I’ve had the pleasure of covering a lot of great kids as the Missoulian’s Griz basketball beat writer for close to 20 years. Bryan Ellis is right there at the top of the list. Bryan came from humble beginnings in inner-city Detroit, where too many kids are swallowed up by crime and drugs. Raised by his aunt and uncle and mentored by his grandfather, Bryan escaped the city because of …

So which would the Grizzlies rather do, lose to a Final Four team like Syracuse in the Big Dance, or play in some lesser tournament? UM coach Wayne Tinkle is certain he knows the answer.
“You could take a poll of every kid in a Division I program and they’ll all tell you losing in the NCAA tournament,” Tinkle said. “I’m excited for Weber; they might get 30 wins (by playing …

Researchers at the Home Office were both bleary-eyed and teary-eyed after Montana’s loss to Syracuse on Thursday night, but they found some Visine and dug up some historical data.
Can you spell n-i-g-h-t-m-a-r-e?
Syracuse basically did anything it wanted at both ends of the floor Thursday night, overpowering Montana 81-34 in the NCAA tournament. Eight minutes into the game, Syracuse had more dunks (3) than Montana had field goals (1) and held …

Montana-Syracuse, which won’t tip off until roughly 8 p.m. (Mountain), is the final game of today’s first full day of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. That leaves plenty of time for random thoughts to bounce around an empty skull while watching the bracket get busted.
 
– Let’s see. A Hall-of-Fame coach? Check (Jim Boeheim). A point guard who should be a first-round NBA draft choice? Check (Michael Carter-Williams). Two or three other players who are projected …

Griz sophomore starting guard Jordan Gregory was with the team when it faced Wisconsin last season in Albuquerque, N.M. in the NCAA tournament, but played just one minute. He returns this season as a starter. He said he’s not feeling any addtional pressure.
“It’s something very special for me, coming from not playing too much last year,” Gregory said in Wednesday’s news conference. “Last year I was more of a spectator. …

The Tinkle family – Wayne, Lisa, Jos, Elle and Tres – were the subject of this story today in the New York Times. Wayne will guide the Griz tonight against Syracuse in a second-round game of the NCAA tournament, Jos is a senior for No. 1 seed Stanford which will play Tulsa on Sunday, Elle is a freshman for Gonzaga which will open NCAA tournament play on Saturday, and Tres …

The Home Office was up all night gathering these tidbits (the research team had to wait for the conclusion of first-round games in Dayton, right?). Here’s what the Griz are up against, and Syracuse for that matter.
Lies, damned lies and statistics. Number-crunching probably isn’t the best way to approach Montana’s NCAA tournament opener Thursday night against Syracuse. Not when Montana is still adjusting to the season-ending injury that shelved leading …

This just in from the chief researcher at the Home Office on a remote island in Puget Sound:
It didn’t take long for CBS college basketball analyst Seth Davis to deliver the kiss of death last Sunday. He took one look at the East bracket and immediately anointed Montana, a 13-seed, to upset Syracuse, a 4-seed. Syracuse can be an enigma, even to Hall of Fame coach Jim Boeheim, but it has at least three — and …

Montana 67, Weber State 64
Co-stars of the game: Will Cherry and Kareem Jamar, a duo that will be long remembered at Montana. Jamar had 20 points, five rebounds and five assists while playing all but one minute. Cherry added 18 points, three assists and three steals and hit a crucial 3-pointer with less than a minute to play on an assist from Jamar.
The two shared a hug at center court …

No. 1 seed Montana (24-6) vs. No. 2 seed Weber State (26-5), 7 p.m., Dahlberg Arena
Radio: KGVO 1290 AM, KVWE 101.5 FM.
TV: ESPNU
A quick breakdown of the personnel:
Backcourt
This is the Grizzlies’ strength with three-time all-league pick Will Cherry, Big Sky MVP Kareem Jamar and sophomore Jordan Gregory, an honorable mention all-league pick. All three will need to play well for the Griz to match a Weber State bteam that’s playing …