PREVIEW: A good friend told me this week that a lot of Grizzly fans think the “problem” with the Grizzlies is that their coach, Wayne Tinkle, is just too nice of a guy to get this Montana team on a winning track.
There’s no doubt, I agree, that Tinkle is a truly nice person. But I have vivid memories of the way Tinkle played as an all-conference post in the late 1980s, and “nice guy” was not a term that was used to describe his powerful style of play. Nah. That’s not it.
But the statement got me thinking about the Griz. Because this is a team of talented players who are all “nice guys.” Is the one missing link a tough-as-nails blue-collar kid that will not allow his team to lose?
I think they have him. I think that kid is Cameron Rundles. And there he was, with 57 seconds remaining and the Griz trailing by two. His first shot took four slow-motion, agonizing bounces on the rim before it caromed off. I just think it was a bad bounce. Nothing more. The problem was that 13 of those shots, most taken by other players, also bounced away last Sunday.
PHOTO: Forward Jordan Hasquet posts up on Weber State's Daviin Davis. Hasquet scored 16 points and had 6 rebounds in the Grizzlies 68-67 loss Sunday.
There are other “problems,” which are not luck-related. it seems true that the Griz are a very capable team -- on paper and on the floor -- that suffers inexplicable mental lapses. We have seen this Montana team -- with dreaded predictability -- simply wilt in the final minutes of game after game. And the pattern is the same, particularly when an explanation for losing was, because good free throw shooters simply missed a bunch of “free” shots.
Nonetheless, several games have turned agonizingly on tough luck or an official’s “no-call.” Good luck for them; bad luck for us. They say it all evens out over a season. If so, the Griz are due.
I guess we’ll see Thursday. Will one player step up? Will the ball finally bounce the right way? And might it turn their season around? If so, then I’ll be the first to say it couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of guys.
MONTANA v.s EASTERN WASHINGTON
Game time is 7:05 p.m., with radio coverage provided by KGVO and announcer Mick Holien. TV -- Fans with PCs and Internet access can view a video stream of the game from Big Sky Television (www.bigskytv.org) for a fee. Those who have macs, like me, are out of luck.
THE GAME: Eastern Washington at University of Montana, at 7:05 p.m.
RECORDS: Eastern Washington is 9-12 (3-3). The Eagles got their first conference win of the season Jan 17 with a 91-85 win at Northern Colorado.
The Eagles have WINS against UC Riverside (59-51), Alaska-Anchorage (64-62), Univ. of Missouri at Kansas City (65-54), Cascade (91-59), Portland (84-75), Portland State (58-57), Sacramento State (76-52), and Northern Colorado (91-85). The Eagles have LOST to Washington State (68-41), New Mexico (92-57), Washington (82-68), Virginia Tech (69-52), Michigan (61-53), Santa Clara (57-66), Kansas (85-47), Idaho (58-49), UCSB (58-51), Northern Arizona (79-75), Idaho State(58-56), and Weber State (74-64).
Montana takes a 7-11 (1-4) record into the game with losses to Gonzaga, Washington State, Cal State Fullerton (2), Portland, Pacific, Santa Clara, Montana State, Northern Arizona, Idaho State and Weber State. The Grizzlies have beaten Colorado State (75-39), Montana State Northern (72-47), South Dakota State (70-61), Air Force (59-57), Mississippi Valley State (69-62) and Montana Tech (91-36). Last Game: Lost 68-67 at home to Weber State.
The Grizzlies are 2-9 since claiming second place in the Washington State Cougar Classic over Thanksgiving weekend, and 1-4 in conference, a mere 1/2 game ahead of Sacramento State.
THE COACH: Kirk Earlywine was hired as the head coach at Eastern Washington in June and had the formidable task to rebuild the entire team after previous coach Mike Burns’ departure. Earlywine has paid his dues as a division 1 assistant, serving as an assistant to Rick Majerus at Ball State and Utah for six years before spending two years at Central Michigan and three at Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Sandwiched into those stints was a one-year position at Division II Peiffer University, where his team was 21-8. Earlywine was head assistant to Joe Cravens at Weber State from 1999-2006, and -- after Cravens departed at WSU -- served as Benny Moss’ assistant at UNC Wilmington before getting the job at Eastern.
HISTORY: Montana leads the series 49-39. The Griz have a 35-15 record against the Eagles since they joined the Big Sky in the1983-84 season, and hold a 15-7 edge in Cheney, an 18-7 margin in Missoula, and are 2-0 against the Eagles in neutral-court post-season play.
PERSONNEL: Eastern features two of the Big Sky Conference's leading scorers in senior Kellen Williams (fifth, 13.3) and Adris DeLeon (seventh, 12.6). Williams is also third in rebounding (8.9), eighth in field goal shooting (.525), seventh in steals (1.15) and first in minutes played (36.0). DeLeon is sixth in assists (3.3) and eighth in free throw percentage (.765). Six-foot-8 freshman Milan Stanojevic is a pure shooter and leads the Big Sky with 51 three-pointers made (2.6 per game) and is seventh in steals (1.15).
With his eighth double-double against Northern Colorado on Jan. 17, Williams has led Eastern in rebounding in 19 of 20 games. Williams has also scored in double figures in 16 total games this season and has been EWU's leading scorer five times.
DeLeon appears to be coming into his own recently, having scored 42 points in the Eagles’ OT win at Northern Colorado. DeLeon has been described as a “quick” Bryan Ellis.
THE TEAM: EWU appears to be a team of stark contrasts. The Eagles were picked to occupy a bottom rung in the Big Sky and finished non-conference with a 5-9 record. But the Eagles stunned Portland State in their first conference game and have played well since that win. At 3-3, the Eagles are in the thick of the fray. The Eagles reside near the bottom of the conference in most statistical categories, but -- behind the spirited leadership of juco transfer DeLeon -- have built an impressive +0.65 turnover margin and make a second-ranked eight 3-pointers per game. The Eagles are somewhat undersized, don’t have very impressive rebounding stats, shoot only 34 percent from three point range, have an unimpressive 40.4 field goal percentage overall, and have the second-lowest per-game scoring average at 62.9. But the Eagles have played tough in every conference game, and can be expected to continue that style of play.
HOW TO BEAT THE EAGLES
On defense -- Slow down Ardis DeLeon. At 6’-4,” Kellen Williams has the profile of a wing, but is one of the best rebounders in the conference and is dangerous all over the floor. He scored the winning field goal against Portland State and Eagles want the ball in his hands when the game is on the line. But it may be more important for the Griz to neutralize DeLeon, who is an excellent ball handler (much like Dezmon Harris), penetrates the key very effectively, and is responsible for the assists that lead to getting Williams open and to Milan Stanojevic’s success from three-point range.
On offense -- The Eagles are a team with a profile similar to Idaho State. If the Griz get behind early the Eagles will be very difficult to beat. EWU appears to have the same vulnerability in the low blocks as ISU. It’ll be critical that the Griz get the ball to Andrew Strait EARLY in the offense and -- when the Eagles collapse on Andrew just like every other Big Sky team has -- the big guy needs to get it to an open shooter. If the Eagles start collapsing on Montana’s inside game, it’ll be important for Ryan Staudacher, Cameron Rundles and Matt Martin to shoot. Right now I don’t care if the Griz perimeter players miss... I think they need to realize how important it its to keep shooting. If they do, the shots will start falling. I’d love to start hearing Montana fans start yelling at these guys to quit flinching and shoot.
PHOTOS: Griz post Andrew Strait goes up for a shot against Weber State. (below) Montana guard 
Ceylon Elgin-Taylor penetrates into
the key against Weber State. ET made a pass for an assist on the play.
Individuals -- Certainly Montana fans have seen how Brian Qvale changes games on defense. It won’t be long before he has the confidence and experience to do the same on offense. Had Qvale not collected his fourth foul early in the second half against Weber State, the game could have been much different. The more Brian plays, the better he -- and Montana -- become. A a big plus from Brian: he’s tough (I don’t say that glibly). Montana’s season may hinge on the “appearance” of a game-changer. I say Brian is the guy the Griz need to step up big in the paint.
Lastly -- It’s late in the season for a major change at point guard. But If Ceylon Elgin-Taylor is the man, then he’s got to be willing to step up when the game is on the line. He had that opportunity during the final seconds of Montana’s loss to Weber State, but passed the ball. The more he actively assumes control, the more open the Griz shooters will become. Take charge, ET! There are a lot of Montana fans who are behind you every play of the game.
HEALTH: Good.
