MISSOULA — Basketball season is officially here for the Montana programs, with the Griz men and Lady Griz having started their seasons once again in the pursuit of Big Sky Conference championships.
The Griz men were picked as preseason conference favorites in the coaches poll after the Grizzlies advanced to the conference title game last March.
"It's a positive. I think that it's a sign of respect," UM head coach Travis DeCuire said. "No one's sure, right? There's a lot of teams in the conference that really don't know how good they will or won't be, and I think some of those votes came from just our consistency over the years. And so I appreciate that.
"But sometimes you don't mind having a little something that you could pin up on a wall to motivate your team with. So it works out either way."
At 2-1 to start the season, it's an almost entirely different team from a season ago, though, as UM bid farewell to a number of experienced players and seniors under DeCuire, who enters his 11th season as UM's head coach. The two wins UM has gotten this season put DeCuire at 203 career wins as head coach of the Griz, as he has a promising chance to become the all-time winningest coach in program history, trailing only George Dahlberg who amassed 221 victories leading Montana.
This year, there are nine new faces on the Griz team, with varying levels of experience, who will now step into open roles.
That includes senior guard Austin Patterson, who came to UM from Big Sky foe Sacramento State and now slides in as an immediate veteran thanks to his experience.
"I think we have really good chemistry. Definitely one of the better teams I've been on with chemistry," Patterson said. "We got nine new guys, so it's the way college basketball is nowadays. So you gotta mesh super quickly. It's only three months before you actually start games. So I think we're doing a really good job."
Those guys will work alongside core members senior guard Brandon Whitney, sophomore guard Money Williams and senior forward Te'Jon Sawyer who all return hoping to get the Griz back atop the Big Sky.
"Definitely learned from last year — I know I did getting to the Big Sky championship," Whitney said. "That was my first time getting there. I definitely learned a lot within that game, and I think we brought that into this season."
The Lady Griz were picked third in both preseason conference polls entering the season, as Montana was a semifinal team a year ago at the conference tournament.
Between that run and being one of the top offenses in the league, the Lady Griz see positives and growth they can build on to take the next step this season.
"We have a lot younger team than we've had in the past," UM senior forward Dani Bartsch said. "But with that comes a lot more growth that we are capable with. And so just, you know, trying to find who can fit in what role, you know, bring out the best in each of them. The sky's the limit for this team, for sure."
The Lady Griz are 1-1 to start the season, and Bartsch, junior guard Mack Konig, senior guard MJ Bruno and junior forward Alex Pirog return as the most experienced players on the team, and they'll lead a group of young players and new transfers within the program.
"Big thing for people to learn coming into it, especially freshmen, is just that you don't have to be perfect," Konig said. "Right now, there's this expectation that a lot of people have to be ready and can't make mistakes. But, you know, the preseason and what we're doing right now is so you can be prepared for later on, so the season's long and just have grace with yourself."
It's a long season ahead with expectations high, as Montana looks to find its way back into Big Sky title contention.
"Our team looks different. We're definitely more defensive oriented in general," fourth-year Lady Griz head coach Brian Holsinger said. "I think we'll be a better defensive team, whether that's this next week or in a month, it's hard to say. Basketball is such a long season. What we were early last season looked different than we were later. And so this team is going to continue to develop as the season goes on with the new pieces."
Montana men's basketball roster for the 2024-25 season
No. 0, Money Williams, SO, 6-foot-4, guard, Oakland, CA
No. 1, Kai Johnson, SR, 6-foot-4, guard, Olympia, WA
No. 2, Chase Henderson, SO, 6-foot-0, guard, Des Moines, IA
No. 3, Malik Moore, JR, 6-foot-5, guard, Ventura, CA
No. 4, Tyler Thompson, FR, 6-foot-6, guard, Fairfield, CA
No. 5, Amari Jedkins, R-SO, 6-foot-7, forward, Racine, WI
No. 8, Jeremiah Dargan, JR, 6-foot-4, guard, Concord, CA
No. 11, Joe Pridgen, GR, 6-foot-5, guard, Winchendon, MA
No. 12, Brandon Whitney, GR, 6-foot-1, guard, Mission Hills, CA
No. 14, Zack Davidson, R-FR, 6-foot-9, forward, Santa Ana, CA
No. 15, Jalen Foy, JR, 6-foot-7, forward, Las Vegas, NV
No. 20, Austin Patterson, SR, 6-foot-3, guard, Sonora, CA
No. 22, Adam Shoff, GR, 6-foot-1, guard, Redding, CA
No. 23, Connor Dick, SO, 6-foot-3, guard, Missoula, MT
No. 32, Te'Jon Sawyer, SR, 6-foot-8, forward, San Franciso, CA
No. 50, Jensen Bradtke, R-FR, 6-foot-10, forward, Sandringham, Victoria, Australia
Montana women's basketball roster for the 2024-25 season
No. 1, Macy Donarski, R-FR, 5-foot-8, guard, La Crosse, WI
No. 2, Mack Konig, JR, 5-foot-9, guard, Milton, Ontario, Canada
No. 3, Draya Wacker, R-FR, 5-foot-8, guard, Melstone, MT
No. 5, Tyler McCliment-Call, GR, 6-foot-0, guard, Spokane, WA
No. 10, Avery Waddington, FR, 6-foot-3, guard, Coeur d'Alene, ID
No. 11, Aby Shubert, SO, 5-foot-8, guard, Kasson, MN
No. 12, Chloe Larsen, FR, 5-foot-10, guard, Missoula, MT
No. 13, Izabella Zingaro, R-JR, 6-foot-4, forward, Bolton, Ontario, Canada
No. 14, Lauren Dick, JR, 5-foot-10, guard, Missoula, MT
N. 15, Imogen Greenslade, R-SR, 6-foot-4, center, Sydney, Australia
No. 22, Kavanah Lene, FR, 5-foot-9, guard, Christchurch, New Zealand
No. 23, MJ Bruno, SR, 5-foot-11, guard, Spokane, WA
No. 33, Adria Lincoln, SO, 6-foot-1, guard, Monroe, WA
No. 34, Alex Pirog, JR, 6-foot-3, forward, Highlands Ranch, CO
No. 40, Dani Bartsch, SR, 6-foot-2, forward, Helena, MT
