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Montana's WBB 65-63 last-second W over NDak St.

grizzlyjournal

Well-known member
Finally figured out how to get an on-demand stream of the GrizWBB win over North Dakota State (time viewing conflict, since I was at the Griz-Omaha game). Some thoughts... ;)

The Summit Conference has been the top-ranked D1 mid-major women's hoops league over the past 8-10 years, with South Dakota, South Dakota State, North Dakota State usually duking it out at the top. This season's pre-season rankings had South Dakota, South Dakota State, North Dakota State picked 1-3, with North Dakota at 9 (out of 10 teams). Currently, SDSU is ranked 6th and SDak 11th in the College Insider https://collegeinsider.com/womens-mid-major-top-25 poll... with Northern Iowa at 25th (for reference ;) ). Big Sky teams currently ranked include Idaho State at 13 and Idaho getting votes (good for 37th).

So, Montana's swing through North Dakota gives a decent picture of how coach Brian Holsinger has the GrizWBB playing early in the season. Montana's 21pt win over North Dakota looks pretty decent in comparison to Montana State's 4-pt. loss (though NDak would probably be a second-tier Big Sky team). The Cats were earlier steamrolled by SDSU. Two nights prior to Montana's 65-63 win over the "Bizzowne," Northern Iowa beat NDSU by 13.

What most impressed me about this early season win was how Montana coaches made adjustments to the different looks thrown at them by the Bison. In particular, after a tight first quarter, NDSU jumped out to a 12-pt second quarter lead on combo full-court zone pressure and a zone defense (the first zone the Griz have seen this season). Montana easily handled all full-court pressure, but did struggle with double-team jump traps applied by NDSU zone D. The Griz responded with an outstanding 3rd quarter zone offense that got them within two (47-45) by the end of the 3rd.

Individually, Kylie Frohlich (3-4 for 6 pts, 3 rbd) and Dani Bartsch (3-4 for 6 pts, 3 asst & 6! rbds) anchored the high post masterfully for Montana's zone offense. The high post O gave Carmen Gfeller room to flex (8-10 for 18 pts & 10 rbds) in the low post, though she had 7 turnovers from jump trap dts.

Katerina Tsineke had by far her best game as a Griz. She was aggressive on O, and looked very comfortable. She's fitting in well at point, and worked very well with both Sophia and Sammy on the perimeter. Her 11 first-half points (on drives into the paint) kept the Griz in the game early. Conversely, Abby Anderson had a frustrating game & was neutralized with three early (phantom) fouls. Regardless, Montana out-rebounded NDSU, largely because of Dani Bartsch (6 boards)... holding the Bison to only 10 second-chance points.

Another coaching adjustment: In the first half, the Griz easily handled early NDSU pressure, but then backed off to run offense. In the second half, Montana started applying offensive pressure immediately after/while beating the zone. The stats show the Griz with only 4 fast break points, but many of their 16 second-chance points came from early O. That forced the Bison to back off of of full court pressure through much of the fourth quarter.

Montana's ability to spread the floor without scoring from the perimeter (the Bison would not let Sammy get a decent look) was the difference. The Griz ended with a 34-28 margin from buckets in the paint, and a 16-10 margin on second-chance points.... a very good sign for this team that's building a new identity with a new coaching staff.

As a result: Montana controlled the game through most of the 4th quarter and actually came within a couple of missed bunnies from pulling away. This could have been a 6-to-8 point win. Anderson, despite her frustrations, got a late 4th quarter block&steal that allowed Montana a 2-3 pt margin down the stretch. The game-winner by Gfeller was a perfectly run fake to Sammy Fatkin (who was doubled up) & then a pass to Carmen in the paint, where she posted up back-to-the-bucket for a perfect shot over her defender with 2 seconds remaining.

I posted this game in detail because I realized it was a team-defining win when I watched it last night. Montana could have lost by 10-15 points after NDSU jumped ahead on the strength of its zone. Instead, they made changes, got critical efforts from Kylie and Dani, and beat a good team on its home floor. The next two games (Grand Canyon Classic) are probably not going to be streamed... but I think all are winnable & could put the GrizWBB in decent position for Sac State and Northern Colorado next weekend.

I didn't mention Sammy or Sophia... but they were solid. With Sophia playing the two, I believe her game is going to expand. Sammy gives Montana a potent weak side attack and is showing signs of being a game-breaker on defense. Finally... it was really fun to watch a Montana WBB team celebrate a big win with a mid-court group hug. That they're bonding so early could have impact earlier (rather than later) on in the season. Go Griz.
 
I like your analysis! Now I'm scouring ESPN+ to see if there's a link to watch the game :) Any clue to where you watched?
 
GrizBaba said:
I like your analysis! Now I'm scouring ESPN+ to see if there's a link to watch the game :) Any clue to where you watched?

Yes. NDSU has a Sidearm Sports page identical to Montana's GoGriz/watch page and is linked to the Summit Conference: https://thesummitleague.org

Navigate to the conference site, click on Media Center at the top right of the page, then click on Watch Live/On-Demand. Here's a direct link: https://thesummitleague.org/watch/?Archive=154

The game is available on-demand, but you have to navigate carefully to the proper sport, school and category. Also, be careful with Sidearm Sports. You have to open an account, where you use your email as your ID, Make certain to keep track of the password; Sidearm has a wacky setup for logins (a different log in for every conference Sidearm represents). THEN, there's a pay gate for the game $6.95. For me, the cost was a bargain, because it was really enjoyable to watch the GrizWBB figure out how to beat a pretty good NDSU team.
 
Gfeller wins big sky player of the week.

https://gogriz.com/news/2021/11/23/womens-basketball-gfeller-named-big-sky-player-of-the-week.aspx
 
Gfeller is such a mature, calming influence, and a great bball player. That's great she was recognized like that!
 
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