The Bobcat Nation

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Banis to join MSUB women


Chelsea Banis, a 6-4 center from Fairfield, will play her final season of college basketball with the Montana State Billings women's team.

Banis joins the Yellowjackets after four years with Montana State in Bozeman.

Banis, who red shirted during the 2009-10 season, played in eight games for the Bobcats this past year.

She will graduate this May with a bachelor's degree in community health. At MSUB, Banis will pursue her master's degree in health administration.

"I am very excited to have Chelsea join our women's basketball program,'' said Yellowjacket head coach Kevin Woodin. "I believe her athleticism, skills and size will immediately improve our team."

A Class B all-state selection, Banis played in just 16 games her freshman year at MSU after suffering a knee injury. Banis' sophomore season, she started 21 of 28 games, averaging 8.4 points and 4.5 rebounds a game. She scored in double figures 10 times, with a season-high 19 against Portland State.

If she had a year left to play why is she not staying at MSU Bozeman? They could use her size inside.

My guess on the basketball side, is that Banis struggled to stay healthy while at MSU. Not that they couldn't use her. MSUB style of play may suit Chelsea's better than MSU's. Sac State, Univ. Northern Colorado, Northern Arizona, and Portland State can run any team ragged and the players have to be able to get up and down the court in a hurry. I don't know health wise if Chelsea could hold up.

Either way I wish her the best of luck as she pursues her Master's degree in Billings.

I wonder if we play MSU-B again next year? THey came over here and whipped us pretty good this year. Frankly, I wish we would not. These types of games gain you nothing if you win, and clobber you if you lose.

I still am perplexed as to how we went from being the best team in the league the first half of the season to about the worst team in the league the 2nd half. Certainly thought the coaches were counting on Banis for next year. There's probably a good reason for her move but it really makes MSU look bad in my opinion. No comments from Coach Binford but the MSU-B guys seemed thrilled.

The team's two most experience posts leave and Binford replaces them with an undersized shooting guard.

Is WBB turning into MBB?

As much as I like hoops, I have to agree. Next year is looking grim. Hope I'm wrong.

BLACKnBLUEnGOLD wrote:The team's two most experience posts leave and Binford replaces them with an undersized shooting guard.

Is WBB turning into MBB?

I'm trying not to become too cynical, but I'm starting to wonder about that myself. Binford's teams have started strong during the first half of conference play, and then stumbled in the second half, for three straight years now. The collapse last season was particularly dramatic, and they've won only one tourney game in the past three seasons. It's really disappointing to lose Banis, because I think it would have made a big difference last season, if she had been healthy. You can't help but speculate about the "real" reasons behind a player transferring, especially when he/she transfers with only one year of eligibility remaining. I've generally been supportive of Binford in the past, and felt that the WBB program had a bright future, and I do believe that last season's freshman were a very talented group, but I guess the MBB situation has just made me pessimistic about MSU hoops in general.

BLACKnBLUEnGOLD wrote:The team's two most experience posts leave and Binford replaces them with an undersized shooting guard.

Is WBB turning into MBB?

What was the main complaint about last season? Wasn't it poor shooting ?

Poor shooting....last in conference in 3 point shooting or close to it...

7 new players to the team...most of them really young..

Lots of great coaching and talent on the different Big Sky teams.

Coach Binford likes to run a fast paced offense..except we didn't last year..we tried to force everything to Semansky...which led to a lot of turnovers...

Lack of shooting and bad decision making by young players covers most of it..and a slump in confidence. There is a lot of talent on this team and Alexa Dawkins will be force down low for us...

A lot of people try to lump the men's and women's team together in terms of what is wrong at MSU... that is so off base. The men's program is in a lot worse. Women's program had more of a one down year...

bpcats20 wrote:Poor shooting....last in conference in 3 point shooting or close to it...

7 new players to the team...most of them really young..

Lots of great coaching and talent on the different Big Sky teams.

Coach Binford likes to run a fast paced offense..except we didn't last year..we tried to force everything to Semansky...which led to a lot of turnovers...

Lack of shooting and bad decision making by young players covers most of it..and a slump in confidence. There is a lot of talent on this team and Alexa Dawkins will be force down low for us...

A lot of people try to lump the men's and women's team together in terms of what is wrong at MSU... that is so off base. The men's program is in a lot worse. Women's program had more of a one down year...

With the exception of Binford's first season, the women have won no less than 14 games and no more than 20. MSU's 17 wins this season were actually tied for their third-most under Binford. They won 20 in 2007 and 19 last season. They've played for two Big Sky titles and won five tournament games, never advancing to any postseason tournament beyond the Big Sky. Since that first season, they've never finished higher than fourth or lower than sixth in the league standings.

Under Huse, the Bobcat men have won between 11 (first season) and 16 games each of his seven seasons. MSU has won 15 twice and 16 once. The Bobcat men have finished no lower than sixth and no higher than third, qualifying for the league tournament seven years straight. The team has reached the Big Sky championship game once, won two league tournament games and never played in a postseason tournament past the Big Sky.

You be the judge as to the perceived gap between the two programs.

And remember, the Big Sky in WBB has a much stronger RPI, making it possible for MSU to play the likes of Utah State, Wyoming and Colorado State in Bozeman, while the MBB Big Sky RPI is SO LOW that no Big Sky schools without a Montana reputation can get any sort of mid-major team to come to to their home court before the New Year, and instead have to toil in obscurity playing Pac 12 guaranteed games for $$ and beginning the season 2-7 every year before they even get to establish a home identity.

Binford was regularly relying on true freshman and sophomores. Banis was injury plaqued the last two years and was probably doubtful as a starter next year, in the long scheme of things probalby won't be missed that much next year.

In the end she was a great Montana gal, that you really wanted to root for but she was injured so often that it was almost better for her to retire at this point.

kcatz wrote:Binford was regularly relying on true freshman and sophomores. Banis was injury plaqued the last two years and was probably doubtful as a starter next year, in the long scheme of things probalby won't be missed that much next year.

In the end she was a great Montana gal, that you really wanted to root for but she was injured so often that it was almost better for her to retire at this point.

She also was not as strong as she needed to be to play in the BSC. She would get rebounds and get them taken away from her when she brought them down. She also would get pushed off the low blocks when she tried to post up.