Rahe, Wildcats confident heading into Big Sky tourney


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MISSOULA, Mont. — No matter what year it is, it almost seems as if it’s written in stone that the Big Sky tournament has to feature a contest between Weber State and Montana.

The two foes have long battled for conference supremacy, and the Grizzlies and Wildcats have combined to win the last three conference titles.

The pair will once again face each other in the Big Sky tournament Thursday at Dahlberg Arena in Missoula, but this year’s matchup won’t come in the championship game. Instead, eighth-seeded Weber State will face top-seeded Montana in the late game of the first round.

Weber barely backed into the conference tournament. Entering the final game of the season against Eastern Washington, the Wildcats had to either win or hope for a Southern Utah loss to Portland State. Weber fell in overtime to the Eagles, but the Thunderbirds also fell, giving Weber its ninth-consecutive berth in the conference tourney.

#WSU

Wildcats coach Randy Rahe has never missed the conference tourney in his tenure in Ogden, and this season certainly tested that streak. Weber already was facing inconsistencies early in the season, but losing point guard Jeremy Senglin to a broken jaw on Feb. 12 appeared to submarine the Wildcats’ season.

Instead, several players, including all-conference forward Joel Bolomboy, picked up the slack, helping Weber into the tourney.

Rahe said Bolomboy, who became Weber’s all-time blocks leader during the Eastern Washington game, has really become more confident over the past month.

“I think Joel really felt like he needed to step up some,” he said. “He’s played with a little bit more juice and energy; a little urgency at times, which is good. The last three or four weeks, Joel’s been playing some of his better basketball. I think his confidence has gone up over the last two weeks, too.”

Senglin’s injury also helped the team mature, in Rahe’s mind.

“I think this team’s really gotten better,” he said. “I think we’re on the upward swing, as far as our improvement as a team. Once we got everybody shifted around, and we added some stuff, I think the guys have started to execute stuff better. I’m just excited that we continue to improve.”

The Wildcats split the season series with the Grizzlies, with Weber prevailing 68-60 on Jan. 8 at home. Weber fell at Montana 74-63, and largely did because of Martin Breunig’s 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Weber hasn’t won in Dahlberg Arena since 2009, and has lost eight straight games to the Grizzlies in Missoula. Both Montana and Weber have been the conference’s premier basketball programs for decades and have played games that are forever in the conference’s lore.


"I think this team's really gotten better. I think we're on the upward swing, as far as our improvement as a team," said Weber coach Randy Rahe.

Rahe said he, his coaches and players haven’t given much thought to adding another chapter to the rivalry.

“It’s been that way a few years, that’s for sure,” he said. “We’ve met each other in the tournament a few times. Right now, it’s a little different; I’m not really concerned about that part. It’s ‘hey, we made the tournament; we’re playing the top team on their court,’ basically.”

There is little reason to think about the rivalry, especially when Montana presents so many other problems. The Grizzlies are one of the league’s top defensive teams while also having Breunig and guard Jordan Gregory make the league’s all-conference first-team.

“They’re very physical, which makes them very good defensively,” Rahe said. “A lot of it has to do with their physicality, and they’ve got strong guys. I thought that really bothered us when we played up there, so we’ve got to be ready to play a physical game.

“Then, anytime you play on someone else’s home court, you can’t allow easy baskets. Transition defense is going to be huge; rebounding the ball so we don’t give them second-chance points is going to be huge. Both those things got away from us last time we played at their place.”

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