkle's words with reporters. Sorry for the low volume. As could be expected, everyone was a little quiet tonight. The second question is about Jeremiah Dominguez.

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Coach Wayne Tinkle speaking to reporters following the Griz beating Northern Colorado 81-66.

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Editors Note: Heh, I thought I'd toss this in there as some sort of  retro homage to Danny Davis. I wrote this article for a class, so for a bit I had to pretend not to be the biased blogger who spent the entire game yelling from the student section. Enjoy.

With two games left in the regular season, the Montana Grizzlies—who were favored by the media to win the conference—had yet to clinch a spot in the Big Sky Tournament. Thursday night they kicked down the door with an 81-66 victory over the University of Northern Colorado.

"This is a game to clinch," said sophomore guard Cameron Rundles, "it doesn't matter if we're playing Duke or Northern Colorado, you have to be fired up because if we lose this game or lose Saturday, it's possible we don't make it into the tournament."

Rundles, who finished with 16 points in 21 minutes, was part of an overwhelming opening run that put the Grizzlies up by as many as 22 in the first half. After the game's opening 20 minutes, the Griz (14-14, 8-7) were on pace to score 96 points.

"I made some shots on Saturday [against Idaho State] in overtime and I was making some shots in warm-ups so I just thought, 'what the heck, I'm going to put some up and see what happens,'" Rundles said.

Early in the first half, it seemed as though no matter what the Griz did with the ball, it would end up going through the hoop. At one point, Ceylon Elgin-Taylor made a crisp pass to junior forward Kyle Sharp, who wasn't ready to receive it. The ball ricocheted of Sharp's flat hands right to Andrew Strait, who laid it up and in for a 20-4 advantage.

Both Rundles and head coach Wayne Tinkle credited Elgin-Taylor's play with getting the Griz going early. The junior point guard had 10 assists in the first half and finished with 8 points and 11 assists for the game.

"I knew he was getting guys involved," said Tinkle of Elgin-Tayor, "but then I saw the stat sheet at half-time and told him to go out and get 10 more in the second half...Maybe that was a mistake because we stopped running offense and it looked like he was just trying to make plays out there."

Things were rosy in the first half, but in the second Northern Colorado (12-16, 5-10) cut what was once a 26-point lead all the way down to 9 with a 26-9 run that stunned but didn't quiet the crowd.

"It's easy to come back, it's hard to come back and win," said Northern Colorado Head Coach Tad Boyle, "I told my team I was proud of them for for about 6 minutes of this 40-minute game, but other than that I was really disappointed with our effort and execution. It's just disheartening."

On Saturday night, the Griz will bring a historic lineup into their match-up with first-place Portland State as senior guard Matt Martin's 7 points gives him 1,001 for his career. Jordan Hasquet and Andrew Strait—who along with Martin were part of the 2004 recruiting class—make this year's Griz team the first ever with three 1,000-point scorers.

"We all came in together and we're all in it together, it's pretty neat," Martin said. "The coolest part is that we all played on some really good teams."

Saturday night will be more than just Senior Night and the trio's first appearance as 1,000-point scorers. The Griz will have a chance to clinch the fourth seed in the tournament and a home game in the opening round with a win over Portland State, who blew out Montana State by 28 to ensure that the Big Sky Tournament would be held in the city of roses.

Coach Tinkle made sure that everyone knew there was still work to be done in the regular season.

"We'll see if we can send a message Saturday night...We've got bigger things in front of us and it starts with Portland State."

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Big game on the road. Griz looking to rebound from a tough loss. Need to move up in the standings. Guess what happened. Yep, they played terrible.

Well, the Griz made it drought (opposite of make it rain?) at the Dee Center tonight. The Griz shot 32 percent for the game, 20 percent in the first half. The Grizzlies shot 30 3-pointers tonight, they made five. Well done. One Matthew Martin led the way, shooting 1-10 from outside the painted arc and 3-13 overall. Fraught naught Gar and Sanchez, I have your Jordan Hasquet numbers: 2-8 from outside and 2-11 overall.  13 points, 0 rebounds. Interesting stat: CET led the scoring with 14.

The Griz trailed by 15+ the entire game and the final score was closer than it should've been. Anyone who takes solace in the fact that we made a run in garbage time is pathetic. I'd rather be a somewhat talented inconsistent team who plays crappy half the time and gets blown out by 10-15 than be the type of team that feels a certain pride when they say "hey, at least we made a run at the end" and still loses by 9.

The Griz need to win out to finish above .500 in conference and overall. Amazing. Who the hell let this happen? I mean you can blame coaches all you want but even if you have a knucklehead coach (I am not saying we do) a player has to step up and lead the guys. Even if your coach is an amazing leader of men, you still need a player to lead. Where has that been?

Seniors, I'm looking at you. Sure, do all you can with the minutes provided but sometimes that's not enough. I mean if I'm a senior, or pretty much anyone in the rotation, I'm legitimately furious as soon as things start dipping south. I start blowing people up and melting faces. Does anyone remember any player being seriously fired up at all this season?

Ohhhh, they have the flu. You know what, I shouldn't know that. This game came with built-in excuses. Players can't have that back-door. The Missoulian's preview article for this game was titled "Ailing Griz look to get back into groove." The lead quote is Tinkle saying people are sick. Why? He doesn't name names, but if you're stubborn enough not to name names, why not just not bring it up?

You know what you do... show them this, tell them to nut up because it's the stretch run then say that when they have a phenomenal game you'd not only say they had the flu but had been randomly experiencing paralysis on the right side of their body. On top of that, they did it for testicular cancer awareness. Hero.

At this point, anything short of making a run into the NCAA Tournament will be a gigantic disappointment. Even if they make the championship game. Because let's be honest, that championship game should've been played in Dahlberg OR after only one playoff game. You put yourself at the bottom of this hill, now climb it.

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This game never felt right. From about Friday afternoon on, it never felt like we were definitely going to win. The buzz wasn't there. I walked in about a half hour before the game and was close to the first student there. Then the game started and the almost-numb feeling stayed. In the early stages the Jacks lead varied but stayed within five points. There was no fire, no attitude.

The Griz made a few runs and even led by as much as 7 (48-41 15:41 left in the second) but they could not get legitimate separation. After the game, coach Tinkle spoke about the Griz's inability to get any momentum.

"It seemed like anytime we got momentum going, it was somehow taken away from us," Wayne Tinkle said.

I hate to do this and I don't want this to be one of those instances where I blame the officiating —the referees did not shoot 71 percent in the second half—but it was definitely a factor. The goal of any officiating crew should be to go unnoticed. If the game is well officiated, no one says anything about it. No one remembers it. Tonight, it lingers.

There were several instances when I thought they controlled the game when they didn't need to, almost as if they felt they needed to be a part of it. After a past game, I asked one player about the officiating and he echoed the same thing, saying "I know he was just trying to control the game."

Even without the poor officiating, the Griz would not have won this game. They were 19-28 from the line (3-11 in the first half) and were out-rebounded 35-24.

Tinkle said the loss of center Brian Qvale hurt on both ends of the floor. "When guys get to the rim, he's there to block shots and we really miss that presence underneath."

Besides Qvale's presence underneath, there was another key barometer for a win missing from tonight's game: Ryan Staudacher's outside touch.

For those who made it to the game, his 2-7 from beyond the arc isn't very telling. He wasn't forcing up shots and he wasn't missing badly. Every time he shot it seemed like there was a piece of plexi-glass about four inches beneath the rim. I counted three or four shots that seemed like they were almost all the way down before popping out. Ryan spoke about it after the game.

"Sometimes you just have those nights, but it was frustrating. They all felt good, I thought they were all in but they just rattled in and out. There's nothing you can do about it."

Just not a very enjoyable game all-around. Weber State on Thursday. One game at a time.

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That gimmicky cliche seems to be the mantra for this team. After the game, I spoke with Coach Tinkle, Dave Vanderjagt and Andrew Strait about how their goals may have been altered since a few weeks ago, when the team was just hoping to make the Big Sky Tournament. Below are their responses in the order mentioned above. Sorry for any annoying clicking sounds.

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In last night's blowout win over, Andrew Strait (21 and 10) passed Wayne Tinkle for 5th on the all-time scoring list with 1,520 points. Tinks helped recruit Drew and then coached him for four years. After the game I asked both of them what it was like to the student pass the mentor. Both said it was great and joked a bit.

Tinks:

"You know, I didn't know what to expect and he's had a great career. I couldn't be more proud of him being the one to pass me just because of everything we've been through as coach and player.

I threated that I wasn't going to play him at all tonight and stick him on 1,499. He had a great game, he's a super kid.  He's obviously a corner stone, one of the pillars of our team. It's exciting for him that he was able to accomplish that."

Drew:

"It's pretty special. I mean, he's kind of bitter about it but he's a good sport and it means a lot just to be up with that group of guys who are on that list...it just says a lot about my career here at the University of Montana. It's been a great experience for me, I love the coaches and couldn't of been a better place.

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Griz play like the Griz in the second half and lose to NAU 72-64. Here are notes from the second half:

• I thought the second half against MSU was the worst I've ever seen. This one comes close.
• The Griz got away from what they did in the first half. The offense was horrendous. I can't think of a single good offensive possession that stands out in the entire second twenty minutes. Just horrendous. In the first half the Griz ran a patient yet purposeful offense.
  
• Shooting wasn't there. The Griz were not getting Staudacher the ball. He also wasn't getting the same open looks. As I'm typing this in what are essentially garbage minutes, Staudacher hits a fadeaway three. Inside offense should be run around Jordo and Drew while outside game points toward him. Great personnel for an inside-out offense and we're not taking advantage of it.
  
• Free throws weren't good. The turning point in the game was probably with about six minutes left when the broadcasters said it would come to free throws. I knew we'd have a tough time from there.
• Cam fouled out really early on some terrible calls. The charge that sent him out was awful as the defender really slid in front of him. While it was going downhill before that, once he went out, the offense didn't have much flow.
• I don't know what else to say. It was your typical Griz second half. It was awful. As it was happening I wanted to tell myself that this would be different, that NAU would make a run and we'd make one and pull away. Didn't happen. They made a run, tied it, then got a few good possessions and some breaks, then it was over.
• Ceylon Elgin-Taylor's foul trouble hurt bad.
• This team doesn't have it. Not right now, probably not this season. They cannot play forty minutes. There is zero composure. None. No one—coaches, upper-classmen, not anyone—is holding this team together. No composure. Cam picked up a ticky tack charge to foul out then Jordan Hasquet drills someone and gets an intentional foul. Game was pretty much over after that.

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On December 18th, I wrote a post titled "Griz need to wake up before they hit the ground" and started it off with this quote from Lou Holtz.

Every week we say "Well, it's gonna get better the next week." It's like a guy that fell out of a 20-story building and every time he went by each floor he hollered "Hey, I'm doin' okay so far!" Lou Holtz

The Griz kept falling and according to Wayne Tinkle, it sounds like they're still saying "Well, it's gonna get better next week." This from The Missoulian:

“We're past the point of screaming and yelling to try to motivate and keep guys focused,” Montana coach Wayne Tinkle said. “We're past the point of doing a bunch of break-down drills in practice. Our guys know how to defend ... they know how to run our stuff offensively, and when we do all that, we're pretty darn good. Now we have to do it from tap to finish.

“We're just short of that one breakthrough. If we can do that in one of the games this weekend ... everybody's going to be able to take a deep breath and say, ‘OK, we finally did it for 40 minutes.' That's the point we're at.” [...]

“If we come out with the energy and focus that we have every game to this point, we'll be in good shape,” Tinkle said. “But if we let them come out and throw the first punch ... it could get ugly. I'm confident our guys will come out with the right frame of mind.”

I don't want to be one of the fans who's beginning to turn on Coach Tinkle because I'm not. However, I do not like what he's saying in these quotes. The middle one is alright but the other two sound terrible if you take a slightly closer look at them. They have a "we've done all we can, it's on the players now" theme to them. Sounds like he's saying "I've tried screaming and they just won't respond... I've taught them how to play defense and run the offense, they just won't. If they don't come out fired up they're going to get killed."

I know you can only blame the coaches so much, the players have to go out and do what they're supposed to do. I'm just sensing a small rift between the players and the coaches that first reared its head when Tinkle first called out his guys, telling The Missoulian that their play in the second half of the MSU game was "a joke."

Who knows, maybe this is what they needed. Maybe it will push them to get their act together and win a Division 1 game. They need something. I personally don't think this is it but I'm also not a Division 1 head basketball coach.

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There are some problems I wish the football and basketball programs shared, such as selling out tickets too quickly while not having a big enough stadium to hold all the fans. Having an inept offense is not one of them.

When it comes to the Griz, there's one thing a lot of things fans are complaining about. One of the most prevalent is the Griz's inability to run a efficient moving offense. A lot of fans are saying there's too much standing around. The bigs aren't getting the ball and we're not going to the line. Here's a solution: run a very basic pick and roll offense.

It sounds dumb, doesn't it? It's right there with the Princeton Offense as one of the most basic gameplans in all of basketball. Opponents should be able to pick up on it and defend easily, right? If this were the case, why would the Phoenix Suns, possibly the NBA's most effective offense, continue to go to it?

Imagine, Jordan Hasquet could be a whiter, hairier and slower Big Sky version of Amare Stoudamire. It'd be great. Toss in Cam Rundles or CET as a de facto Steve Nash and you have it. Why can't this work? Let's take a look at the possibilities while running a basic, top of the key, Cam/Jordo pick and roll:

• Cam gets pick, drives down lane and lays it up and in on sleepy defense
• Cam gets pick, defense recovers too late and he's fouled
• Defense swarms, Cam kicks it to Staudacher or Martin for wide open three
• Cam drives down lane, help-side D comes, Cam lays it off to Drew for a dunk.
• Defense tries to jump under screen, Cam hits jumper from the elbow
• Both defenders jump on Cam, bounce pass to Jordo for thunderous dunk
• Cam passes to Jordo off screen, Jordo gets fouled.
• Griz run pick and pop. Cam gets screen, D follows him down the lane, he passes back to Jordo for three.

Just a few of many plays that can come in a solid pick and roll offense. Yeah, it's basic, so what? We haven't won a D-1 game since November, anything this simple is worth a shot.

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It's not working. It isn't. No matter what the Griz have tried—which right now is pretty much limited to jacking up threes and pounding it down low—it hasn't worked.

A lot of Griz fans are arguing that we need to go with who they say are our best players and pound it get it to the bigs more. At the same time, others are calling for the guards to get more touches and have more control over the offense.

What if we did both?

Think about this: when was the last time the Griz ran a great pick and roll? When was the last time a guard knifed down the lane and kicked it out for a wide open three? When was the last time guard took a pick, got to the hoop then laid it off to a big for a huge dunk? I sure as hell can't remember.

I listened to and live blogged throughout the Santa Clara game and heard Mick and Mike constantly say things like "Great offensive possession for the Broncos"..."Really efficient play there"..."Great possession." I don't think I can recall them saying this more than once or twice for the Griz. Santa Clara had a phenomenal inside-out game.

Imagine this: "Rundles, top of the key, gets a pick from Drew, hits it hard and comes flying down the lane kicks to Jordan, swings it to Martin, wide open...DOWN THE PICKEL BARRELLLLL!"

Or: "Martin, off the pick from Jordan, hesitates, bounce pass right back and huge slam!"

It seems like every possession is an either/or. Either we swing it around and take a jumper or cram it down low to Jordan or Drew.

I hope the Griz got some good tape of John Bryant and Santa Clara's inside-out game. The Broncos probably have the best big man we've seen all year and yet they still had the most effectively balanced offense. With the even talent the Griz have at just about every position, they could learn a lot from Santa Clara.

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Tonight the Griz play the 6-3 Broncos of the West Coast Conference. The Griz have lost three straight and come into the matchup at 5-5 looking to get a win before finishing off the road trip against Cal State Fullerton.

As always, the grizzlyjournal has an excellent preview on the game.

Tonight I'll be running a live blog on the game. I've done this before, but never without TV. I'll be listening to the radio broadcast over the web and offering up any comments and insight I have. On top of that, Glenn Junkert, author of the grizzlyjournal, will be chiming in as well.

It all starts after the jump. Feel free to add whatever comments you have.

Pregame

Colin: Obviously, the Griz need a win bad. Picking up these next two would be huge for the Griz's confidence heading towards conference play. Everyone knows this. Anyway, here's the lineup I'd start if I ran the show:

1-Cam Rundles
2-Ryan Staudacher
3-Jordan Hasquet
4-Andrew Strait
5-Brian Qvale

The Griz need to go big to battle huge John Bryant (6'10", 305 lbs, 20.7 ppg) and Martin would be great coming off the bench. I'm not saying Stads is more valuable out there. I just think Martin's fire and swagger would be perfect coming off the bench. Second guy off the bench: probably Sharpie to help out on Bryant. Third off the bench: Graves. This kid needs minutes like the Chicago Bears need a new quarterback. No, I won't let MNF be a distraction during the game. Graves needs minutes because quick guards killed this team in their loss to Pacific (see video).

Glenn: Ok. Before this game even starts, my hope is that Brian Qvale gets the opportunity to match up against the Broncos' 310 lb, 6'10" center John Bryant. I firmly believe Griz are a couple pieces away from cementing into a solid team heading toward conference play. One of them is more game experience from Qvale. The more minutes he gets, the more opportunities he'll get to show what he can do. Waging battle with Bryant is an ideal opportunity for Qvale.

Colin: Agreed. I think this matchup is going to be a great test for Qvale. It'll be interesting to see how their styles of play factor into this. Qvale is a quick, agile big who goes for a lot of blocks. I do not know for sure but going in, I'm imagining Bryant as a player similar to UCLA's Kevin Love, except 50 pounds heavier. Not really quick but more powerful. He can back you down so that your head is touching the net then lay it up and in. It'll be interesting to see if Qvale can get some points and rebounds down at the other end of the court.

Colin: Still waiting on the audio feed.

Colin: Alright, here's an alternative to the audio feed because the one from MontanaGrizzlies.com isn't up yet. Heard tinks Briefly mention he wanted to run. That'd be great. Hope he has the personnel in there to do it.

Colin: Broadcasters point out we gotta make Bryant run. He's only playing 25 minutes a game so endurance is obviously an issue... woah, wait, Tinks car got broken into. Wow. Talk about a bad omen.

'Squets injury is going to be interesting. As they noted, Griz did not practice yesterday.

Glenn: Former Griz Mike Warhank, a guest color analysis commentator for Mick Holien, made a good point on the pre-game show. If the Griz can push the pace with every chance they get, they might have success in the low blocks. Andrew Strait runs the floor well, and can be very effective in the early offense. If the Griz can force the Broncos into a "faster than normal" transition game with sideline entry passes to Andrew, they could open the game up a bit.

First Half

20:00 0-0

Colin: Cameron sits to start again. Same lineup as last game. Qvale-Strait-Jordo-Martin-Stads.

19:00 4-0 Broncos

Colin: Qvale apparently got a bad call on a block and picked up a foul. Hopefully the officiating is better than last game. This isn't a great start. Looks like Broncos are willing to foul and be physical.

Glenn: Good to hear that Jordan Hasquet is starting, playing on his gimpy ankles.

4-3 Broncos after Hasquet 3, good call by Glenn

Colin: Arena seems very dead. Not much atmosphere whatsoever. I believe attendance is close to what it was at Pacific but sounds much more quiet. Students must be gone.

17:02 6-3 Broncos

8-3 After a Dunk

8-5 after bunny by Drew

Colin: Really would prefer to see the Griz take control of a game. Seems as though it always starts out like this with a medium sized deficit.

10-5 with 15:12

Colin: Hopefully the Griz can come out of the break with some fire. Look to see Cam or Graves (PLEASE). Need some fire. This is where you need the Chavez.

Colin: Cam does come in. Hopefully he can give the Griz what they need. Sharpie comes in as well. Still 10-5.

Glenn: Single-shot possessions won't do on the road. Griz will need to get some offensive boards for second shots.

Colin: Agreed. We need some offensive boards. That as Qvale checks back in. Going to be tough with Bryant.

10-6 as Ceylon Elgin-Taylor checks in

Colin: Griz seem to be drawing quite a few fouls. Hopefully someone important is getting in trouble.

11-8 after a pair of Sharp FTs

Glenn: An aside on the game: Mike Warhank is an excellent color commentator. Great observations.

Colin: Agreed. I have a terrible memory, I believe Mick was all alone last year. Mike is filling in great with the color.

It's now 11-10 with 11:00 to go, hopefully the Griz can come out of the break and make a run. One Chavez candidate is in in: Spurgetis.

Glenn: Correct with your earlier post suggesting that Zach Graves & Greg Spurgetis get more playing time. Both have energy & can help the Griz in important areas of the game.

Colin: Dave is checking in. This should be interesting. We'll see what type of minutes he can earn against possibly the best center we've seen this year.

19-10 Broncos after a pair of threes and a layup

Colin: Wow, exactly what we weren't supposed to do. Johnson has ONLY made three point shots. It's not like all 4 of his makes. It's all 15+ of the shots he's made. Amazing. Get Graves to chase that kid around.

Glenn: The three-point bugaboo is biting the Griz again.

Colin: That and missing easy shots. Come on fellas. Cannot do that when the Broncos are shooting so well.

Now 22-10 after another trey with about 8:00 to play

Colin: Boy does this seem familiar. Griz let medium lead grow due to three pointers for them and missing open shots. We need to come out on fire. Revamped. Come on Tinks, toss in something else if this isn't working. Insanity: trying the same thing over and over while expecting different results. The Griz need to show they're not insane... that'd be a good start.

Glenn: I think Mike lives in the area and is just serving as a guest for these two games.

Colin: We could use him full-time. Great insight.

22-11 after Strait makes a FT... then fouls someone on the other end

Colin: This is pretty much echoing Mike, the Griz are pretty much letting Santa Clara run their offense however they want. Get Graves in there. We need someone to get in passing lanes and screw them up a bit.

Lead is all the way up to 13 after FTs

Glenn: Disappointing start against an opponent I figured would be a decent mark. It's obvious the Griz aren't handling the Broncos inside-outside game.

Lead down to 11

Now 9 after Hasquet jumper

Colin: It's looking like Hasquet might have to carry us again. Who knows if he can on those ankles. Why Martin is still in there with this lead is beyond me. He is a great offensive player. We need a little D with the way the Broncos are shooting.

Lead all the way back to 13 after missed Martin 3 and Bryant layup... Strait gets a lay-in to move it back down to 11... but then someone rolls down the lane again.

Colin: What the hell. Get someone in there who can prevent people from walking down the lane. This is kind of a joke. The only way our D up the middle gets worse is if we put down a trampoline around the free throw line and they can just jump over us and dunk it.

Glenn: Can't see it, but it appears the Broncos are getting high post screens for easy penetration by their guards.

Colin: Yep. Mick says there's no real sense of purpose... or something close. BRING IN THE BENCH GUYS. We need some fire. We've done this over, and over, and over again. We need quick or passionate guards. Someone rip Graves' and Greg's sweats off and shove them in the game.

Colin: Mike points to lack of effort. This is unbelievable. We need new guys if this continues. The end of bunch guys are starving for minutes. STARVING. You think effort will be a question of effort there? I doubt it.

Glenn: Andrew is playing the post well tonight. But the Griz won't make any headway without someone stepping up to make some threes. Hasquet just collects his third pf.

Colin: Agreed. Don't want to see us get too dependent on that though. And they get a rebound on a free throw. Yeah, effort is definitely an issue.

1:35... 31-19

Colin: Mike says "there are driving lanes to the basket." Really, tell me I'm wrong. Tell me Graves shouldn't be in this game.

Glenn: Hmmm. Mike Warhank suggests the Griz guards have lanes to the basket. That suggests tentative play by Griz guards.

Colin: Wonder if the injury is affecting Cam. Last season he'd drive without abandon. He's been more of a shooter this year. Significantly hinders what used to be a very dynamic style of play.

33-20 at Half

Colin: That really couldn't have gone a whole lot worse. It was exactly what we've seen in our bad losses.

Colin: "Tell me what you're up to Mike"... "Well, I'm actually talking to O'Day about getting my old job back. Tinkle said he'd be fine moving back to assistant." Maybe he just takes over for one half. I'm not normally one to rail on a coach but I don't like the way this first half has been handled. The same thing keeps happening and we keep trying the same faulty solutions.

Glenn: Don't have to go any farther than the stat line: Santa Clara is shooting 52 percent from the field and 100 percent from three-point range with 22 rebounds. The Grizzlies are shooting 29.2 percent from the field, 14.3 percent from three-point range, and have 10 rebounds. If the Bronco hadn't turned the ball over six times the margin could be even greater. I don't like to think this, but the Grizzlies are starting to show the same pattern of logging disastrous halves of play much like they did last year. This is the fourth time this year they've shown this pattern.

Second Half

Colin: Griz need to come out and play a totally different game while hoping the Broncos do the same. We need a great pep talk and some phenomenal adjustments.

Colin: Mick says "you can see the energy on offense"... great... until Strait misses a lay-up.

Glenn: The Griz are shooting 55 percent from the free throw line, which is another puzzling up & down stat.

Lead is 16 after a 3 point play... then Staudacher makes a trey.

Colin: Really sounds like the Griz have some fire now. Still not making their shots though. Sounds like they are trying to run it and get to the rim. You can hear Marso screaming 'GO!'

40-25 with about 16 minutes left

Colin: If the Griz don't make a big run this will go down as an L. Chipping away is just not going to work. We need a series of stops and a lot of makes.

Lead is 16...12 after solid plays by Sharp and Rundles...13:57

Glenn: Judging by the audience, it sounds like the Griz have pretty good crowd supporting them.

Colin: Hopefully we can show them a win. Nothing like walking out of an opposing arena with a win while dressed in garb from the visiting team.

One FT pushes lead back to 13

Colin: Mick says Jordo's ankle isn't bothering him at all. Good to hear. Don't want any lingering injuries.

Colin: Seems like we're forcing put-backs a little too hard. Need to reset more. We did on the last possession after getting a second offensive rebound. Good to see the Griz hitting the glass after an abysmal first half in that category.

Glenn: Even Mick Holien is making critical comments about the Grizzlies' tentative, "lazy" play. Ouch.

Colin: He also points out that we are not picking up getting any momentum and cannot make two shots in a row. The Broncos travel on two consecutive possessions. Need to capitalize on TOs like these.

Stads puts down a 3 as the Griz cut it to ten with close to 10:00 left

Colin: Here's the goal for rallying. Just be calm, try to keep it so you're down that fewer points than minutes left.

Glenn: Would love to see Ryan Staudacher have a "break-out" game from long range.

Colin: We need it. We need someone to be there.

Lead is back to 12 after Bryant basket

Goaltending as it's back to 14

Staudacher missed 3 and Broncos run down and get to the line

Colin: This is awful. Griz make the tiniest run then give it all back and then some. No rhythm, confidence, momentum.

Lead is at 16 with 8:18 left

Colin: Running out of minutes. Pace is way off. Down twice as many points as minutes. Great.

14 after Cam FTs about 8:00 left... Cam hits a 3 and it's 11

Colin: Real risky shot by Cam. Lucky it goes down. Now Graves comes in. This should be interesting.

Glenn: Sure is nice that Cam's playing with energy once again. It might be a sign he's getting past his foot injury. Your guy's subbing in, Colin.

Colin: Not gonna lie, I'm kind of nervous.

Lead is back to 13 after a pair of FTs

Colin: Real young line-up down the stretch. This will be very very interesting. Wow, missed front end of one and one by Hasquet. FTs kill us and whatever momentum we have. It happens in almost every game.

Cam throws one away and Broncos get 2 more... back to 15... then makes a runner at the other end.

Colin: Maybe Cam should be taking/making more shots early. Didn't he do this the other night in Portland?

Strait picks up fouls on the offensive and defensive ends... lead goes to 16 as Bryant makes a pair of FTs then Stads hits a 3, it's 12.

Colin: We're getting homered again. Not that it'd help that much but come on. Can't put us down even further.

Down by 10 with 4:01 left..now 8... Griz get a stop and over-the-top foul on Santa Clara

Colin: Not sure if we're shooting FTs coming down but we NEED points. Either two makes at the line or a big shot. A three would be beyond massive. If Stads makes it his starting spot is cemented.

Glenn: A good late-game run, fueled by Cameron. I'm reading some stuff into this, but if Cameron's taking control, that's a good sign.

Colin: I agree. He's turned it over a couple times but made up for it on following possessions. We need him to play this way the entire game.

Jordo misses the front end of a one and one again... 3:00 left and still down 8... 10 as Bryant gets another one.

Colin: Tough basket there. Leads to an MT miss.

Still 8 with less than 2:00 left

Colin: It was there for the taking. I'm not sure it is anymore. Mike Montgomery even left.

Griz get a couple of turnovers but cannot convert.

Colin: That's game. I think. Another Griz miss.

Another turnover by Santa Clara leads to zero Griz points

Colin: The game was there and we didn't go out and take it. Just needed to make a fun more shots run a few better sets and we're right there.

Santa Clara 60, Griz 49   Final.

Postgame

Colin: The Griz lose their fourth in a row and fall below .500 for the first time with a record of 5-6. Just not a good game whatsoever. There were a few extremely short stretches where we played well but never could put together enough solid possessions. There was certainly a time in the second half when the Griz could've got back in the game but they didn't jump on it. There didn't seem to be the clutch mentality and determination to pull out a come-from-behind victory.

Glenn: The best game plan in the world won't work when your team shoots 33 percent from the field and 53 percent from the free throw line. Am I correct? -- The Griz get two 1-and-1 opportunities with the lead down to 8 points and they can't convert.

But still, they play the Broncos even in the second half. But another 20-point first half (the last time they did that was at home against the Portland Pilots) is a tough hole to crawl out of.

Colin: Agreed. The Griz didn't have what was needed to jump on a team when they had a chance. I don't know if it was effort, endurance or what. You can't play all your games at home and you can't get long breaks between every game. I don't know why the broadcasters are blaming the legs at times when the Griz played great in the final two days of the Spokane tournament. Just poor shooting, poor effort.

Glenn: I was pretty encouraged after the Grizzlies battled to overtime against Pacific. This game's a big setback. It'll be interesting to hear what coach Tinkle has to say. Of course it doesn't get any easier on Thursday.

Glenn: Did Tyler Hurley suit up? Was he even there? The official statistics indicate Hurley was suited up.

Colin: Not sure. I didn't hear anything about that.

Tinkle sounds pretty somber. Said he found a combination that might've worked... when was that? Graves maybe. I'm not going to say that. We came back for like two minutes. Tinkle sounds pleased with the play of Spurgetis and Graves. We'll see what that does. We're going to have to toss everything we have at Fullerton if we don't want to go to 5-7.

Well, that's it for me. The game was a major disappointment with very little positives. I want to thank Glenn Junkert for helping me out and sharing his thoughts on the game. Check out his blog, the grizzlyjournal.

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Portland was 2-6 heading into Friday night's game against the Griz. They're now 3-6. The Griz were up two with 35 seconds left—after Cameron Rundles made one of two free throws—but Nik Raivio hit a three to give the Pilots the lead and eventually the win.

It was a bad night. Throughout the game, I never really felt too positive about what was going to happen. On the last possession—one in which Cam fed a driving Hasquet—I had a feeling the shot wasn't going to fall. It was just that type of night. The Griz shot less than 25% in the first half and 35% for the game.

Going off the Missoulian article, it sounds as though players aren't buying into the coaches' gameplan.

“We get great looks out of our offense when we run it all the way through,” Strait said. “We're kind of struggling right now with that.”
...
“We give him that shot all day long,” Montana coach Wayne Tinkle said of Raivio, who scored 13 of his game-high 17 points after the break. “I am a little disappointed that we left him. We had a timeout where we said stay with their shooters, make them dribble into our big players - we were ready to take charges - and we left him alone for a split second and that was enough for him to get the shot off and make it.”

Tinkle was upset with his team's inability to execute the game plan.

“We took a lot of mediocre shots, to say the least,” Tinkle said. “For whatever reason, we weren't focused on our game plan. We came out and wanted to go 94 feet of pressure. We didn't do it the first four times we scored. Our game plan was to pound it at them, pound it at them, posts take it and finish strong.

“Maybe what happened when we threw it in to them early and we were soft going to the basket, maybe the players said we shouldn't throw it in there anymore. I thought we came out and played very soft on both ends.”

The Griz cannot lose these type of games. In the most recent simulated RPI listings, Portland was over 200. And we lost to them at home! It can't happen. Not when we have a potentially season-defining road trip on tap. I don't know if it's leadership, execution, coaching or the lineups, but it has to change.

Here's my proposal for the lineups, without really factoring in Cam's possible injury: I believe we have to either go big or go small, no more 'tweener lineups that force us to play the other team's game. We can go big with Qvale-Strait-Jordo-Martin-Cam and squash teams while potentially taking our lumps on the defensive end. One thing is for sure, teams will have to live or die by the outside shot because it'll be tough driving on those bigs. If we go small we toss in the slashers and go with a lineup like Strait-Jordo-Cam-Graves-Martin/Elgin-Taylor. Graves, who is potentially the most athletic player on the team needs to get minutes against smaller quick teams. He also needs minutes when we're trying to press. With Cam not starting and Tinks trying to press, it would've made sense to start Graves.

However, I am not laying this on Coach Tinkle. This loss was on the players. A coach can't do anything to make players shoot that poorly. With that, something does need to be done. A leader needs to step up and discipline needs to be laid down because if the Griz go on this road trip with the mentality they've had in the past two games, they'll come back to Missoula as a 5-7 team.

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This morning's Missoulian has a great article on the student section. The Kaimin, not so much. They could've run a well-written letter to the editor by AD Jim O'Day but instead the editors discussed it and decided as a consensus to publish "Around the Oval." Well, it's good knowing that Bill Lower would most like to steal Hugh Hefner's identity while Brook Ostahowski would rather be Jennifer Aniston.

Anyway, here's Tinkle on what he hopes to see from the students tonight:

“I hope everybody is just in a frenzy,” Tinkle said. “It would be nice to get as close to that Zoo atmosphere as we can. That gets the rest of the crowd into it. Maybe we can get some folks up out of their seats, making some noise. Hopefully our guys will perform well and make it a real positive start to what could be an exciting season.”

“I know it would be thrilling for them,” Tinkle said of his players. “Matt Martin pulled me aside when he was a freshman and said, ‘Coach, I've heard stories of how this was when you played. A goal of mine is to have this place filled by the time I leave.' I think it would really mean a lot to have that atmosphere we see at so many other colleges with the students on the sideline. I know it would set the tone.”

Tinks also offered some good examples from the past:

Late in Tinkle's career, Weber State brought star player Rico Washington to Dahlberg Arena.

“He was a pretty darn good player,” Tinkle said. “He and one of our forwards, Ossie Young, were kind of getting into it. I went to separate them and we were right in front of The Zoo. (Washington) went to say something and I told him, ‘Listen, you've got to stop right now or I'm going to throw you into the second row. Those are two of my football buddies and I don't think you'll make it out of there alive.'

“He turned and looked and smiled and said, ‘You're right.' ”

If the students put just a little effort into this, they'll get a lot in return.

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The men's and women's basketball teams host their annual open scrimmage tonight in Dahlberg Arena. The men's scrimmage start at 6 while the Lady Griz will follow at 8.

From The Missoulian:

“We're excited to be able to get out in front of some people,” second-year coach Wayne Tinkle said. “We've been going at it hard for about a week and a half, so it will be nice to have a little more of an open environment and let the guys get some of the nerves out.

“It'll give us a starting point so we can continue to correct mistakes and get the guys better as we move forward.”

“I think the ladies are always excited for this scrimmage,” 30th-year coach Robin Selvig said. “It's nice to get in front of some people.

“We have quite a bit of our stuff in so it should be a good gauge of where we are. The freshmen have been learning quickly so we should be able to put together a decent performance.”

I'm really looking forward to getting to my first solid look at this team. I hope to have some detailed impressions up tonight.

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The '07-'08 season will be Wayne Tinkle's second as the head coach of the Montana Grizzlies. This season brings with it a whole new feel. We're not coming off an NCAA Tournament victory and assuming a new coach will give us another one. There's a whole new chemistry and attitude surrounding this team. The likely reason: coach Tinkle is starting to make his mark on this program.

Here's five questions with Griz head basketball coach Wayne Tinkle.

Grizzoulian: In terms of your comfort level coaching this team, how does the beginning of this season differ from your first year as a coach?

Wayne Tinkle: The biggest change for this year is that my staff and I have had a complete off-season to prepare for this season. I got the job in late June of 06 and we were in the middle of summer camps. Now we have had a complete off-season to implement our plan.

Grizzoulian: What's one thing you really want your team to focus on more than anything else this season?

Wayne Tinkle: Defense and rebounding are the two areas that we are really focusing on this year.

Grizzoulian: What are your thoughts on the tough schedule?

Wayne Tinkle: Our schedule is very challenging…we play a reinvigorated Colorado State, Gonzaga which may have its most talented team ever, and Air Force and Washington State, all in the first few weeks. We will definitely be challenged early and often.

Grizzoulian: Going into last year, you'd lost all the senior leadership. This year you lost several players but I'm not sure the impact on leadership will be the same. What are your thoughts on the chemistry and leadership of this team as we head into the season?

Wayne Tinkle: We will certainly miss some of the qualities that last years seniors left behind, but I truly believe with the upper classmen we have this year that our chemistry is much improved. Our guys are battling each other every day but it’s for the good of the team. In years past we had some guys that just wanted to humiliate their teammates, not trying to get one another better for the good of the squad.

Grizzoulian: What do you want from the fans? As you've heard, the students will be sitting courtside for the opener and possibly Griz-Cat. How big of a role do the students play in the game and in getting the rest of the community excited about Griz hoops?

Wayne Tinkle: We truly want a loud, loyal, consistent fan base supporting us throughout the year. It’s great when we go recruiting and run into coaches that talk about playing here in front of a raucous crowd and how it affected their team. We need to get back to having an intimidating atmosphere where our opponents fear the friendly confines. I really believe that this starts with our students. They are the straw that stirs the drink. Hopefully we can get things going and make it fun for the students to get involved.

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Tonight, the University of Montana basketball team will hold its first practice. The amount of talent coming in is overwhelming and the expectation amongst many fans is that this team will be hosting the Big Sky Tournament come March.

From the Missoulian:

“This year there's a lot more feeling of calm,” said Tinkle, who guided the Griz to a record of 17-15 and a berth in the semifinals of the Big Sky Conference tournament in his first year. “It's not only that I have a year under my belt, it's that I know our staff is more cohesive and the group of guys we've got are at the head of why I have a pretty good feeling.”

“Our chemistry is just great,” Tinkle said. “They worked hard and we really pushed the kids in the fall. They really compete, but when they walk off the court it's pretty much arm-in-arm.”

That wasn't always the case last season.

“Last year we had some guys who were a little too worried about their station in life instead of the good of the team,” Tinkle said. “It hurt us for a while early on.”

“The first thing we're going to do is set the tone defensively, establish our philosophy right away,” Tinkle said.

The Griz did not have enough senior leadership going into last season so it's no surprise that last year's losses didn't overly affect the chemistry of this team. As far as this being a calmer situation, I think the players are starting to see Tinkle as the head coach instead of the assistant who took over by default. With the talented bigs coming in, Tinkle will have a great chance to stamp his mark on this program as he molds the young frontcourt players.

On the defense: this area needs the most improvement. I know last season started out with a similar tone but the defense never really developed. With Bryan Ellis and Stuart Mayes gone--both great perimeter defenders--it will be interesting to see who steps up.

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The first Griz basketball game I attended was in the fall of '05 against Stanford. Since then I've been obsessed. Like nerds and World of Warcraft obsessed. Everyone else, not so much. The game was unbelievable. It was like playing a basketball game inside a packed Metrodome. You know, like it was when Kirby played. Those who filled Dahlberg that night showed that Griz fans are some of the best in the country -- when they're motivated.

Since then, there hasn't been a game where the crowd -- and the student section especially -- has reached the same excitement level. Outside of a few select games,  the '05-'06 season was disappointing from an atmosphere perspective. The team played great but fans didn't come in earnest until the meaningless regular season finale against NAU. I didn't get it. After football season and the Stanford upset, I thought obsessive insane fans were the norm out here. That wasn't the case for hoops.

Turns out it wasn't always this way. Hoops used to be big, real big. Bigger than football. The students used to stand in the courtside seats, not sit in the baseline bleachers. The frenzied pack of undergrads was dubbed "The Zoo." Since then, the students were moved and "The Zoo" disappeared along with the overwhelming enthusiasm for the basketball program.

Well, The Zoo may be on it's way back. This comes from Griz basketball head coach Wayne Tinkle:

We are planning on putting them there for the CSU game, and IF there is a great showing we’ll entertain the idea of putting them there for the MSU game. We really need to make a push for the students to show up in droves in order to influence the administration. I believe the lack of student participation has severely declined since the late 80’s…due to multiple factors. I know that we coach’s are working hard to make it exciting now the fans need to buy in and stir up the frenzy!

It's tough not to look ahead to a time when the students are back where they belong. However, UM Athletic Director Jim O'Day points out some big issues that may prevent a permanent move.

We have many issues to consider first, such as hearing from those who pay higher prices to sit there, and what to do about the media tables … or more importantly, what to do about the signage for the corporate sponsors. Where can we put them? Also, we have to look at court space for adding additional media benches on the west side if such a decision is made… to make sure we have enough room for the teams. We are looking at all avenues --- and may only be able to do it for one game, if at all, this year, as an experiment.

Oh no, not this again, right? Just like all the roadblocks preventing a move to the FBS, there's financial stuff with this too. Well, don't fret too much, O'Day seems to be a bit more enthused about this idea.

As a former member of “The Zoo” while in college, I know how special that was… and if we do it and the students are challenged to fill the seats and create atmosphere, we’d have to look at a permanent situation if it made a difference. If we took such a gamble, I would only hope that the students would respond in force… to demonstrate interest for men’s basketball.

So it's all up to those it benefits the most. Let's do this students.

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On Friday, I wrote that Lloyd Phillips and Sean Watson were in as Griz recruits and Ceylon Elgin-Taylor still needed to get some paperwork figured out. Well, I was wrong.

Tinkle announced Friday that junior college transfers Sean Watson and Ceylon Elgin-Taylor would join the Griz for the 2007-08 season. They join prep recruits Derek Selvig of Glendive and Brian Qvale of Williston, N.D., in the 2007 recruiting class. Selvig and Qvale signed last November.

Tinkle said the Griz have one more scholarship to give and “we have a guy that we're trying to work all the paperwork out with.” Jucojunction.com reports that player is 5-10 point guard Lloyd Phillips of Allen County (Kan.) Community College.

Tinks on Watson:

“He handles the ball, he's athletic, can shoot it and score,” said Tinkle, who added that Southern Mississippi, Louisiana Tech, St. John's and Texas Tech were some of the other schools recruiting Watson. “When I saw him play I thought what a great defender. He keeps his man in front of him.”

Info on Elgin-Taylor:

Elgin-Taylor is a 6-1 point guard who averaged 13 points and 5.5 assists for Irvine (Calif.) Valley College last season. He was named first team all-conference.

“He can play both guard positions,” Tinkle said. “He's a quarterback who runs the team. He's a very, very tough-nosed defender, just a tough-minded point guard who runs your team and sets the tone defensively.”

It's looking good so far. Tinks says it best later in this article, "It looks like a talented group. The challenge will be getting them to gel." Just like last year, this year's team looks phenomenal on paper but it doesn't mean a thing if they don't fill their potential and gel as a team.