2022 Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournament explained

Year:2022
Conference:Big Sky Conference
City:Boise, Idaho
Arena:Idaho Central Arena
Teams:11
Champions:Montana State
Titlecount:3rd
Coach:Danny Sprinkle
Coachcount:1st
Gender:Men's
Division:I
Television:ESPN+, ESPNU (final)

The 2022 Big Sky Conference men's basketball tournament was the postseason tournament for the Big Sky Conference, held March 9–12 at Idaho Central Arena in Boise, Idaho. It was the 47th edition of the conference tourney, which debuted in 1976.

Top-seeded Montana State defeated third seed Northern Colorado 87–66 in the final and received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. It was the Bobcats' first NCAA appearance in 26 years and their fourth overall.

Second seed Southern Utah lost its opener in their final Big Sky tournament; they joined the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) in the summer.

Seeds

The eleven teams were seeded by conference record, with a tiebreaker system; the top five teams received a first-round bye.[1]

SeedSchoolRecordTiebreaker 1Tiebreaker 2Tiebreaker 3Tiebreaker 4
1Montana State16–4
2Southern Utah14–6
3Northern Colorado13–71–1 vs Weber State1–1 vs Montana State2–0 vs Southern Utah
4Weber State13–71–1 vs Northern Colorado1–1 vs Montana State1–1 vs Southern Utah
5Montana11–92–0 vs Eastern Washington
6Eastern Washington11–90–2 vs Montana
7Portland State10–10
8Sacramento State6–141–1 vs Idaho0–2 vs Montana State0–2 vs Southern Utah1–1 vs Northern Colorado
9Idaho6–141–1 vs Sacramento State 0–2 vs Montana State0–2 vs Southern Utah0–2 vs Northern Colorado
10Idaho State5–151–1 vs Northern Arizona0–2 vs Montana State0–2 vs Southern Utah1–1 vs Northern Colorado
11Northern Arizona5–151–1 vs Idaho State0–2 vs Montana State0–2 vs Southern Utah0–2 vs Northern Colorado

Schedule

SessionGameTimeMatchupScoreTelevisionAttendance
First round – Wednesday, March 9
119:30 amNo. 8 Sacramento State vs. No. 9 Idaho57–54ESPN+1,403
212:00 pmNo. 7 Portland State vs. No. 10 Idaho State66–521,498
32:30 pmNo. 6 Eastern Washington vs. No. 11 Northern Arizona78–751,175
Quarterfinals – Thursday, March 10
2412:00 pmNo. 1 Montana State vs. No. 8 Sacramento State83-61ESPN+1,334
52:30 pmNo. 4 Weber State vs. No. 5 Montana68-56
365:30 pmNo. 2 Southern Utah vs. No. 7 Portland State65-772,096
78:00 pmNo. 3 Northern Colorado vs. No. 6 Eastern Washington68–67
Semifinals – Friday, March 11
485:30 pmNo. 1 Montana State vs. No. 4 Weber State69–66ESPN+2,535
98:00 pmNo. 7 Portland State vs. No. 3 Northern Colorado79–863,037
Championship game – Saturday, March 12
5106:00 pmNo. 1 Montana State vs. No. 3 Northern Colorado87–66ESPNU4,134

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2022 Big Sky Basketball Championships - Big Sky Conference. 2022-02-15. bigskyconf.com. en.