The Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournament is the conference championship tournament in men's basketball for the Big Sky Conference. The event has been held annually since 1976,[1] the conference's thirteenth year.
The tournament winner earns a berth in the NCAA Division I tournament.
Format and host sites
For the Big Sky's first twelve seasons, it did not have a conference tournament. Starting with its fifth season of 1967–68, the regular season champion received a berth in the West regional of the NCAA tournament. In 1974,[2] an unscheduled tiebreaker playoff was held; the two had identical records (conference & overall) and each had won at home to split the season series; visiting Idaho State prevailed at Montana in the Tuesday night playoff.[3][4]
For the tournament's first eight editions (1976–1983), only the top four teams (of eight) in the conference standings participated. The tournament expanded to eight teams in 1984,[1] then scaled back to six in 1989. Before 2016, when the tournament moved to a predetermined neutral site, it was often hosted by the regular season champion, but not always. If two or more teams tied for the regular season title, all were declared co-champions, but hosting rights were determined by a tiebreaker procedure. The first tournament in which the regular season champion did not host was in 1985.
Since the 2016 tournament, all full conference members (currently 10) have participated (barring NCAA sanctions or self-imposed postseason bans, the latter of which kept Northern Colorado out of the 2017 tournament), and the tournament is held at a predetermined site. The first such site to host was the Reno Events Center in Reno, Nevada, which hosted from 2016 to 2018.
On September 18, 2017, the Big Sky announced that its men's and women's tournaments would relocate in 2019 to Boise, Idaho; the initial contract runs for three years at CenturyLink Arena, through 2021.
History of the tournament finals
| Year | Champion | Score | Runner-up | Tournament MVP | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Boise State | 77–70OT | Weber State | Jimmie Watts, Weber State | Wildcat Gym (Ogden, Utah) |
| 1977 | Idaho State | 61–55 | Weber State | Ed Thompson, Idaho State | ISU Minidome (Pocatello, Idaho) |
| 1978 | Weber State | 62–55 | Montana | Bruce Collins, Weber State | Adams Field House (Missoula, Montana) |
| 1979 | Weber State | 92–70 | Northern Arizona | Dee Events Center (Ogden, Utah) | |
| 1980 | Weber State | 50–42 | Montana | ||
| 1981 | Idaho | 70–64 | Montana | Ken Owens, Idaho | Kibbie Dome (Moscow, Idaho) |
| 1982 | Idaho | 85–80 | Nevada | ||
| 1983 | Weber State | 87–78 | Nevada | Ken Green, Nevada | Centennial Coliseum (Reno, Nevada) |
| 1984 | Nevada | 71–69 | Montana | Curtis High, Nevada | Dee Events Center (Ogden, Utah) |
| 1985 | Nevada | 79–63 | Idaho State | Dwayne Randall, Nevada | BSU Pavilion (Boise, Idaho) |
| 1986 | Montana State | 82–77 | Montana | Tony Hampton, Montana State | Lawlor Events Center (Reno, Nevada) |
| 1987 | Idaho State | 92–81 | Nevada | Jim Rhode, Idaho State | Walkup Skydome (Flagstaff, Arizona) |
| 1988 | Boise State | 63–61 | Montana State | Chris Childs, Boise State | Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (Bozeman, Montana) |
| 1989 | Idaho | 59–52 | Boise State | Riley Smith, Idaho | BSU Pavilion (Boise, Idaho) |
| 1990 | Idaho | 65–62 | Eastern Washington | ||
| 1991 | Montana | 76–68 | Idaho | Kevin Kearney, Montana | Dahlberg Arena (Missoula, Montana) |
| 1992 | Montana | 73–68 | Nevada | Delvon Anderson, Montana | |
| 1993 | Boise State | 80–68 | Idaho | Tanoka Beard, Boise State | Kibbie Dome (Moscow, Idaho) |
| 1994 | Boise State | 85–81 | Idaho State | Shambric Williams, Boise State | BSU Pavilion (Boise, Idaho) |
| 1995 | Weber State | 84–62 | Montana | Ruben Nembhard, Weber State | Dee Events Center (Ogden, Utah) |
| 1996 | Montana State | 81–70 | Weber State | Danny Sprinkle, Montana State | Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (Bozeman, Montana) |
| 1997 | Montana | 82–79 | Cal State Northridge | Trenton Cross, Cal State Northridge | Walkup Skydome (Flagstaff, Arizona) |
| 1998 | Northern Arizona | 77–50 | Montana State | Dan McClintock, Northern Arizona | |
| 1999 | Weber State | 82–75 | Northern Arizona | Eddie Gill, Weber State | Dee Events Center (Ogden, Utah) |
| 2000 | Northern Arizona | 85–81OT | Cal State Northridge | Ross Land, Northern Arizona | Dahlberg Arena (Missoula, Montana) |
| 2001 | Cal State Northridge | 73–58 | Eastern Washington | Brian Heinle, Cal State Northridge | Matadome (Northridge, California) |
| 2002 | Montana | 70–66 | Eastern Washington | Dan Trammel, Montana | Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (Bozeman, Montana) |
| 2003 | Weber State | 60–57 | Eastern Washington | Jermaine Boyette, Weber State | Dee Events Center (Ogden, Utah) |
| 2004 | Eastern Washington | 71–59 | Northern Arizona | Brendon Merritt, Eastern Washington | Reese Court (Cheney, Washington) |
| 2005 | Montana | 63–61 | Weber State | Kamarr Davis, Montana | Memorial Coliseum (Portland, Oregon) |
| 2006 | Montana | 73–60 | Northern Arizona | Virgil Matthews, Montana | Walkup Skydome (Flagstaff, Arizona) |
| 2007 | Weber State | 88–80 | Northern Arizona | David Patten, Weber State | Dee Events Center (Ogden, Utah) |
| 2008 | Portland State | 67–51 | Northern Arizona | Deonte Huff, Portland State | Rose Garden Arena (Portland, Oregon) |
| 2009 | Portland State | 79–77 | Montana State | Jeremiah Dominguez, Portland State | Dee Events Center (Ogden, Utah) |
| 2010 | Montana | 66–65 | Weber State | Anthony Johnson, Montana | |
| 2011 | Northern Colorado* (vacated)[5] | 65–60 | Montana | Devon Beitzel, Northern Colorado | Butler-Hancock Sports Pavilion (Greeley, Colorado) |
| 2012 | Montana | 85–66 | Weber State | Kareem Jamar, Montana | Dahlberg Arena (Missoula, Montana) |
| 2013 | Montana | 67–64 | Weber State | ||
| 2014 | Weber State | 88–67 | North Dakota | Davion Berry, Weber State | Dee Events Center (Ogden, Utah) |
| 2015 | Eastern Washington | 69–65 | Montana | Tyler Harvey, Eastern Washington | Dahlberg Arena (Missoula, Montana) |
| 2016 | Weber State | 62–59 | Montana | Jeremy Senglin, Weber State | Reno Events Center (Reno, Nevada) |
| 2017 | North Dakota | 93–89OT | Weber State | Quinton Hooker, North Dakota | |
| 2018 | Montana | 82–65 | Eastern Washington | Michael Oguine, Montana | |
| 2019 | Montana | 68–62 | Eastern Washington | Ahmaad Rorie, Montana | CenturyLink Arena (Boise, Idaho) |
| 2020 | Canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic | ||||
| 2021 | Eastern Washington | 65–55 | Montana State | Tanner Groves, Eastern Washington | Idaho Central Arena (Boise, Idaho) |
| 2022 | Montana State | 87–66 | Northern Colorado | Xavier Bishop, Montana State | |
| 2023 | Montana State | 87–66 | Northern Arizona | Raequan Battle, Montana State | |
| 2024 | Montana State | 85–70 | Montana | Robert Ford III, Montana State | |
Finals performance by school
| School | Championships | Appearances | Championship Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montana | 11 | 21 | 1991, 1992, 1997, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2018, 2019 |
| Weber State | 10 | 18 | 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2014, 2016 |
| Montana State | 5 | 9 | 1986, 1996, 2022, 2023, 2024 |
| Boise State | 4 | 5 | 1976, 1988, 1993, 1994 |
| Idaho | 4 | 6 | 1981, 1982, 1989, 1990 |
| Eastern Washington | 3 | 9 | 2004, 2015, 2021 |
| Nevada | 2 | 6 | 1984, 1985 |
| Idaho State | 2 | 4 | 1977, 1987 |
| Northern Arizona | 2 | 9 | 1998, 2000 |
| Portland State | 2 | 2 | 2008, 2009 |
| Cal State Northridge | 1 | 3 | 2001 |
| North Dakota | 1 | 2 | 2017 |
| Northern Colorado[5] | 0 | 1 | |
| Sacramento State | 0 | 0 | |
| Southern Utah | 0 | 0 |
- Current members of the Big Sky Conference are highlighted in yellow.
- Boise State was a member for 26 years (1970–96), Nevada for 13 years (1979–92), Southern Utah for 10 years (2012-2022).
- Charter member Idaho was out of the conference for 18 years (1996–2014).
Broadcasters
Television
Radio
| Year | Network | Play-by-play | Analyst |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Westwood One | J.B. Long | Nick Bahe |
| 2023 | Jason Benetti | ||
| 2021 | J.B. Long | Dan Dickau | |
| 2019 | Ted Emrich | ||
| 2018 | |||
| 2017 | Kevin Lee | ||
| 2013 | Dial Global Sports | Wayne Larrivee | Perry Clark |
| 2012[9] | Ted Robinson | Steve Lappas | |
| 2011 | Westwood One |
See also
References
- ^ a b "Big Sky expands basketball tourney". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. December 1, 1983. p. 19.
- ^ "College cage standings". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). March 4, 1974. p. 15.
- ^ "ISU holds off Grizzlies". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. March 6, 1974. p. 13.
- ^ "Growing rookie key for Bengals". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. March 6, 1974. p. 17.
- ^ a b "NCAA forces Northern Colorado to vacate 2011 Big Sky title, hits ex-coach hard". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2018-01-04.
- ^ "Championship Week: Coverage of a Record 137 Men's Games Begins March 1 | ESPN MediaZone". Archived from the original on 2012-03-01. Retrieved 2012-02-29.
- ^ "Championship Week Presented by DICK'S Sporting Goods Schedule | ESPN MediaZone". Archived from the original on 2011-07-10.
- ^ "Championship Week Begins Thursday, March 4 | ESPN MediaZone". Archived from the original on 2010-04-12. Retrieved 2011-03-16.
- ^ "Big Sky Championship Highlights: Montana 85 – Weber State 66 | Westwood One SportsWestwood One Sports". Archived from the original on 2016-03-26. Retrieved 2019-08-15.
External links
| Full members (all sports) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Football-only members | ||
| Tournaments | ||
| Former members | ||
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