2022–23 Montana State Bobcats men's basketball team

2022–23 Montana State Bobcats men's basketball
NCAA tournament, first round
ConferenceBig Sky Conference
Record25–10 (15–3 Big Sky)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Chris Haslam
  • Johnny Hill
  • Andy Hill
Home arenaBrick Breeden Fieldhouse
Seasons
2022–23 Big Sky men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Eastern Washington 16 – 2   .889 23 – 11   .676
Montana State † 15 – 3   .833 25 – 10   .714
Weber State 12 – 6   .667 18 – 15   .545
Montana 10 – 7   .588 17 – 14   .548
Idaho State 8 – 10   .444 11 – 21   .344
Sacramento State 7 – 11   .389 14 – 18   .438
Portland State 6 – 11   .353 12 – 19   .387
Northern Colorado 6 – 12   .333 12 – 20   .375
Northern Arizona 5 – 13   .278 12 – 23   .343
Idaho 4 – 14   .222 10 – 22   .313
† Conference tournament winner

The 2022–23 Montana State Bobcats men's basketball team represented Montana State University (MSU) in the Big Sky Conference during the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Led by fourth-year head coach Danny Sprinkle, the Bobcats played their home games on campus at Brick Breeden Fieldhouse in Bozeman, Montana. They finished the season at 25–10, 15–3 in Big Sky play, to finish in second place. In the Big Sky tournament, MSU defeated Northern Colorado,[1] Weber State[2] and Northern Arizona to win the tournament championship.[3] As a result, MSU earned the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 14 seed in the East regions. They lost lost in the first round to Kansas State.[4]

Previous season

The Bobcats finished the 2021–22 regular season at 24–7 (16–4 in Big Sky, first). As the top seed in the conference tournament, they defeated Sacramento State,[5] Weber State[6] and Northern Colorado to win the title and earn the Big Sky's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.[7]

This was the Bobcats' first appearance in the NCAA tournament in 26 years. Seeded fourteenth in the West region, the Bobcats were defeated by twelfth-ranked Texas Tech in the first round[8] and finished at 27–8 overall.

Roster

2022–23 Montana State Bobcats men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Caleb Fuller 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr UC Davis Ipswich, England
G 1 Patrick McMahon 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So Colony HS Palmer, AK
G 2 Nick Gazelas 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Jacksonville College Humble, TX
F 3 Great Osobor 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 245 lb (111 kg) So Myerscough College Bradford, England
F 4 Alex Germer 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Fr Sentinel HS Missoula, MT
G 10 Darius II Brown 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS Jr Colony HS Pasadena, CA
G 11 Tyler Patterson 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So CSUN Snoqualmie, WA
F 13 Jubrile Belo 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Sr Lamar CC London, England
G 14 Carter Ash 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) So Bozeman HS Bozeman, MT
G 20 Robert III Ford 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) RS Jr Idaho State Portland, OR
G 21 RaeQuan Battle 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jr Washington Tulalip Bay, WA
F 22 Luca Colceag 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Fr FC Barcelona U18 Bilbao, Spain
G 24 Jed Miller 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr Southern California Academy Agoura Hills, CA
F 25 Sam Lecholat 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) So Sheridan HS Sheridan, WY
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: November 30, 2022

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 30, 2022*
2:00 p.m. 		Montana State Billings W 56–49  –
 Brick Breeden Fieldhouse 
Bozeman, MT
Regular season
November 7, 2021*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Grand Canyon L 54–60  0–1
 GCU Arena (7,171)
Phoenix, AZ
November 13, 2022*
5:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Long Beach State W 70–57  1–1
 Walter Pyramid (2,334)
Long Beach, CA
November 15, 2022*
7:00 p.m., P12N 		at Oregon L 51–81  1–2
 Matthew Knight Arena (5,347)
Eugene, OR
November 18, 2022*
5:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Warner Pacific W 106–64  2–2
 Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (4,207)
Bozeman, MT
November 20, 2022*
12:00 p.m., Midco+ 		at North Dakota W 81–71  3–2
 Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (1,225)
Grand Forks, ND
November 25, 2022*
2:30 p.m. 		vs. UNC Greensboro
Northern Classic 		L 66–77  3–3
 Place Bell (–)
Laval, QC
November 26, 2022*
5:00 p.m. 		vs. Quinnipiac
Northern Classic 		L 53–70  3–4
 Place Bell (–)
Laval, QC
November 27, 2022*
11:30 a.m. 		vs. Middle Tennessee
Northern Classic 		L 71–72  3–5
 Place Bell (–)
Laval, QC
November 30, 2022*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Southern Utah W 86–83  4–5
 America First Event Center (2,116)
Cedar City, UT
December 8, 2022*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		St. Thomas (MN) W 82–65  5–5
 Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (2,609)
Bozeman, MT
December 10, 2022
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Omaha W 82–54  6–5
 Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (1,975)
Bozeman, MT
December 17, 2022
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Northwest Indian College W 144–59  7–5
 Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (1,627)
Bozeman, MT
December 20, 2022*
6:30 p.m., P12N 		at No. 5 Arizona L 64–85  7–6
 McKale Center (13,606)
Tucson, AZ
Big Sky regular season
December 29, 2022
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Idaho W 72–58  8–6
(1–0) 		Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (3,172)
Bozeman, MT
December 31, 2022
2:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Eastern Washington L 67–70  8–7
(1–1) 		Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (3,232)
Bozeman, MT
January 5, 2023
6:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Northern Colorado W 77–56  9–7
(2–1) 		Bank of Colorado Arena (1,121)
Greeley, CO
January 7, 2023
2:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Northern Arizona W 69–54  10–7
(3–1) 		Findlay Toyota Court (1,062)
Flagstaff, AZ
January 12, 2023
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Idaho State W 81–68  11–7
(4–1) 		Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (2,370)
Bozeman, MT
January 14, 2023
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Weber State W 67–52  12–7
(5–1) 		Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (3,270)
Bozeman, MT
January 16, 2023
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Idaho L 70–74  12–8
(5–2) 		ICCU Arena (1,979)
Moscow, ID
January 21, 2023
7:00 p.m., ESPN+/SWX 		at Montana W 67–64  13–8
(6–2) 		Dahlberg Arena (6,374)
Missoula, MT
January 26, 2023
8:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Portland State W 75–66  14–8
(7–2) 		Viking Pavilion (1,245)
Portland, OR
January 28, 2023
8:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Sacramento State W 72–65  15–8
(8–2) 		Hornets Nest (875)
Sacramento, CA
February 2, 2023
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Northern Arizona W 69–68  16–8
(9–2) 		Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (3,005)
Bozeman, MT
February 4, 2023
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Northern Colorado W 75–62  17–8
(10–2) 		Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (3,863)
Bozeman, MT
February 9, 2023
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Weber State L 63–73  17–9
(10–3) 		Dee Events Center (4,827)
Ogden, UT
February 11, 2023
6:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Idaho State W 58–52  18–9
(11–3) 		Reed Gym (1,625)
Pocatello, ID
February 18, 2023
7:00 p.m., ESPN+/SWX 		Montana W 72–68  19–9
(12–3) 		Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (6,696)
Bozeman, MT
February 23, 2023
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Sacramento State W 60–56  20–9
(13–3) 		Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (2,411)
Bozeman, MT
February 25, 2023
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Portland State W 91–78  21–9
(14–3) 		Brick Breeden Fieldhouse (4,093)
Bozeman, MT
February 27, 2023
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Eastern Washington W 79–74  22–9
(15–3) 		Reese Court (3,353)
Cheney, WA
Big Sky tournament
March 5, 2023
8:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		(2) vs. (8) Northern Colorado
Quarterfinals 		W 84–73  23–9
 Idaho Central Arena 
Boise, ID
March 7, 2023
9:00 p.m., ESPN2 		(2) vs. (3) Weber State
Semifinals 		W 60–58 2OT 24–9
 Idaho Central Arena 
Boise, ID
March 8, 2023
9:30 p.m., ESPN2 		(2) vs. (9) Northern Arizona
Championship 		W 85–78  25–9
 Idaho Central Arena 
Boise, ID
NCAA tournament
March 17, 2023*
7:40 p.m., CBS 		(14 E) vs. (3 E) No. 15 Kansas State
First round 		L 65–77  25–10
 Greensboro Coliseum (17,150)
Greensboro, NC
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
E=East.
All times are in Mountain.

Source:[9]

References

  1. ^ "Bobcats Start Hot, Outlast Northern Colorado in the Big Sky Quarterfinals". Montana State University Athletics. March 5, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  2. ^ "Lob Pass from Darius Brown II to RaeQuan Battle Clinches Semifinal Win for Bobcats". Montana State University Athletics. March 7, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  3. ^ "BACK TO BACK: Bobcats Return to the NCAA Tournament with Big Sky Championship Victory". Montana State University Athletics. March 8, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  4. ^ "Montana State's Season Ends with 77-65 Loss to Kansas State". Montana State University Athletics. March 17, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  5. ^ Lamberty, Bill (March 10, 2022). "Defense Stands Out in Bobcat Quarterfinal Victory Over Sacramento State". Montana State University Athletics. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  6. ^ Lamberty, Bill (March 11, 2022). "Bobcats Rally to Earn Trip to Big Sky Championship Game". Montana State University Athletics. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  7. ^ Lamberty, Bill (March 12, 2022). "BOBCATS TAKE THE SKY! Montana State Tops Northern Colorado to Win Third Big Sky Tournament". Montana State University Athletics. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  8. ^ "Montana State's Season Ends with First Round Loss to Texas Tech in San Diego". Montana State University Athletics. March 18, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2024.
  9. ^ "2022-23 Men's Basketball Schedule". Montana State University Athletics. Retrieved October 30, 2024.