Tuesday, March 12
Boise, Idaho
9 PM
Montana
23-10,12-6Big Sky
72
vs
58
No. 8 Idaho State
14-20,7-11Big Sky
1
2
F
Idaho St.
21
37
58
Montana
33
39
72
Photo by: Tommy Martino/University of Montana
DeCuire gets 200th win, Griz return to title game for first time since 2019
3/13/2024 12:51:00 AM | Men's Basketball
It's a place that Montana has been many times before. 21 times, in fact, a Big Sky Conference record. In their 30th all-time appearance in the Big Sky semifinals, Montana improved to 21-9 and booked yet another trip to the Big Sky Championship game with a 72-58 win over Idaho State on Tuesday night.
The final score sufficiently tells the story of how Montana dominated the game, leading big early and never trailing, but it doesn't tell the full story of what this one meant. It meant a return to the title game, a place Montana had become accustomed to with four trips in the first five years of the DeCuire era, but also a game that they came up short of the previous four years.
It also meant the 200th career win for a coach whose legacy has been cemented for years, but he keeps adding to it anyway. Travis DeCuire is now 200-122 in 10 seasons at Montana. He's reached the Big Sky title game five times in nine tournament appearances. And he and the Grizzlies will aim for a third trip to the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday night.
"For me, I say it all the time. Good players. Good staff. A lot of people putting a lot of time and energy into the success of this program," DeCuire said. "We've got a lot of donors that support us win, lose, or draw and they are behind us to do the things that we think are necessary to win. It's a group effort, it's a team effort, it's a community effort, I'm just a part of the process."
The win also meant that Montana will face off against bitter rival Montana State in the championship game for the first time since 1986. It will also be the first postseason meeting between the two schools since 2009.
The Grizzlies (23-10) have one of the most experienced starting lineups in the entire country and they leaned on it for the win. The starting lineup combined for 68 of Montana's 72 points as all five starters had at least eight points.
Dischon Thomas led the way with 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Brandon Whitney had 17 points on a near-perfect night from the field, and Aanen Moody followed up last night's 27-point effort with 12 points but a team-high five assists.
Laolu Oke had a near double-double with 10 points and eight rebounds, while Josh Vazquez hit a pair of big threes and scored eight points. He also matched a Big Sky Conference record by appearing in his 152nd career game.
"It's the balance. These guys like one another. Our chemistry is incredible," DeCuire said. "For Moody to come off a 27-point night and allow (Thomas) to take the front seat, and then Whitney brought us home in the second half, it's just everyone has had different moments on different nights. (Oke) was probably the MVP tonight just because of what he did defensively. It's two consecutive games of 40 percent or lower, and that's why we're playing for a championship."
Montana improved to 22-3 when scoring at least 70 points, but it was the defense that really set the tone of the game. Idaho State was held to just 40 percent shooting on the night and under that in the first half. The Bengals scored just 21 points in the opening period, the fewest allowed by Montana in any half this season.
First Team All-Big Sky selection Brayden Parker was held to just six points on 25 percent shooting while star guard Maleek Arrington was limited to seven points on 3-of-13 shooting. The Grizzlies held Idaho State to just 58 points. It's the fifth time this season they have held their opponent under 60 points.
"Everyone assumed their assignments," DeCuire said of the defensive performance. "I thought Whitney was incredible on Arrington, keeping him out of the paint. Everyone was just really locked in at walkthroughs. As we went through it, bodies were where they needed to be. Coaches didn't have to say much about the coverage because they just knew them."
Thomas had a season-low two points on Monday night, but came out of the gates red-hot against the Bengals. He scored 11 of the first 15 Grizzly points as Montana jumped out to a big lead in the early going.
They got it to double figures at 17-7 after making seven of their first 10 shots in the game, and were able to absorb an 8-0 ISU run and respond back with 10 straight points of their own. Oke threw down a vicious two-handed jam and Whitney ended a perfect shooting half with a jumper that made it 33-21 at the break.
Montana opened the second half with three straight makes on the offensive end, including a couple of long pull-up jumpers from Whitney, to build the lead up to 39-27. The Bengals had been working to take away Moody all game, but he got loose for a stretch in the second half, scoring eight points as part of an 11-1 Grizzly run that took the lead all the way up to 20 at 54-34.
But just when it felt like Montana was pulling away, Idaho State answered. Miguel Tomley scored eight straight points as part of an 11-0 run that got it back into single digits at 54-45. The Grizzlies had given up just two threes on the first 44 offensive possessions for Idaho State, but Tomley was able to hit on contested shots from the arc on back-to-back possessions to cut into the lead.
Montana didn't panic. Oke scored to get it back into double figures and then Whitney got to the free throw line for a couple. Thomas had been quiet since his hot start, but hit a three just before the final media timeout that got the Griz lead back up to 61-49.
The defense then put the locks back on and held ISU to just one field goal over a three minute stretch to put the game away. They led by as many as 17 points in the final 90 seconds and coasted to a 72-58 win. The Grizzlies have still not trailed in Boise, leading for 39:41 on Tuesday after leading for over 36 minutes against Portland State.
"We settled in. We're still up nine, and we just need to do what we did to build that 20-point lead again," DeCuire said. "We were better, the defense locked in and our offense never really picked up. But defensively we got consecutive stops, and that won the game."
Montana shot 55 percent in the game, making more than half their shots for the fourth straight game. They also shot 40 percent from three-point range with eight makes, and had 14 assists to just 10 turnovers.
The complete team performance sealed a season sweep of the Bengals and punched Montana's ticket back to the Big Sky Championship game. They had come up empty in their last two trips to the semifinals.
Montana now heads to the final game of the tournament for a Big Sky record 21st time. DeCuire is 2-2 in Championship games, playing in four out of five from 2015-19. After losing by a combined seven points in his first two appearances, his Grizzlies went back-to-back in 2018 and 2019.
In 2020, the Grizzlies had momentum on their side heading into the conference tournament but didn't get to play a game before the COVID-19 lockdown led to the tournament being canceled. Since then, DeCuire and his staff have been working on returning to the heights that the program reached in his first five years.
The job's not done yet, but Tuesday night was a big step in the right direction.
"Culture. I said it once behind closed doors, but I'll say it now. COVID killed our culture," DeCuire said. "You recruit young men that you don't know, you don't meet, you don't break bread with, you don't shake hands with, and so you don't have a feel for personality until you get in the trenches. We just didn't have the right pieces to go to battle or handle adversity, to fight through tough times together. We have that right now, and it's why we're back where we're at."
It will be a Griz-Cat game for the ultimate prize, a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Montana swept the season series against the Bobcats, winning by 10 in Bozeman and 19 in Missoula. DeCuire is 14-4 as a coach in the rivalry game.
There will be a bit more to it this time around as he coaches not only for a trip to the Big Dance, but he also does it against first-year Bobcat Coach Matt Logie. The two go back all the way to DeCuire's high school days.
"In all honestly, to have Matt Logie on the other end of this deal, one of us is going and I know the rivalry is the rivalry, but life is life," DeCuire said. "You've got someone you've spent a lot of time with and you've learned to love and compete against, so I wouldn't have it any other way. The Griz, we just have to defend and do what we've been doing the past couple games and we will be fine."
The final score sufficiently tells the story of how Montana dominated the game, leading big early and never trailing, but it doesn't tell the full story of what this one meant. It meant a return to the title game, a place Montana had become accustomed to with four trips in the first five years of the DeCuire era, but also a game that they came up short of the previous four years.
It also meant the 200th career win for a coach whose legacy has been cemented for years, but he keeps adding to it anyway. Travis DeCuire is now 200-122 in 10 seasons at Montana. He's reached the Big Sky title game five times in nine tournament appearances. And he and the Grizzlies will aim for a third trip to the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday night.
"For me, I say it all the time. Good players. Good staff. A lot of people putting a lot of time and energy into the success of this program," DeCuire said. "We've got a lot of donors that support us win, lose, or draw and they are behind us to do the things that we think are necessary to win. It's a group effort, it's a team effort, it's a community effort, I'm just a part of the process."
A Montana legend. A @BigSkyConf legend. @CoachDeCuire is headed to his fifth title game after career win No. 2⃣0⃣0⃣#BANDTOGETHER x #GoGriz pic.twitter.com/E4S0HTT7PI
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) March 13, 2024
The win also meant that Montana will face off against bitter rival Montana State in the championship game for the first time since 1986. It will also be the first postseason meeting between the two schools since 2009.
The Grizzlies (23-10) have one of the most experienced starting lineups in the entire country and they leaned on it for the win. The starting lineup combined for 68 of Montana's 72 points as all five starters had at least eight points.
Dischon Thomas led the way with 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Brandon Whitney had 17 points on a near-perfect night from the field, and Aanen Moody followed up last night's 27-point effort with 12 points but a team-high five assists.
Laolu Oke had a near double-double with 10 points and eight rebounds, while Josh Vazquez hit a pair of big threes and scored eight points. He also matched a Big Sky Conference record by appearing in his 152nd career game.
"It's the balance. These guys like one another. Our chemistry is incredible," DeCuire said. "For Moody to come off a 27-point night and allow (Thomas) to take the front seat, and then Whitney brought us home in the second half, it's just everyone has had different moments on different nights. (Oke) was probably the MVP tonight just because of what he did defensively. It's two consecutive games of 40 percent or lower, and that's why we're playing for a championship."
Our guy @dischonthomas came to 𝙃𝙊𝙊𝙋 🪣
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) March 13, 2024
He's got 11 points already on 4-5 shooting! pic.twitter.com/S5xEzpJpbC
Montana improved to 22-3 when scoring at least 70 points, but it was the defense that really set the tone of the game. Idaho State was held to just 40 percent shooting on the night and under that in the first half. The Bengals scored just 21 points in the opening period, the fewest allowed by Montana in any half this season.
First Team All-Big Sky selection Brayden Parker was held to just six points on 25 percent shooting while star guard Maleek Arrington was limited to seven points on 3-of-13 shooting. The Grizzlies held Idaho State to just 58 points. It's the fifth time this season they have held their opponent under 60 points.
"Everyone assumed their assignments," DeCuire said of the defensive performance. "I thought Whitney was incredible on Arrington, keeping him out of the paint. Everyone was just really locked in at walkthroughs. As we went through it, bodies were where they needed to be. Coaches didn't have to say much about the coverage because they just knew them."
Thomas had a season-low two points on Monday night, but came out of the gates red-hot against the Bengals. He scored 11 of the first 15 Grizzly points as Montana jumped out to a big lead in the early going.
15 points, 💯 percent shooting for @Bwhit_10 pic.twitter.com/Gscr5k9sXY
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) March 13, 2024
They got it to double figures at 17-7 after making seven of their first 10 shots in the game, and were able to absorb an 8-0 ISU run and respond back with 10 straight points of their own. Oke threw down a vicious two-handed jam and Whitney ended a perfect shooting half with a jumper that made it 33-21 at the break.
Montana opened the second half with three straight makes on the offensive end, including a couple of long pull-up jumpers from Whitney, to build the lead up to 39-27. The Bengals had been working to take away Moody all game, but he got loose for a stretch in the second half, scoring eight points as part of an 11-1 Grizzly run that took the lead all the way up to 20 at 54-34.
𝙇𝘼𝙍𝙂𝙀𝙎𝙏 𝙇𝙀𝘼𝘿 𝙊𝙁 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙉𝙄𝙂𝙃𝙏
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) March 13, 2024
*blows kiss*😘 pic.twitter.com/xsuRPIYLtP
But just when it felt like Montana was pulling away, Idaho State answered. Miguel Tomley scored eight straight points as part of an 11-0 run that got it back into single digits at 54-45. The Grizzlies had given up just two threes on the first 44 offensive possessions for Idaho State, but Tomley was able to hit on contested shots from the arc on back-to-back possessions to cut into the lead.
Montana didn't panic. Oke scored to get it back into double figures and then Whitney got to the free throw line for a couple. Thomas had been quiet since his hot start, but hit a three just before the final media timeout that got the Griz lead back up to 61-49.
The defense then put the locks back on and held ISU to just one field goal over a three minute stretch to put the game away. They led by as many as 17 points in the final 90 seconds and coasted to a 72-58 win. The Grizzlies have still not trailed in Boise, leading for 39:41 on Tuesday after leading for over 36 minutes against Portland State.
"We settled in. We're still up nine, and we just need to do what we did to build that 20-point lead again," DeCuire said. "We were better, the defense locked in and our offense never really picked up. But defensively we got consecutive stops, and that won the game."
The poor rim 😩
— Montana Griz Basketball (@MontanaGrizBB) March 13, 2024
Take it easy @LaoluOke 💪 pic.twitter.com/dcaWvGrEg9
Montana shot 55 percent in the game, making more than half their shots for the fourth straight game. They also shot 40 percent from three-point range with eight makes, and had 14 assists to just 10 turnovers.
The complete team performance sealed a season sweep of the Bengals and punched Montana's ticket back to the Big Sky Championship game. They had come up empty in their last two trips to the semifinals.
Montana now heads to the final game of the tournament for a Big Sky record 21st time. DeCuire is 2-2 in Championship games, playing in four out of five from 2015-19. After losing by a combined seven points in his first two appearances, his Grizzlies went back-to-back in 2018 and 2019.
In 2020, the Grizzlies had momentum on their side heading into the conference tournament but didn't get to play a game before the COVID-19 lockdown led to the tournament being canceled. Since then, DeCuire and his staff have been working on returning to the heights that the program reached in his first five years.
The job's not done yet, but Tuesday night was a big step in the right direction.
"Culture. I said it once behind closed doors, but I'll say it now. COVID killed our culture," DeCuire said. "You recruit young men that you don't know, you don't meet, you don't break bread with, you don't shake hands with, and so you don't have a feel for personality until you get in the trenches. We just didn't have the right pieces to go to battle or handle adversity, to fight through tough times together. We have that right now, and it's why we're back where we're at."
It will be a Griz-Cat game for the ultimate prize, a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Montana swept the season series against the Bobcats, winning by 10 in Bozeman and 19 in Missoula. DeCuire is 14-4 as a coach in the rivalry game.
There will be a bit more to it this time around as he coaches not only for a trip to the Big Dance, but he also does it against first-year Bobcat Coach Matt Logie. The two go back all the way to DeCuire's high school days.
"In all honestly, to have Matt Logie on the other end of this deal, one of us is going and I know the rivalry is the rivalry, but life is life," DeCuire said. "You've got someone you've spent a lot of time with and you've learned to love and compete against, so I wouldn't have it any other way. The Griz, we just have to defend and do what we've been doing the past couple games and we will be fine."
Team Stats
ISU
Mont
FG%
.400
.553
3FG%
.357
.400
FT%
.750
.800
RB
29
26
TO
10
10
STL
5
3
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
4
Pts
17
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
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