Griz enter year 10 of the DeCuire Era with championship aspirations

The Travis DeCuire era, one of the longest and most successful runs in Montana basketball history, enters its 10^th season next week as the Grizzlies tip off the 2023-24 season. There have been plenty of changes in the world since DeCuire first took over in 2014, the latest in a long line of former Griz greats turned head coaches.

One thing hasn't changed. Montana still expects to win, and win often. There are high expectations in Missoula for the upcoming season. The Grizzlies have had a winning record all three years since COVID shut down college basketball, and the world, but things haven't been the same since the conference title winning seasons of 2018 and 2019.

This year, with a returning cast of talented and exciting players to go along with a group of newcomers that should make an instant impact, DeCuire feels that things are starting to return to normal in Missoula.

"I think for me, COVID really impacted our program and its taken us a while to crawl out of that," DeCuire said. "I feel like we're headed in the right direction in terms of how we build our team the way we had prior and putting the players on the floor that I'm comfortable having represent me as a competitor."

It's a stretch to say that the previous seasons have been disappointing, but that just goes to show the level of expectations for Montana basketball. The Grizzlies are the fourth-winningest Big Sky team over the previous two years and have at least 17 wins in both, but it can so often be Big Sky title or bust for this program.

This year, those championship dreams appear within reach. Montana, picked second in the preseason Coaches' Poll, returns three starters and several more key contributors from last year's squad. The most notable returnee is Aanen Moody, a career 1,000-point scorer who added Preseason All-Big Sky to his already long resume back in October.

His play style brings excitement to every game as every trip down the court is a chance for him to go into Steph Curry-mode. It also leads to wins, as was evidenced by Montana's 7-1 finish to the regular season a year ago when the team felt fully his.

It's a style that will hopefully put fans in seats during the season. DeCuire also believes the team has a few more of those types of players on the roster.

"(Moody) is unique. His energy, the way he enjoys competing, has turned him into a fan favorite," DeCuire said. "It certainly helps that he's a good shooter and does that from distance. I think that the way he goes out and plays the game and the way his teammates surround him makes him fun to watch. I think that energy is positive for us, and I think there are some other new faces that will do the same."

Brandon Whitney also returns with 85 career starts as a Grizzly. It shouldn't take the senior long to reach 1,000 career points as he begins the season with 924. He's averaged at least 10 points per game all three seasons in Missoula, and does it all while being an excellent defensive presence on the other end of the floor.

Dischon Thomas comes back after averaging 11.2 points and 4.5 rebounds per game in his first season in Missoula. The offensive threat can spread the floor, knocking down 37 percent of his threes and 85 percent of his free throws last year. He was one of just 18 forwards in the country to score at least 300 points with those shooting marks.

Josh Vazquez, currently UM's all-time leader in free throw percentage, returns for his fifth season as a Grizzly and should shatter Bobby Moorehead and Mack Anderson's school record of 134 career games played. He enters the season with 121.

Laolu Oke, a high-energy defensive stopper off the bench last season, has looked good during fall practices and will be a captain in 2023-24. He's expected to take on a larger role after averaging 9.1 minutes last season. His per 40-minute numbers were remarkable, averaging 10.2 rebounds in that time.

Add in sophomore Jaxon Nap, who averaged 8.5 minutes across 27 games last year, and there is a good rotation of players that have the experience needed to win at this level. The key for DeCuire is that a group of newcomers provides a depth that they didn't have a year ago.

Montana had several players miss significant stretches of the season due to injury or other life events. If one of the main rotation players had an off-night, the Grizzlies were going to have a difficult time winning.

"Between injuries and just having guys out, it really affected our chemistry as a team," DeCuire said. "It wasn't until February that we figured out who we were and what our strengths were on both sides of the ball. We just never really had everyone available for long stretches."

They've added that depth with a good crew of transfers and freshmen. Giordan Williams arrives from Santa Clara back in full health with 78 career games played. Blake Jones becomes the latest Australian Grizzly and played 51 games for the A-10's George Mason. Te'Jon Sawyer returns to D-1 basketball after starting his career at Cal Baptist.

There is also the chance for a few freshmen, both true and redshirt, to crack the rotation. It creates a good problem for DeCuire.

"It's always difficult because roles need to be defined. I think that as you move on to a new opportunity, the picture you paint for yourself is always success," DeCuire said. "Individually, and collectively. I think all these guys want to win. I think what we're trying to figure out right now is how each of us individually impact winning. It's going to take some time to define those roles and the best way to do it is to compete."

Montana will compete against an exciting collection of teams on the 2023-24 season. There will be plenty of chances to see them at home in November with three home games, including a matchup with North Dakota State at the Basketball Travelers Mike Montgomery Classic. There are also notable away trips in the opening month. The Griz will take on No. 6 Houston on the road and play against an Oregon team receiving votes, plus a showdown in Reno with Nevada.

December opens at home with a Mountain West opponent, plus two more chances to catch the Grizzlies early. The tough test will come at the end of December, when Montana will play five straight road games and be gone from home for nearly a full month. It's the most consecutive true road games for Montana since 2012-13.

The Grizzlies will hope to establish an identity and a winning formula before beginning conference play in late December. DeCuire hopes that not only the quantity of quality players, but also the versatility of those players will help to fill any gaps.

"There is some depth in versatility with guys that can play more than one position and do more than one thing," DeCuire said. "I'm excited about the numbers that we have but I look forward to guys helping the staff define what that looks like sooner than later."

"I think the cream is rising to the top on the offensive side of the ball. I think there are some guys that are proving they can impact the game on that side of the ball, but what we haven't done yet is identify who we are on the defensive side of the ball. I think there are some guys that need to shift their mindset to that side if they want to have a major impact on what this season looks like for us."

Defense and depth will be two keys for DeCuire and the Grizzlies this year. They want to be able to stop opponents, but also need to be able to play within the system and accept their roles. They should be in contention for the league title if they are able to do those things.

For DeCuire, what will it take for Montana to be cutting down the nets in Boise come March?

"We have to be a top two defensive team in the league," DeCuire said. "I think there are a lot of teams that have been explosive offensively and scored a lot of points that didn't win championships. The teams that have balance were the teams that won.

"And also accepting roles and who we are as players. If we do that, we will be very hard to beat because of our depth," DeCuire finished. "Anyone can have a big game on any night, and what defines a championship team is one that is OK with watching others have success when it's not our night. If we can do that, we will be fine."

THE DECUIRE FILE
Head coach Travis DeCuire enters his 10^th season at the University of Montana with a 177-112 overall record, and a 113-52 record in Big Sky play. He's one of the winningest coaches in university and league history.

DeCuire's teams have been .500 or better in all nine seasons and he's had four 20-win years. In a lineage of great coaches, he shares to program lead in 20-win seasons with Mike Montgomery, Blaine Taylor, and Wayne Tinkle.

He begins 2023-24 third in Big Sky history with 113 league wins, trailing only Weber State's Randy Rahe (198) and Montana State's Mick Durham (123). He's also sixth in league history in overall wins with a chance to move into the top five this year.

1. Randy Rahe, Weber State (316)
2. Mick Durham, Montana State (246)
3. Bobby Dye, Boise State (214)
4. Neil McCarthy, Weber State (205)
5. Mike Adras, Northern Arizona (187)
6. Travis DeCuire, Montana (177)

He is just the third coach in Grizzly history to coach for 10 seasons, joining all-time wins leader George "Jiggs" Dahlberg (16 season) and J.W. Stewart (10 seasons).

The 177 wins by Montana over the previous nine seasons are the 77^th most in the NCAA during that stretch, tied with notable programs Seton Hall and Texas A&M and ahead of legendary schools like Indiana (176) and Florida (175).

MORE MOODY
Aanen Moody returns in 2023-24 for his 7^th season of collegiate basketball, and he does so with some very high goals and expectations. Moody led Montana with 16.1 points per game last year, leading the second half comeback and earning both Second Team All-Big Sky honors and a spot on the All-Tournament Team.

The Big Sky Conference coaches and media named him to the Preseason All-Conference Team in October.

He scored his 1,000^th career point last season and enters this year with 1,116 points. He's an elite shooter, making 39.8 percent of his 600 career attempts. He's one of just four players in the entire NCAA to enter the season with that many career attempts and at least a 39 percent make rate.

His playmaking and showmanship delighted Montana fans in his first season, and you can expect plenty more "MOOOOOODY" chants to ring throughout Dahlberg Arena this season.

WHITNEY 1K WATCH
Senior guard Brandon Whitney has averaged at least 10.0 points per game in all three seasons at Montana. He's on the verge of becoming the 36^th player in program history to reach 1,000 points, entering the season just 76 points away.

He would be the 7^th player in Montana's 1,000-point club coached by Travis DeCuire. Aanen Moody has also reached 1,000 points, but scored 682 of those for other schools.

DOWNTOWN DT
Dischon Thomas proved a valuable scorer and floor spacer last season with his three-point shooting ability. Thomas averaged 11.2 points per game and shot 37.0 percent from deep with 50 total makes. His scoring should be key to Montana's success again this year.

After spending his first three seasons at Colorado State, Thomas is on pace to reach 1,000 career points during the season. He enters with 778 career points and scored 347 total last season in an expanded role with Montana.

PRESEASON POLLS
The Grizzlies were picked to finish 2^nd/3^rd in the Big Sky Preseason Polls. The Coaches' Poll slotted Montana in at No. 2 trailing only Weber State. The Wildcats received the maximum nine first-place votes. Montana received Weber State's vote as coaches are not allowed to select their own team.

In the Media Poll, Montana again trailed Weber State and fell in behind defending regular-season champ Eastern Washington. The Wildcats return Preseason MVP Dillon Jones, while the Eagles lost last year's league MVP Steele Venters to Gonzaga over the offseason.

A LOOK AT THE NON-CONFERENCE
Montana will face a difficult non-conference schedule this season. They have 13 total games with 10 D-1 opponents and three lower division opponents. Including only D-1 opposition, Montana play seven games against teams with winning records in 2022-23.

Houston ended last season No. 1 in the NET Rankings and begin the year No. 6 in the Preseason Coaches' Poll.

Oregon and Nevada were both 20-win teams a year ago that finished inside the top 50 in the NET Rankings. They also take on San Jose State, a 20-14 squad last season that finished in the top 100, twice.

The Grizzlies will try to generate some success on the road, a task that has been challenging in previous years. They often play up against Power 5 opponents on the road, and will do so again this year. Since DeCuire took over, Montana is 6-41 in away non-conference games and have never won multiple road non-conference games in the same season.

GRIZ NOTES

Montana went 10-7 in Big Sky play last season. It's the 14^th time in the previous 15 seasons that the Griz have won at least 10 conference games.
The Grizzlies have broken the school record for free throw percentage in three straight seasons. Montana shot 78.8 percent last season. It broke the previous record of 78.5 percent in 2021-22, which broke the prior year's record of 78.2 percent. Montana ranked 6^th in the NCAA last year.
Montana returns 58.1 percent of its starts, 61.3 percent of its minutes and 69.2 percent of its points from last seasons team. They lose over half their rebounding, but an expanded role for Laolu Oke plus newcomers Blake Jones and Te'Jon Sawyer should help replace those stats.
A traditional power in the Big Sky Conference, Montana has 12 Big Sky regular season titles and 11 tournament titles. They won both in 2019, marking the most recent championship for Griz Hoops.
Travis DeCuire is .500 or better against every team in the Big Sky Conference entering the 2023-24 season.
New NCAA rules allowed DeCuire to expand his coaching staff for the upcoming season. Associate head coach Chris Cobb and assistant Jay Flores return in their roles. Anderson Clarke and DJ Broome are back with the program but both have been elevated to assistant coaching roles. Reuben Williams is in his first season at Montana as an assistant.

University of Montana Athletics

Griz enter year 10 of the DeCuire Era with championship aspirations

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Players Mentioned

Mack Anderson

Blake Jones

Aanen Moody

Jaxon Nap

Laolu Oke

Te'Jon Sawyer

Dischon Thomas

Josh Vazquez

Brandon Whitney

Giordan Williams

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