FARMINGTON, Utah (Feb. 5, 2025) – The Big Sky Conference men’s basketball calendar enters the back half of competition this week, as every team has played at least half of its league schedule.
Below is the latest news and notes from around the Big Sky Conference.
#BigSkyMBB Notebook (Feb. 5, 2025)
Idaho State’s Darling Named Player of the Week
Idaho State’s Dylan Darling stuffed the stat sheet for three-consecutive games, leading to him being named Big Sky Men’s Basketball Player of the Week. The Spokane native averaged 25.67 points per game, totaling 77 against Eastern Washington, Idaho and Northern Colorado. Additionally, he dished out 19 assists, for an average of 6.3 per game.
He also was effective rebounding the basketball, pulling down 5.0 per contest. Darling dropped 29 points on Eastern Washington, in a game where he also had nine rebounds and six assists in a Bengal victory. In a rivalry matchup with Idaho on Saturday, he dropped in 28 and dished out nine assists. Despite losing to Northern Colorado, Darling kept up his efficiency last night with 20 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals against the current Big Sky favorites.
With the title, he becomes the 12
th different player this season to earn Men’s Basketball Player of the Week.
Stat Leaders
Sitting at third in the nation for scoring, Northern Arizona’s Trent McLaughlin remains the Big Sky’s top scorer with a 21.8 points per game average.
Leading the nation in rebounds per game, along with the Big Sky Conference, Northern Arizona’s Carson Towt is pulling down 12.8 rebounds per game on average. Idaho State’s Jake O’Neil also holds a strong spot nationally, pulling down 10.4 per contest.
Portland State’s Qiant Myers leads the Big Sky in assists per game, dishing out 6.6 on average. That’s good enough to put him ninth in the nation.
Idaho State’s Evan Otten leads the Big Sky in blocks with an average of 2.5 swats per contest. That number puts him 11
th in the nation.
Eastern Washington’s Nic McClain and Weber State’s Blaise Threatt are tied for the league-lead in steals, both forcing 2.1 turnovers via steal on average per contest.
Northern Colorado leads the Big Sky in total team offense with an average of 81.8 points per game.
Sacramento State is holding opponents to the lowest point total on average, allowing just 68.4 points per game.
Standings Breakdown
Sitting at 9-1 in Big Sky play, the Northern Colorado Bears sit on top of the league standings. The Bears are 10-1 at home, and 17-6 overall.
In second position, Montana holds an 8-2 Big Sky record.
The Bears and Grizzlies will meet in Greeley on Thursday evening. Northern Colorado won the first matchup in Missoula 81-57. The rematch will stream live on ESPN+ at 6 p.m. MT.
Portland State sits in third place solo with a 5-4 Big Sky record. After the Vikings, Idaho, Idaho State and Montana State are all 5-5 through 10 Big Sky games.
#BigSkyinBoise
The 2025 Big Sky Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships take place on March 8-12 at Idaho Central Arena in Boise, Idaho, home to Starch Madness for the seventh consecutive year. The tournament champions will receive an automatic berth to their respective NCAA Tournaments and represent the Big Sky in March Madness later in the month.
This Week in Big Sky Basketball
The Big Sky Conference, in partnership with Scripps Sports, is proud to announce the launch of “This Week in Big Sky Basketball” which will highlight the league’s exciting brand of basketball and gear up fans for Starch Madness in Boise, Idaho.
The half-hour show will be hosted by the Big Sky’s Meghan Robinson and will feature highlights, analysis and special interviews from head coaches, student-athletes and voices from around the league.
The show premieres on Jan. 22 airing each Wednesday on the Big Sky’s YouTube channel with an additional broadcast of the show on select Scripps Sports linear stations throughout the league’s footprint, as well as digitally on MontanaSports.com.
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This Week's Schedule (Mountain Time Zone)
Thursday, February 6
Montana State at Northern Arizona // ESPN+ // 6:00 PM
Montana at Northern Colorado // ESPN+ // 6:00 PM
Portland State at Idaho // ESPN+ // 7:00 PM
Sacramento State at Eastern Washington // ESPN+ // 7:00 PM
Saturday, February 8
Sacramento State at Idaho // ESPN+ // 3:00 PM
Portland State at Eastern Washington // ESPN+ // 3:00 PM
Montana at Northern Arizona // ESPN+ // 6:00 PM
Montana State at Northern Colorado // ESPN+ // 6:00 PM
Idaho State at Weber State // ESPN+ // 7:00 PM