Weber State A Heavy Favorite in Men's Hoops

10/19/2011 3:25:55 PM

Jon Kasper - Big Sky Conference

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OGDEN, UTAH (Oct. 19, 2011) - Randy Rahe’s Weber State Wildcats are the heavy favorite to win the 2011-2012 Big Sky Conference men’s basketball championship.

The media and coaches both selected the Wildcats as an overwhelming favorite in the preseason polls, released on Wednesday. This is the fourth straight season Weber State has been selected by the coaches and media as the preseason favorite.

Weber State was a unanimous selection in the coaches’ poll, earning eight first-place votes and 64 total points. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own teams. In the media poll, Weber State received 19 of the 24 first-place votes and 210 points.

Montana, which lost to Northern Colorado in the 2011 Big Sky Championship, was a solid No. 2 selection in both polls. Montana earned one first-place vote in the coaches’ poll and 56 total points. Wayne Tinkle’s Grizzlies received four first-place votes from the media and 193 total points.

Defending champion Northern Colorado was tabbed third in the media poll and fourth in the coaches’ poll. B.J. Hill’s Bears received one first-place vote in the media poll and 141 total points. In the coaches’ poll, the Bears earned 41 points, one point behind Eastern Washington.

Weber State finished the 2010-11 season 11-5 in conference and 18-14 overall, despite losing 2009-10 Big Sky MVP Damian Lillard to a season-ending injury nine games into the season.

Lillard, a 6-guard-2 guard from Oakland, Calif., returns to the hold with two years of eligibility remaining. He has averaged 16.2 points per game in 71 career games. All-Conference senior forward Kyle Bullinger and All-Conference junior Scott Bamforth also return. Bamforth, who averaged 12.2 points per game and shot .464 percent from 3-point range, was the Big Sky Newcomer of the Year in 2010-11. Freshman of the Year Byron Fulton also returns, as does senior forward Darin Mahoney, who started 30 games as a junior.

Weber State has won three regular-season championships, captured the postseason tournament in 2006-07, and compiled a 60-20 conference record in five seasons under Rahe.

Montana, which won the 2009-10 Big Sky Tournament, returns four starters off a team that finished 12-4 in conference and 21-11 overall. Junior guard Will Cherry averaged 14.1 points, 4.3 assist and 2.6 steals per game en route to earning All-Conference honors in 2010-11. Senior forward Derek Selvig also returns to the starting lineup, along with senior forward Art Steward and sophomore guard/forward Kareem Jamar.

Northern Colorado returns just one starter from its NCAA Tournament team a year ago. Led by league MVP Devon Beitzel, the Bears finished 13-3 in conference and 21-11 overall. The Bears won their first regular-season Big Sky title, and beat Montana in the Big Sky Championship game to advance to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. The Bears return seven letterwinners, including junior guard Elliott Lloyd and senior forward/center Mike Proctor.

Eastern Washington, under the direction of first-year coach Jim Hayford returns four starters, including junior guards Kevin Winford and Jeffrey Forbes. The Eagles were tabbed third by the coaches and sixth by the media.

Portland State was tabbed fifth in both polls. Northern Arizona was selected fourth by the media and sixth by the coaches. Montana State, Sacramento State and Idaho State rounded out both polls.

The top six teams will qualify for the Big Sky Championship. The title game is slated for Wednesday, March 7, and will be televised on ESPN2. 

Media Preseason Poll

Coaches’ Preseason Poll