2016 Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournament

2016 Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournament
ClassificationDivision I
Season2015–16
Teams12
SiteReno Events Center
Reno, Nevada
ChampionsWeber State (10th title)
Winning coachRandy Rahe (3rd title)
MVPJeremy Senglin (Weber State)
TelevisionESPNU (final)
← 2015
2017 →
2015–16 Big Sky men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Weber State † 15 – 3   .833 26 – 9   .743
Montana 14 – 4   .778 21 – 12   .636
Idaho 12 – 6   .667 21 – 13   .618
Idaho State 11 – 7   .611 16 – 15   .516
Eastern Washington 10 – 8   .556 18 – 16   .529
North Dakota 10 – 8   .556 17 – 16   .515
Montana State 9 – 9   .500 14 – 17   .452
Portland State 8 – 10   .444 13 – 18   .419
Northern Colorado 7 – 11   .389 10 – 21   .323
Sacramento State 6 – 12   .333 14 – 17   .452
Northern Arizona 3 – 15   .167 5 – 25   .167
Southern Utah 3 – 15   .167 5 – 24   .172
† Conference tournament winner

The 2016 Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournament was held March 7–12 at the Reno Events Center in Reno, Nevada. This was the first Big Sky tournament at a neutral site and the first to include all twelve conference members.[1] The top two seeds met in the final; regular season champion Weber State defeated Montana 62–59 and advanced to the NCAA tournament.

Seeds

All 12 Big Sky schools participated in the tournament. Teams were seeded by conference season record, with the top four teams receiving a first round bye. A tiebreaker system was used to seed teams with identical conference records.

Seed School Conference Tiebreaker
1 Weber State 15–3
2 Montana 14–4
3 Idaho 12–6
4 Idaho State 11–7
5 North Dakota 10–8 1–1 vs. Weber State
6 Eastern Washington 10–8 0–1 vs. Weber State
7 Montana State 9–9
8 Portland State 8–10
9 Northern Colorado 7–11
10 Sacramento State 6–12
11 Northern Arizona 3–15 1–1 vs. Idaho State
12 Southern Utah 3–15 0–2 vs. Idaho State

Schedule

Session Game Time* Matchup# Score
First round – Tuesday, March 8
1 1 12:05 pm #8 Portland State vs. #9 Northern Colorado 74–67
2 2:35 pm #5 North Dakota vs. #12 Southern Utah 85–80
3 5:35 pm #7 Montana State vs. #10 Sacramento State 75–79
4 8:05 pm #6 Eastern Washington vs. #11 Northern Arizona 74–52
Quarterfinals – Thursday, March 10
2 5 12:05 pm #1 Weber State vs. #8 Portland State 78–74
6 2:35 pm #4 Idaho State vs. #5 North Dakota 49–83
7 5:35 pm #2 Montana vs. #10 Sacramento State 70–53
8 8:05 pm #3 Idaho vs. #6 Eastern Washington 77–73
Semifinals – Friday, March 11
3 9 5:35 pm #1 Weber State vs. #5 North Dakota 83–78OT
10 8:05 pm #2 Montana vs. #3 Idaho 81–72
Championship – Saturday, March 12
4 10 5:45 pm #1 Weber State vs. #2 Montana 62–59
*Game times in PT. #-Rankings denote tournament seeding.

Bracket

First round
Tuesday, March 8 		Quarterfinals
Thursday, March 10 		Semifinals
Friday, March 11 		Championship Game
Saturday, March 12
            
1 Weber State 78
8 Portland State 74
8 Portland State 74
9 Northern Colorado 67
1 Weber State 83*
5 North Dakota 78
4 Idaho State 49
5 North Dakota 83
5 North Dakota 85
12 Southern Utah 80
1 Weber State 62
2 Montana 59
2 Montana 70
10 Sacramento State 53
7 Montana State 75
10 Sacramento State 79
2 Montana 81
3 Idaho 72
3 Idaho 77
6 Eastern Washington 73
6 Eastern Washington 74
11 Northern Arizona 52

* – denotes overtime period
Source:[2]

NCAA tournament

The Wildcats received the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament; no other Big Sky members were invited to the tournament or the NIT. Weber State was seeded fifteenth in the East regional and lost 71–53 to Xavier in the first round in St. Louis. It was the tenth consecutive year that the Big Sky representative lost in the first round.

References

  1. ^ "Big Sky tournament in full swing at Reno Events Center". Reno Gazette Journal. Retrieved March 8, 2016.
  2. ^ "The 2016 Big Sky Basketball Championships Schedule". SIDEARM Sports. Retrieved November 27, 2015.