Friday, November 14
Missoula, Mont.
7:00 PM
Montana
vs
Cal Poly
Photo by: Jackson Wagner
Grizzlies to hang 2025 Championship Banner on Friday
11/13/2025 5:10:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MONTANA (3-1) vs. CAL POLY (2-2)
Friday, Nov. 14 / 7:00 PM / Watch / Live Stats / Tickets
BANNER NIGHT
Prior to opening tip on Friday night, the University of Montana will honor the 2024-25 Big Sky Champion Grizzlies by unveiling a championship banner in the rafters of Dahlberg Arena.
Last year's team went 25-10 overall, sharing the regular season crown before going to Boise and winning the Big Sky Conference Tournament to punch a ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
It's the third NCAA Tournament appearance for Coach DeCuire and the 4th banner that he will have hung inside Dahlberg Arena.
Fans are asked to get to their seats early for the pregame festivities that will include a video recap of the championship, honors for All-Big Sky player Joe Pridgen, and a special presentation of the banner.
PREVIEW
Montana will return home after one of the biggest road wins of the DeCuire era with plenty to celebrate on Friday night. The Grizzlies, at 3-1 through the first two weeks of the season, are off to a terrific start after Tuesday night's 102-93 win.
They will also honor the 2024-25 squad by hanging a championship banner inside Dahlberg Arena. The ceremony will take place before the tip as the 25-win squad will receive their place in history among the other Grizzly championship teams.
On the floor, Montana will look to keep the momentum rolling after snapping a 21-game road losing streak in the month of November with Tuesday's win. While the Grizzlies have struggled on the road in non-conference, it has been the complete opposite story inside Dahlberg Arena.
Since DeCuire took over in 2014, the Grizzlies have won over 90 percent of their home non-conference contests. They will look to add to that winning against a 2-2 Cal Poly team on Friday night.
The Grizzlies split the first set of games against D1 opponents on the road, falling at 3-0 Stanford before picking up the big win over UNLV. Montana hasn't started 4-1 since the 2018-19 season, the second year of back-to-back Big Sky titles.
DeCuire started to find his rotation on the road trip with the same starting five opening every game. Brooklyn Hicks, playing against his former team at UNLV, has been the sixth man for Montana. Chase Henderson and Amari Jedkins were the only other players to receive more than two minutes in the win.
It's been the play of Money Williams that has impressed early on this season. The Big Sky Preseason MVP dropped 30 points and 8 assists on the Runnin' Rebels. Since halftime of the Stanford game, Williams has 49 points and 13 assists.
The junior guard is 7th in the country in assists through four games and has the 28th most points in the country.
He's received plenty of help, particularly from the starting frontcourt of Te'Jon Sawyer and Kenyon Aguino. Sawyer is averaging 12.8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game while the true freshman Aguino has reached double figures three times already, averaging 11.5 points and 5.2 rebounds.
The Mustangs will come to town off a 14-point loss at Colorado State on Wednesday night. Hamad Mousa is averaging 17.8 points and 6.8 rebounds for Cal Poly this year.
Montana will hit the road following this game for a showdown in the Lone Star State with Texas A&M on Nov. 18.
HONORING JOE PRIDGEN
First Team All-Big Sky member Joe Pridgen will be honored before the game with a framed jersey. The transfer helped lead Montana to the title, averaging 11.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per game while electrifying crowds across the country with his physical dunks.
BATTLING THE BIG WEST
Montana has a long history playing against the Big West dating back to 1971. The Grizzlies are 42-37 all-time against opponents from the Big West, including an 8-2 mark since Coach DeCuire took over in 2014.
DeCuire has won four straight over Big West competition with the last loss coming in 2018 at UC Irvine. The Grizzlies have two wins over UC Davis, one over UC San Diego, and a victory over CSUN last season.
The Grizzlies have averaged 74.9 points and held opponents to 66.2 points over the 10 games.
HOME NON-CONFERENCE RECORD
Montana has been dominant at home in the non-conference under DeCuire, winning over 90 percent of its home games outside of league play. The Grizzlies are 55-6 overall. The .902 winning percentage is tied for 47th best in the NCAA.
The Griz have won 13 straight home non-conference games. The last loss came on Nov. 16 against North Dakota State. They have won 34 of the previous 36 home non-conference games.
RUNNIN' PAST THE REBELS
Montana went to Las Vegas and put on a show against the Runnin' Rebels in a 102-93 victory. It was the first road win in November for Montana in the last eight years, snapping a 21-game road losing streak in the month.
Money Williams had 30 points and 8 rebounds to lead the Grizzlies to the win. They outrebounded UNLV by 7 and put up 100 points against a D1 team for the first time since 2019.
MONEY'S MONSTER NIGHT
Money Williams scored 30 points and added 8 assists in the Griz win at UNLV. It's the first time in program history that a player has recorded at least 8 assists in a 30-point effort.
It was the third time Williams has scored 30+ in a game in his career and the 9th time with 20+ points. He reached 8 assists for the third time in his career, missing out on his best day distributing the ball by one assist.
SCOUTING CAL POLY (2-2)
This is the fourth all-time meeting between the two schools. Montana is 3-0 in the previous three meetings, which all came in a three-year stretch from 1993-95. The Grizzlies are 2-0 against the Mustangs in Missoula.
GRIZ NOTES
PLAYER NOTES
Friday, Nov. 14 / 7:00 PM / Watch / Live Stats / Tickets
BANNER NIGHT
Prior to opening tip on Friday night, the University of Montana will honor the 2024-25 Big Sky Champion Grizzlies by unveiling a championship banner in the rafters of Dahlberg Arena.
Last year's team went 25-10 overall, sharing the regular season crown before going to Boise and winning the Big Sky Conference Tournament to punch a ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
It's the third NCAA Tournament appearance for Coach DeCuire and the 4th banner that he will have hung inside Dahlberg Arena.
Fans are asked to get to their seats early for the pregame festivities that will include a video recap of the championship, honors for All-Big Sky player Joe Pridgen, and a special presentation of the banner.
PREVIEW
Montana will return home after one of the biggest road wins of the DeCuire era with plenty to celebrate on Friday night. The Grizzlies, at 3-1 through the first two weeks of the season, are off to a terrific start after Tuesday night's 102-93 win.
They will also honor the 2024-25 squad by hanging a championship banner inside Dahlberg Arena. The ceremony will take place before the tip as the 25-win squad will receive their place in history among the other Grizzly championship teams.
On the floor, Montana will look to keep the momentum rolling after snapping a 21-game road losing streak in the month of November with Tuesday's win. While the Grizzlies have struggled on the road in non-conference, it has been the complete opposite story inside Dahlberg Arena.
Since DeCuire took over in 2014, the Grizzlies have won over 90 percent of their home non-conference contests. They will look to add to that winning against a 2-2 Cal Poly team on Friday night.
The Grizzlies split the first set of games against D1 opponents on the road, falling at 3-0 Stanford before picking up the big win over UNLV. Montana hasn't started 4-1 since the 2018-19 season, the second year of back-to-back Big Sky titles.
DeCuire started to find his rotation on the road trip with the same starting five opening every game. Brooklyn Hicks, playing against his former team at UNLV, has been the sixth man for Montana. Chase Henderson and Amari Jedkins were the only other players to receive more than two minutes in the win.
It's been the play of Money Williams that has impressed early on this season. The Big Sky Preseason MVP dropped 30 points and 8 assists on the Runnin' Rebels. Since halftime of the Stanford game, Williams has 49 points and 13 assists.
The junior guard is 7th in the country in assists through four games and has the 28th most points in the country.
He's received plenty of help, particularly from the starting frontcourt of Te'Jon Sawyer and Kenyon Aguino. Sawyer is averaging 12.8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game while the true freshman Aguino has reached double figures three times already, averaging 11.5 points and 5.2 rebounds.
The Mustangs will come to town off a 14-point loss at Colorado State on Wednesday night. Hamad Mousa is averaging 17.8 points and 6.8 rebounds for Cal Poly this year.
Montana will hit the road following this game for a showdown in the Lone Star State with Texas A&M on Nov. 18.
HONORING JOE PRIDGEN
First Team All-Big Sky member Joe Pridgen will be honored before the game with a framed jersey. The transfer helped lead Montana to the title, averaging 11.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per game while electrifying crowds across the country with his physical dunks.
BATTLING THE BIG WEST
Montana has a long history playing against the Big West dating back to 1971. The Grizzlies are 42-37 all-time against opponents from the Big West, including an 8-2 mark since Coach DeCuire took over in 2014.
DeCuire has won four straight over Big West competition with the last loss coming in 2018 at UC Irvine. The Grizzlies have two wins over UC Davis, one over UC San Diego, and a victory over CSUN last season.
The Grizzlies have averaged 74.9 points and held opponents to 66.2 points over the 10 games.
HOME NON-CONFERENCE RECORD
Montana has been dominant at home in the non-conference under DeCuire, winning over 90 percent of its home games outside of league play. The Grizzlies are 55-6 overall. The .902 winning percentage is tied for 47th best in the NCAA.
The Griz have won 13 straight home non-conference games. The last loss came on Nov. 16 against North Dakota State. They have won 34 of the previous 36 home non-conference games.
RUNNIN' PAST THE REBELS
Montana went to Las Vegas and put on a show against the Runnin' Rebels in a 102-93 victory. It was the first road win in November for Montana in the last eight years, snapping a 21-game road losing streak in the month.
Money Williams had 30 points and 8 rebounds to lead the Grizzlies to the win. They outrebounded UNLV by 7 and put up 100 points against a D1 team for the first time since 2019.
MONEY'S MONSTER NIGHT
Money Williams scored 30 points and added 8 assists in the Griz win at UNLV. It's the first time in program history that a player has recorded at least 8 assists in a 30-point effort.
It was the third time Williams has scored 30+ in a game in his career and the 9th time with 20+ points. He reached 8 assists for the third time in his career, missing out on his best day distributing the ball by one assist.
SCOUTING CAL POLY (2-2)
- The Mustangs lost their last outing 93-79 at Colorado State on Wednesday. It snapped a two-game winning streak with the lone D1 win coming over Seattle U.
- Head coach Mike DeGeorge is in his 2nd season with the Mustangs. He's 18-21 (.462) at Cal Poly. He has a career record of 354-312 with four stops prior to Cal Poly, all either at the D-II or D-III level.
- They have allowed 84.3 points per game through four contests, allowing every opponent to score at least 71. They rank 307th in the country in scoring defense.
- The Mustangs attempt the 18th most three pointers in the country and convert 11.0 per game, which ranks 44th.
- Cal Poly is 1-2 on the road to start the year. They won't play a home game against a D-I opponent until Dec. 6 when UC Riverside comes to Cal Poly.
- Hamad Mousa leads the Mustangs in scoring and rebounding, averaging 17.8 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. He's made 11 three-pointers on 40.7 percent shooting through the first four games.
- They have three players doing a bulk of their scoring with Cayden Ward and Peter Bandelj both averaging over 14.0 points per game.
This is the fourth all-time meeting between the two schools. Montana is 3-0 in the previous three meetings, which all came in a three-year stretch from 1993-95. The Grizzlies are 2-0 against the Mustangs in Missoula.
GRIZ NOTES
- Montana scored 100+ points against a D-I opponent for the first time since 2019 in the win at UNLV.
- All five starters scored in double figures in Montana's win over UNLV.
- Montana is now 3-0 when going on a scoring run of at least 10-0 in a game.
- The Grizzlies are looking to start 4-1 for the first time since 2018-19.
- The win at UNLV snapped a 21-game losing streak on the road in the month of November. Coach DeCuire is now
- At home, Montana has won nine straight overall and 21 of the previous 22 games.
- Montana allowed 90+ points in a game in the loss at Stanford for the first time since last season at Utah State on Nov. 18.
- Montana is now 10-51 (.164) in regular season road non-conference games under Coach DeCuire. They snapped a seven-game losing streak with the win at UNLV.
- The 20 turnovers at Stanford were the most by a Montana team since committing 22 against Portland State on Feb. 12, 2022.
- Montana started 2-0 for the first time since 2018. It was just the third time under Coach DeCuire that the Grizzlies have opened a season with consecutive wins. The previous two times that Montana started 2-0, they would go on to win Big Sky Championships.
- The Griz held Ottawa to just 39 points. It's the first time Montana has held a team under 40 points since 2021 when they defeated Dickinson State 74-27.
PLAYER NOTES
- Tyler Thompson is shooting 43.8 percent from three this season with a co-team high seven makes on the year.
- Thompson scored in double figures for the first time in his career with 11 points at UNLV. He went 3-of-5 from the three-point line in the Griz win.
- Kenyon Aguino scored a new season-high 15 points in the win at UNLV. The freshman has been in double figures in three of the four games at the college level.
- Te'Jon Sawyer was one rebound away from his first double-double with Montana in the win at UNLV. He finished with season highs in points (18) and rebounds (9).
- Money Williams had 8 assists vs. UNLV, the first time since Feb. 8 of last season that a Grizzly had 7+ assists in a game.
- Tyler Isaak reached double figures against a D-I opponent for the first time this year at UNLV. The starting guard went 6-of-6 from the free throw line in the win. It's a new career high for made free throws.
- Against his former school, Brooklyn Hicks had 8 points and 5 rebounds in 18 minutes of action in a Grizzly win.
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