Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

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aucat
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Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by aucat » Fri Feb 07, 2020 11:55 am

RIght now with a two game lead, it certainly appears that the MSU women are in the driver's seat to win their third
Big SKy Championship in the last five years. It just burns me so much that just when we became a championship
contender the Big SKy stopped allowing the regular season champion from hosting the tournament.

Oh those lucky Griz. My gosh, Missoula was "Big Sky Tournament Central" for MANY years. We never got the chance.

And what makes matters worse is, we are set up so well to host the tournament. We have an outstanding facility,
and the busiest airport by far in the state with a bunch of airlines providing service.

I remember many of those years when UM hosted and they had a packed house for their games. Just imagine the atmosphere
of a packed house in the Brick during tournament time with the Cats hosting the tournament.

It just AIN'T FAIR, dang it!



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by ilovethecats » Fri Feb 07, 2020 12:09 pm

aucat wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 11:55 am
RIght now with a two game lead, it certainly appears that the MSU women are in the driver's seat to win their third
Big SKy Championship in the last five years. It just burns me so much that just when we became a championship
contender the Big SKy stopped allowing the regular season champion from hosting the tournament.

Oh those lucky Griz. My gosh, Missoula was "Big Sky Tournament Central" for MANY years. We never got the chance.

And what makes matters worse is, we are set up so well to host the tournament. We have an outstanding facility,
and the busiest airport by far in the state with a bunch of airlines providing service.

I remember many of those years when UM hosted and they had a packed house for their games. Just imagine the atmosphere
of a packed house in the Brick during tournament time with the Cats hosting the tournament.

It just AIN'T FAIR, dang it!
Of all the stupid things I've seen over the years from the powers that be in the Big Sky; not allowing the regular season champs to host the conference tourney is by far the stupidest. Mid Major conferences like our MUST let the champs host! It bothers me more than anything.



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by BelgradeBobcat » Fri Feb 07, 2020 12:37 pm

ilovethecats wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 12:09 pm
aucat wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 11:55 am
RIght now with a two game lead, it certainly appears that the MSU women are in the driver's seat to win their third
Big SKy Championship in the last five years. It just burns me so much that just when we became a championship
contender the Big SKy stopped allowing the regular season champion from hosting the tournament.

Oh those lucky Griz. My gosh, Missoula was "Big Sky Tournament Central" for MANY years. We never got the chance.

And what makes matters worse is, we are set up so well to host the tournament. We have an outstanding facility,
and the busiest airport by far in the state with a bunch of airlines providing service.

I remember many of those years when UM hosted and they had a packed house for their games. Just imagine the atmosphere
of a packed house in the Brick during tournament time with the Cats hosting the tournament.

It just AIN'T FAIR, dang it!
Of all the stupid things I've seen over the years from the powers that be in the Big Sky; not allowing the regular season champs to host the conference tourney is by far the stupidest. Mid Major conferences like our MUST let the champs host! It bothers me more than anything.
Image
Went to Boise last year and had a blast even though our teams didn't do too well. Planning to go again this year-at least for part of it. We've got a little room in the car if anybody wants a ride.



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by Catlady » Fri Feb 07, 2020 12:43 pm

Disagree totally! The tourney is taking some time to get established, but a central location is the best thing this conference has ever done! Makes it easier on everyone involved! It’s cheaper because at least you know where you’re going and you can easily schedule and all teams find it easier to get to the location because it has an airport! I understand the angst of watching UM host the tourney for years and know we’re the big dog (Cat) and don’t get the privilege of hosting. But I like the format and like already having my flight, hotel and tickets already taken care of in advance!



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by mslacatfan » Fri Feb 07, 2020 1:04 pm

ilovethecats wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 12:09 pm
aucat wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 11:55 am
RIght now with a two game lead, it certainly appears that the MSU women are in the driver's seat to win their third
Big SKy Championship in the last five years. It just burns me so much that just when we became a championship
contender the Big SKy stopped allowing the regular season champion from hosting the tournament.

Oh those lucky Griz. My gosh, Missoula was "Big Sky Tournament Central" for MANY years. We never got the chance.

And what makes matters worse is, we are set up so well to host the tournament. We have an outstanding facility,
and the busiest airport by far in the state with a bunch of airlines providing service.

I remember many of those years when UM hosted and they had a packed house for their games. Just imagine the atmosphere
of a packed house in the Brick during tournament time with the Cats hosting the tournament.

It just AIN'T FAIR, dang it!
Of all the stupid things I've seen over the years from the powers that be in the Big Sky; not allowing the regular season champs to host the conference tourney is by far the stupidest. Mid Major conferences like our MUST let the champs host! It bothers me more than anything.
+1

It’s just ridiculous.


FTG- GO CATS GO!

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mslacatfan
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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by mslacatfan » Fri Feb 07, 2020 1:09 pm

So the flip side to the argument is that It’s logistically very difficult for planning. Especially if they didn’t know the location until the very last couple days of the season, and it’s in a town that is difficult for flights/hotels....

So how about this- whoever wins the big sky gets to host the tournament the following season.

That way there is more of a reward for winning the league, and it gives everyone a years notice to plan accordingly for hotels/flights/etc.

Makes sense to me anyway...


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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by ilovethecats » Fri Feb 07, 2020 1:25 pm

Catlady wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 12:43 pm
Disagree totally! The tourney is taking some time to get established, but a central location is the best thing this conference has ever done! Makes it easier on everyone involved! It’s cheaper because at least you know where you’re going and you can easily schedule and all teams find it easier to get to the location because it has an airport! I understand the angst of watching UM host the tourney for years and know we’re the big dog (Cat) and don’t get the privilege of hosting. But I like the format and like already having my flight, hotel and tickets already taken care of in advance!
I understand the planning of it can be tough some times. But if you REALLY want to go to the tournament, it was doable for years. That said, I would make a case that hosting a tourney, and having opposing fans have to really work to get to your homecourt is also a good thing!

Your Griz example is a perfect one for me as a Cat fan. I have every reason in the world to hate them hosting the tourney. And yet I think they should if they're regular season champs.

We've beat this drum to death. I get it. I beat it every year. But in a conference like ours, I think we need to do everything to ensure our best team represents the conference in the Dance. If that means I have to watch Griz fans storm the court on ESPN after winning yet another championship than so be it.

I truthfully don't think there is anything good about our current format other than the convenience of travel. Look at it this way; ask ANY Cat player if they'd rather host the tourney here in Bozeman or head to Boise and guess what they'd pick....

I'm all about what is best for the players and what ultimately is best for getting our best teams out there.



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by ilovethecats » Fri Feb 07, 2020 1:35 pm

mslacatfan wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 1:09 pm
So the flip side to the argument is that It’s logistically very difficult for planning. Especially if they didn’t know the location until the very last couple days of the season, and it’s in a town that is difficult for flights/hotels....

So how about this- whoever wins the big sky gets to host the tournament the following season.

That way there is more of a reward for winning the league, and it gives everyone a years notice to plan accordingly for hotels/flights/etc.

Makes sense to me anyway...
I'd take that over the current system but I don't believe that is the solution either. The team that did what they needed to do all season long still doesn't get rewarded like they should.

Not to mention, in a league such as ours, sometimes teams are loaded with talent, make a run and then lose everyone to graduation. The next year they could be a middle of the pack or even a terrible team so that seems weird too.

But like I said it's better than the current system where there is no home court advantage at all!



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by BelgradeBobcat » Fri Feb 07, 2020 2:00 pm

I like having both the men's and women's tournament at the same venue. I enjoy both. Having the tournament at a predetermined site allows this to happen.



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by MSU01 » Fri Feb 07, 2020 2:17 pm

BelgradeBobcat wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 2:00 pm
I like having both the men's and women's tournament at the same venue. I enjoy both. Having the tournament at a predetermined site allows this to happen.
Agreed. I'll be attending the tournament in Boise this year for the first time and it's awesome to be able to support both MSU teams instead of having to pick one or the other. This is the main reason why I'm in favor of the neutral site tournament with all teams qualifying instead of the Top 6 only like it used to be.



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by aucat » Fri Feb 07, 2020 3:15 pm

I fully understand that "this ship has left the harbor" and I also understand the problem with some of the limited facilities of
other schools in our league. I was just venting. I just wish they had not made the change until a few more years later so I could
have experienced tournament time in Bozeman. Belgrade Bobcat made a good point that you DO get to see BOTH of your teams play rather than just one. I just remember going to Reno. Our ladies had won the regular season championship. We played the last place team, which I think was Idaho State. Seems like we had a six point lead with 30 seconds to go, but kept missing free throws. So BOTH the women AND the men were one and done.
We had bought plane tickets so we had to sit through several more days of watching games where we had no dog in the fight. I haven't been back since.



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by BelgradeBobcat » Fri Feb 07, 2020 5:39 pm

Binford's heavy recruitment of the Boise area could really pay off at the tournament. Hopefully Darian White and Madison Jackson draw a lot of family and friends-and then next year add Ava Ranson's fans to our side as well.



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by WalkOn79 » Fri Feb 07, 2020 11:13 pm

ilovethecats wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 1:25 pm
Catlady wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 12:43 pm
Disagree totally! The tourney is taking some time to get established, but a central location is the best thing this conference has ever done! Makes it easier on everyone involved! It’s cheaper because at least you know where you’re going and you can easily schedule and all teams find it easier to get to the location because it has an airport! I understand the angst of watching UM host the tourney for years and know we’re the big dog (Cat) and don’t get the privilege of hosting. But I like the format and like already having my flight, hotel and tickets already taken care of in advance!
I understand the planning of it can be tough some times. But if you REALLY want to go to the tournament, it was doable for years. That said, I would make a case that hosting a tourney, and having opposing fans have to really work to get to your homecourt is also a good thing!

Your Griz example is a perfect one for me as a Cat fan. I have every reason in the world to hate them hosting the tourney. And yet I think they should if they're regular season champs.

We've beat this drum to death. I get it. I beat it every year. But in a conference like ours, I think we need to do everything to ensure our best team represents the conference in the Dance. If that means I have to watch Griz fans storm the court on ESPN after winning yet another championship than so be it.

I truthfully don't think there is anything good about our current format other than the convenience of travel. Look at it this way; ask ANY Cat player if they'd rather host the tourney here in Bozeman or head to Boise and guess what they'd pick....

I'm all about what is best for the players and what ultimately is best for getting our best teams out there.
What's best for the players and their parents and relatives is a neutral site. Need to let this die


"One of the greatest feelings in the world, moving someone from point A to point B against their will"

Mitch Brott - 2019 Cat / Griz

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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by ilovethecats » Sat Feb 08, 2020 5:29 pm

WalkOn79 wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 11:13 pm
ilovethecats wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 1:25 pm
Catlady wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 12:43 pm
Disagree totally! The tourney is taking some time to get established, but a central location is the best thing this conference has ever done! Makes it easier on everyone involved! It’s cheaper because at least you know where you’re going and you can easily schedule and all teams find it easier to get to the location because it has an airport! I understand the angst of watching UM host the tourney for years and know we’re the big dog (Cat) and don’t get the privilege of hosting. But I like the format and like already having my flight, hotel and tickets already taken care of in advance!
I understand the planning of it can be tough some times. But if you REALLY want to go to the tournament, it was doable for years. That said, I would make a case that hosting a tourney, and having opposing fans have to really work to get to your homecourt is also a good thing!

Your Griz example is a perfect one for me as a Cat fan. I have every reason in the world to hate them hosting the tourney. And yet I think they should if they're regular season champs.

We've beat this drum to death. I get it. I beat it every year. But in a conference like ours, I think we need to do everything to ensure our best team represents the conference in the Dance. If that means I have to watch Griz fans storm the court on ESPN after winning yet another championship than so be it.

I truthfully don't think there is anything good about our current format other than the convenience of travel. Look at it this way; ask ANY Cat player if they'd rather host the tourney here in Bozeman or head to Boise and guess what they'd pick....

I'm all about what is best for the players and what ultimately is best for getting our best teams out there.
What's best for the players and their parents and relatives is a neutral site. Need to let this die
Lol. Well as a former player with parents and relatives I can tell you that’s not the case. If it’s bothersome to you for some reason I’ll “let it die”.

However, I know for a fact that this isn’t a dead issue for the guys making the decisions. There are talks on this matter every year. Schools want to host if possible.

The reality is that in a mid major conference, the ONLY people a neutral site is the fans. Like I said, ask coach Sprinkle what he prefers. Or just tell him to let it die....



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by BelgradeBobcat » Sat Feb 08, 2020 5:42 pm

ilovethecats wrote:
Sat Feb 08, 2020 5:29 pm
ask coach Sprinkle what he prefers.
I'm sure Coach Sprinkle would rather make the short bus trip to Missoula to lose our first round game instead of going all the way to Boise to lose our first round game. I don't think the MSU men will have to worry about missing out on hosting the tourney for a very very long time. ](*,)



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by RickRund » Sat Feb 08, 2020 7:14 pm

BelgradeBobcat wrote:
Sat Feb 08, 2020 5:42 pm
ilovethecats wrote:
Sat Feb 08, 2020 5:29 pm
ask coach Sprinkle what he prefers.
I'm sure Coach Sprinkle would rather make the short bus trip to Missoula to lose our first round game instead of going all the way to Boise to lose our first round game. I don't think the MSU men will have to worry about missing out on hosting the tourney for a very very long time. ](*,)
Oh, don't be ridiculous. You really don't think other coaches will see what happens when possibly their best defender shadows Frey...


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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by MSU01 » Sat Feb 08, 2020 8:00 pm

ilovethecats wrote:
Sat Feb 08, 2020 5:29 pm
WalkOn79 wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 11:13 pm
ilovethecats wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 1:25 pm
Catlady wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 12:43 pm
Disagree totally! The tourney is taking some time to get established, but a central location is the best thing this conference has ever done! Makes it easier on everyone involved! It’s cheaper because at least you know where you’re going and you can easily schedule and all teams find it easier to get to the location because it has an airport! I understand the angst of watching UM host the tourney for years and know we’re the big dog (Cat) and don’t get the privilege of hosting. But I like the format and like already having my flight, hotel and tickets already taken care of in advance!
I understand the planning of it can be tough some times. But if you REALLY want to go to the tournament, it was doable for years. That said, I would make a case that hosting a tourney, and having opposing fans have to really work to get to your homecourt is also a good thing!

Your Griz example is a perfect one for me as a Cat fan. I have every reason in the world to hate them hosting the tourney. And yet I think they should if they're regular season champs.

We've beat this drum to death. I get it. I beat it every year. But in a conference like ours, I think we need to do everything to ensure our best team represents the conference in the Dance. If that means I have to watch Griz fans storm the court on ESPN after winning yet another championship than so be it.

I truthfully don't think there is anything good about our current format other than the convenience of travel. Look at it this way; ask ANY Cat player if they'd rather host the tourney here in Bozeman or head to Boise and guess what they'd pick....

I'm all about what is best for the players and what ultimately is best for getting our best teams out there.
What's best for the players and their parents and relatives is a neutral site. Need to let this die
Lol. Well as a former player with parents and relatives I can tell you that’s not the case. If it’s bothersome to you for some reason I’ll “let it die”.

However, I know for a fact that this isn’t a dead issue for the guys making the decisions. There are talks on this matter every year. Schools want to host if possible.

The reality is that in a mid major conference, the ONLY people a neutral site is the fans. Like I said, ask coach Sprinkle what he prefers. Or just tell him to let it die....
In the reasonably likely event that MSU ends up 7th or 8th at the end of the season, I wonder if Coach Sprinkle would then prefer the current format in which his team will still get a shot in the tournament, or the old on-campus format in which he'd be sitting at home watching because only the top 6 teams made it.

There's no easy answer here because there are positives and negatives to both formats that gain or lose importance depending on an individual's point of view and situation. What's best for an MSU player's family will probably be different depending on whether that family lives in Bozeman and is already in reasonably close proximity to the likely host schools, or is traveling in from the other side of the country or the other side of the Atlantic Ocean to watch and may be much less able to make last minute travel adjustments.



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by BobcatDel » Sun Feb 09, 2020 12:16 am

I do like knowing in advance where the tourney will be.....far in advance just for the logistics planning. But certainly I do understand the home court advantage.

Since I was out of the area/country for many years I don’t know how the tourney logistics were managed in the past...especially if the champion was not determined until the last week or two of the season? In fact, didn’t the Bobcat women win the conference on the last game of the season just 2 or 3 years ago....now that would be some quick planning!

I however observe that today, facilities are used for many multi-functional events scheduled up to a couple years in advance. As an example, if we used the system of the conference champion hosting....then this year if the current men (Griz) and women (Cat) conference leaders were to prevail... then Bozeman and the MHAA working with the AA schools would have to figure how to accommodate the AA boys & girls tourney (scheduled in the Brick) and Big Sky women’s tourney the same week as well as all fans who need a place to stay from high schools and Big Sky colleges......all in just 4 short weeks.......Missoula and the MHAA working with Class C schools would start planning now to accommodate the Class C boys & girls tourney and the Big Sky men’s tourney simultaneously in Dahlberg in just 4 weeks in Missoula. Even if we look forward a year, Bozeman is currently on the hook to host the State C tourney next year the same week as the Big Sky tourney....but a year in advance (2021) would allow the Class C tourney to be moved to another city so Big Sky women tourney could be here based on our championship this year. This example does not include any concerts, track meets, large conferences, trade shows, speakers, etc that might be scheduled in the Brick well in advance.......so do Big Sky schools just start blocking out those dates on the calendar so those multi-million dollar facilities are idled those weeks in case we win the conference....and do we decline to host future High School State BB tourneys (I.e. rotate High School tourneys to Helena, Billings, Great Falls, Kalispell, Havre only)....Just a logistical challenge to address....can be done....but why???

I believe the trend is to move tournaments to neutral sites. Heck Coach Choate would even like semi-finals in football to move to a neutral site.



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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by WalkOn79 » Sun Feb 09, 2020 3:00 pm

BobcatDel wrote:
Sun Feb 09, 2020 12:16 am
I do like knowing in advance where the tourney will be.....far in advance just for the logistics planning. But certainly I do understand the home court advantage.

Since I was out of the area/country for many years I don’t know how the tourney logistics were managed in the past...especially if the champion was not determined until the last week or two of the season? In fact, didn’t the Bobcat women win the conference on the last game of the season just 2 or 3 years ago....now that would be some quick planning!

I however observe that today, facilities are used for many multi-functional events scheduled up to a couple years in advance. As an example, if we used the system of the conference champion hosting....then this year if the current men (Griz) and women (Cat) conference leaders were to prevail... then Bozeman and the MHAA working with the AA schools would have to figure how to accommodate the AA boys & girls tourney (scheduled in the Brick) and Big Sky women’s tourney the same week as well as all fans who need a place to stay from high schools and Big Sky colleges......all in just 4 short weeks.......Missoula and the MHAA working with Class C schools would start planning now to accommodate the Class C boys & girls tourney and the Big Sky men’s tourney simultaneously in Dahlberg in just 4 weeks in Missoula. Even if we look forward a year, Bozeman is currently on the hook to host the State C tourney next year the same week as the Big Sky tourney....but a year in advance (2021) would allow the Class C tourney to be moved to another city so Big Sky women tourney could be here based on our championship this year. This example does not include any concerts, track meets, large conferences, trade shows, speakers, etc that might be scheduled in the Brick well in advance.......so do Big Sky schools just start blocking out those dates on the calendar so those multi-million dollar facilities are idled those weeks in case we win the conference....and do we decline to host future High School State BB tourneys (I.e. rotate High School tourneys to Helena, Billings, Great Falls, Kalispell, Havre only)....Just a logistical challenge to address....can be done....but why???

I believe the trend is to move tournaments to neutral sites. Heck Coach Choate would even like semi-finals in football to move to a neutral site.
All really good points.


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Re: Looking Ahead to the Big Sky Tournament

Post by Mrs TrackCat » Wed Feb 12, 2020 8:35 pm

Does anyone know if any, or all the tournament games will be televised? Thanks!



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