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MEDIA DAY PRESEASON COACHES POLL:
- Montana State
- Northern Colorado
- Montana
- Weber State
- Eastern Washington
- Sacramento State
- Northern Arizona
- Portland State (tied 7th)
- Idaho
- Idaho State
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON MEDIA POLL:
- Montana State
- Northern Colorado
- Montana
- Weber State
- Eastern Washington
- Sacramento State
- Portland State
- Northern Arizona
- Idaho
- Idaho State
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-BIG SKY TEAM:
-Jubrile Belo – Montana State (preseason MVP)
-Daylen Kountz – Northern Colorado
-Dillon Jones – Weber State
-Steele Venters – Eastern Washington
-Josh Bannan – Montana
-Jalen Cone – Northern Arizona
COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
-After years of being mostly blah, Montana State had a breakout year last year where they won 27 total games, finished 1st in the Big Sky, won the Big Sky Tournament, and advanced to the NCAAs. Just two starters are back, but one of them is Jubrile Belo, so if some of the other guys can step up around him we may once again see the Bobcats at the top of the standings.
-Northern Colorado also won 20+ games last year and also has two of their top players returning. They should have a very solid backcourt. If they can get some guys to step up underneath they have a very good shot at winning the league.
-For what seemed to be decades Montana was always a conference frontrunner, but for the last three seasons they have been, at best, average. They do have four starters returning, and that experience should help them, but they were not exactly strong in the latter half of conference play last year. They do have Josh Bannan, who is one of the better players in the league, so the potential to finish at or near the top of the standings seems to be there if they can come together.
-Weber State, like Montana, is another program that we frequently saw at the top of the Big Sky, but for the last three or four seasons has just not been there. They are in a bit of a reboot mode with just one starter back from last year. They did win 21 total games last season, which ain’t bad, but with a new head coach (Eric Duft) and a new roster we just have more questions than answers at the moment.
-Eastern Washington may be a bit of a dark horse this year. They had what was kind of a blah season a year ago, but they finished by winning 7 of 9 before losing early in the conference tournament, and with three of their top players back, including Steele Venters who is one of the better players in the league, this team could sneak up on some people this year.
-It has been a very long time since Sacramento State has been good, and while they do have two of their top players back it is still a little unusual to see them picked as high as 6th. But, maybe they can take a step forward this year and finish closer to the top of the league than to the bottom of it.
-Northern Arizona has all five starters back, and that experience should help them, but it is also kind of hard to be THAT excited about it because they were just 9-23 overall last year and 5-15 in Big Sky play. They were also absolutely pitiful down the stretch.
-Portland State is in rebuilding mode. Just one starter is back from a year ago, and second year head coach Jase Coburn has his work cut out for him. It will be interesting to see how the new recruits come together this year.
– Idaho and Idaho State….let’s just say it is a rather evenly-matched in-state rivalry!!