Grizzly Sports Hall of Fame
2005-06 Grizzly Basketball Team
- Induction:
- 2025
- Class:
- 2006
The 2005-2006 Montana men's basketball team was just the second in school history, and the first Grizzly program in the field of 64 era to win a game at the NCAA Tournament. At the time of their inductioni they remained the last team in Big Sky Conference history to win a game in the NCAA Tournament and advance to the round of 32 and are one of just three teams in Big Sky Conference history to win a game in the NCAA Tournament in the last 50 years.
Coached by Larry Krystkowiak, the 2005-06 Griz won their second-straight Big Sky tournament championship and entered the NCAA tourney as the 12 seed overall. They beat the No. 5 seed (and No. 20 ranked) Nevada Wolfpack 87-79 in Salt Lake City in the first round of the Minneapolis Regional. Nevada was led by future 2nd round NBA Draft pick Nick Fazekas. The win was named one of the top 50 moments in Big Sky history.
UM then lost 69-56 in round of 32 to ACC Champion, No. 4 seed and No. 7-ranked Boston College.
The '05-'06 Griz featured four 1,000-point scorers in Kevin Criswell, Andrew Strait, Jordan Hasquet, and Matt Martin. The team also produced five professional players in Strait, Martin, Hasquet, Matt Dlouhy, and Virgil Matthews. Forward Mike Chavez was the only Native American on any NCAA roster to play in March Madness in 2006.
That Grizzly team also beat eventual NCAA tourney participant Oral Roberts 88-74 in an ESPN "Bracket Busters" regular season game in Missoula. They finished the year 24-7 overall and 10-4 in Big Sky play, finishing 2nd in the league standings. They averaged 79 points per game, the 16th-most in NCAA basketball that season. Their field goal percentage of .492 was the fifth best in the NCAA and their 18.2 assists per game average was the fourth-most in the NCAA.
Krystkowiak went on to coach in the NBA and University of Utah. He was inducted into the Big Sky Conference Hall of Fame in 2023 and the Grizzly Sports Hall of Fame in 1993. He's the only Montana men's player to have his jersey retired by the school. In 2006, Krystkowiak was assisted by fellow Grizzly Sports Hall of Famer and current Oregon State head coach Wayne Tinkle. Also on staff were current Washington associate head coach Andy Hill and former Montana State head coach Brad Huse.
The 2005-2006 Griz celebrated the team's 20th Anniversary in 2025-26.
Quoting Coach Krystkowiak: "When I think about this team, I just have an awful lot of pride. Griz pride is something we always talked about, trying to do things the Griz way was instilled in me through Coach Montgomery and Coach (Stew) Morill. One of the coolest parts about it is that we were never able to go to an NCAA Tournament when I played there, but to have that opportunity as a coach and to get a win is just remarkable.
"We had a pretty good nucleus of guys from the year before who got a taste of the tournament and a pretty heavy dose of Montana kids too. The uniqueness of that made it special, but it's all-encompassing. It's touches so many people, so many different players and teams, but there is still that sense of pride for the program and trying to do things the Grizzly way."
Coached by Larry Krystkowiak, the 2005-06 Griz won their second-straight Big Sky tournament championship and entered the NCAA tourney as the 12 seed overall. They beat the No. 5 seed (and No. 20 ranked) Nevada Wolfpack 87-79 in Salt Lake City in the first round of the Minneapolis Regional. Nevada was led by future 2nd round NBA Draft pick Nick Fazekas. The win was named one of the top 50 moments in Big Sky history.
UM then lost 69-56 in round of 32 to ACC Champion, No. 4 seed and No. 7-ranked Boston College.
The '05-'06 Griz featured four 1,000-point scorers in Kevin Criswell, Andrew Strait, Jordan Hasquet, and Matt Martin. The team also produced five professional players in Strait, Martin, Hasquet, Matt Dlouhy, and Virgil Matthews. Forward Mike Chavez was the only Native American on any NCAA roster to play in March Madness in 2006.
That Grizzly team also beat eventual NCAA tourney participant Oral Roberts 88-74 in an ESPN "Bracket Busters" regular season game in Missoula. They finished the year 24-7 overall and 10-4 in Big Sky play, finishing 2nd in the league standings. They averaged 79 points per game, the 16th-most in NCAA basketball that season. Their field goal percentage of .492 was the fifth best in the NCAA and their 18.2 assists per game average was the fourth-most in the NCAA.
Krystkowiak went on to coach in the NBA and University of Utah. He was inducted into the Big Sky Conference Hall of Fame in 2023 and the Grizzly Sports Hall of Fame in 1993. He's the only Montana men's player to have his jersey retired by the school. In 2006, Krystkowiak was assisted by fellow Grizzly Sports Hall of Famer and current Oregon State head coach Wayne Tinkle. Also on staff were current Washington associate head coach Andy Hill and former Montana State head coach Brad Huse.
The 2005-2006 Griz celebrated the team's 20th Anniversary in 2025-26.
Quoting Coach Krystkowiak: "When I think about this team, I just have an awful lot of pride. Griz pride is something we always talked about, trying to do things the Griz way was instilled in me through Coach Montgomery and Coach (Stew) Morill. One of the coolest parts about it is that we were never able to go to an NCAA Tournament when I played there, but to have that opportunity as a coach and to get a win is just remarkable.
"We had a pretty good nucleus of guys from the year before who got a taste of the tournament and a pretty heavy dose of Montana kids too. The uniqueness of that made it special, but it's all-encompassing. It's touches so many people, so many different players and teams, but there is still that sense of pride for the program and trying to do things the Grizzly way."
Thursday, June 11
Thursday, June 04
Friday, May 01
Friday, May 01
