Big Sky Conference

Montana State women’s hoops unveils 2016-17 schedule

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MONTANA STATE SPORTS INFORMATION

The 2016-17 edition of Montana State women’s basketball will begin its season right where it left of from the 2015-16 campaign. Following a pair of exhibition games, the Bobcats will travel to the University of Utah on November 12. MSU finished its season against the Utes in the first round of last season’s WNIT in Huntsman Center on March 18.

The Bobcats, who finished last season 21-10 overall and 14-4 in Big Sky action while claiming the first outright title in school history, will complete its tour of the Beehive State with a stop at Utah State on November 14. MSU will open its home season with Frontier Conference foe Great Falls on November 20, before closing out the month at UC Davis and at the Tiger Turkey Tip-Off Thanksgiving Tournament hosted by Pacific in Stockton, California. MSU will also face Santa Clara at Pacific, where former MSU assistant head coach Amy Starr holds the same position at UP.

“I like the fact we’re opening on road, against a Pac-12 opponent,” said MSU 12th year head coach Tricia Binford. “We will be challenged playing a variety of teams from different conferences and we will rely on our upperclassmen early with how tough the preseason schedule looks.”

Montana State will open December hosting Carroll College and Seattle U, before venturing on the road for a single game at Portland on December. The Bobcats close out its non-conference slate hosting Cal Poly on December 20. MSU’s game against Carroll College on December 2 will feature the unfurling of its 2016 Big Sky Conference championship banner.

“We’re excited for the Carroll College game,” Binford said. “We had a great fan base last year and they made such an impact in our games. We were able to reward them by going undefeated in Big Sky play in Worthington Arena. The Carroll College game will give us a chance to celebrate last season’s successes and build a springboard for the 2017 league season.”

MSU will begin defense of its regular-season BSC title at Weber State on December 29. The Bobcats will open its Big Sky home season hosting Eastern Washington on January 5. The annual Brawl of the Wild series against Montana will be held February 4 in Missoula and February 25 in Bozeman.

“Like the preseason, I like the fact we’re opening up conference play on the road,” Binford said. “It will give us the opportunity to learn how to understand and navigate playing in different conference environments. Championships are won on the road.”

The Big Sky Conference Tournament is slated for March 6-11 in Reno, Nevada.

MONTANA STATE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL 2016-17 SCHEDULE

NOVEMBER

3 Rocky Mountain (Exhibition) Bozeman 5 p.m.

5 Colorado Christian (Exhibition) Bozeman 7 p.m.

12 at Utah Salt Lake City, UT 2 p.m.

14 at Utah State Logan, UT 8:15 p.m.

20 Great Falls Bozeman 2 p.m.

23 at UC Davis Davis, CA 8 p.m.

25-26 at Pacific Tournament Stockton, CA

25 at Pacific 7:30 p.m.

26 vs. Santa Clara 2:30 p.m.

DECEMBER

2 Carroll College Bozeman 7 p.m.

4 Seattle U Bozeman 2 p.m.

11 at Portland Portland, OR 1 p.m.

20 Cal Poly Bozeman 7 p.m.

29 at Weber State* Ogden, UT 7 p.m.

31 at Idaho State* Pocatello, ID 2 p.m.

JANUARY

5 Eastern Washington* Bozeman 7 p.m.

7 Idaho* Bozeman 2 p.m.

12 at North Dakota* Grand Forks, ND 6 p.m.

14 at Northern Colorado* Greeley, CO 2 p.m.

19 Sacramento State* Bozeman 7 p.m.

21 Portland State* Bozeman 2 p.m.

26 at Idaho* Moscow, ID 8 p.m.

28 at Eastern Washington* Cheney, WA 3 p.m.

FEBRUARY

4 at Montana* Missoula 2 p.m.

9 Northern Arizona* Bozeman 7 p.m.

11 Southern Utah* Bozeman 2 p.m.

16 at Portland State* Portland, OR 8 p.m.

18 at Sacramento State* Sacramento, CA 3 p.m.

25 Montana* Bozeman 2 p.m.

MARCH

1 Idaho State* Bozeman 7 p.m.

3 Weber State* Bozeman 2 p.m.

6-11 at Big Sky Conference Tournament Reno, NV TBD

*Big Sky Conference Game; All Times Mountain; Dates/Times Subject to Change.

About Colter Nuanez

Colter Nuanez is the co-founder and senior writer for Skyline Sports. After spending six years in the newspaper industry with stops at the Missoulian, the Ellensburg Daily Record and the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, the former Washington Newspaper Association Sportswriter of the Year and University of Montana Journalism School graduate ('09) has cultivated a deep passion for sports journalism during his 13-year career covering the Big Sky Conference. In August of 2014, Colter and brother Brooks merged their passions of writing and art to found Skyline Sports.

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