Big Sky Rankings — A time of giving

    In the spirit of Christmas Eve, the committee (of one) thought it would bestow gifts to the Big Sky’s 11 men’s basketball teams. Considering how Northern Colorado and Portland State are the lone programs sporting winning records after the first month and a half, it’s the least we could do.
    Some squads need sizeable gifts; a couple only minor tweaks. Just know this, we considered everyone with diligent care and feel they’ve received the best of what the holidays are about.
    Without further ado.

1. Northern Colorado 6-3
Last week: No. 1
    The Bears retain the top of the perch after besting UC Riverside 63-60 and losing to a good Wyoming squad 72-59 in Laramie, Wyo.
    The gift: A tougher schedule. We imagine Northern Colorado is enjoying its 6-3 record. They’ve won all their home games (five) to this point. Only Portland State has enjoyed more quality time on its home court than the Bears, who’s strength of schedule is ranked 285th in the country, according to CBSSports.com.
    But this gift isn’t really about UNC. It’s about the committee (of one) and its frustration that the No. 1 team in our rankings has the weakest strength of schedule in the conference. North Dakota (No. 9), Eastern Washington (No. 74), Southern Utah (No. 53) and Idaho State (No. 107) have all gone through the rigors of tough road game after tough road game.
    UNC has had some of that, but it’s been a dainty schedule overall. So, yeah, we’re one team in, and already we’ve given out more gifts to ourselves than anyone else. We promise to straighten out from here.

2. Montana 4-4
Last week: No. 2
    In their third straight game in Missoula, the Grizzlies pulled away late to down UM-Western 91-74.
    The gift: Some big men who can rebound. Only Southern Utah has been hammered worse on the boards than Montana. The Grizzlies are at a -9.1 rebounding margin, and when it comes to grabbing rebounds of the offensive variety … well, let’s frame it in perspective. Montana is averaging 5.1 offensive rebounds a game. Idaho State’s Jeffrey Solarin nabs 4.7 a contest by himself.

3. Eastern Washington 5-5
Last week: No. 3
    Eastern led at halftime, but Seton Hall recovered to upend the Eagles 92-70 in Newark, N.J., Sunday, the fourth loss in five games for EWU.
    The gift: We’re going a little out there, a little make believe with this gift. The committee (of one) is offering the Eastern Washington Eagles a sophomore shooting guard who’s going to average nearly 20 points a game. He’ll be a lefty with a smooth shooting stroke, and through the season’s first 10 games or so he’ll make 15 more 3-pointers than anyone else in the conference.
    Best part about this new Eagle guard? Eastern will pick him up with little-to-no competition from anybody else, as he’s a former walk-on from Torrance, Calif.
    Wait, you’re saying that sounds exactly like Tyler Harvey, the Eagles leading scorer at 19.3 points a game with a 47.4 shooting percentage from the 3-point line? Yeah, OK, sounds like Christmas arrived early in Cheney.

4. North Dakota 3-7
Last week: No. 5
    The mascot-less lost in frigid Grand Forks for the first time this season, falling to South Dakota State 77-70.
    The gift: A gigantic cupcake. This cake would be like the size of five or six cupcakes. North Dakota, has the ninth-rated toughest strength of schedule as of Monday. Whether it’s been Wisconsin, Oregon, Butler or South Dakota State, UND hasn’t shied away from a challenging nonconference slate.
    The committee (of one) expects this to only prepare North Dakota for the rigors of Big Sky play that starts promptly this week when the mascot-less visit Northern Colorado on Sunday. So perhaps our gift would only serve to fatten them up and slow them down.
    Consider it as more of a gift to the rest of the conference.

5. Idaho State 3-5
Last week: No. 4
    Idaho State led at half and fell way behind after the break before making a mad dash back late, eventually losing to Idaho 69-65 in Boise.
    The gift: Roster depth. This is the easiest gift of them all. The Bengals thought they had Andre Slavik and Ben Wilson rolling into the Gate City ready to rock this year.
    Wilson, a 6-5 guard originally from Queensland, Australia, and Slavik, a 6-9 forward out of Ziar nad Hronom , Slovakia (don’t make us pronounce it), are both redshirting this season since the NCAA declared them ineligible because of “amateurism issues” — or something. Really, it’s a bunch of hogwash, and it’s hit Idaho State in the mouth (in terms of roster depth).
    The players and coaches will never use it as an excuse, and, in truth, considering ISU’s improvement to this point in the season, the committee (of one) questions how much their absence has hindered the Bengals. But Wilson’s athleticism, leadership and energy off the bench could have been a boost. And Slavik’s size and skill around the basket wouldn’t have hurt.

6. Montana State 5-6
Last week: No. 6
    For their last cupcake of the season, Montana State walloped Southwest Christian 109-79 in Bozeman, and fell to UTEP 70-55 last night.
    The gift: An entirely different ending to its football season. Look, who said these gifts have to apply to the basketball team? (Oh, that’s right, we did ...) Anyway, the ’Cats have won their last three games. They seem fine.
    So we’re delivering a football present instead. Montana State began the year as the clear Big Sky favorites to win the league. Instead, the Bobcats went 7-5 overall, 5-3 in the conference and finished in fifth place.
    Star quarterback DeNarius McGhee lost his mantle as the Big Sky’s best quarterback to Eastern Washington’s Vernon Adams, and the ’Cats finished on a three-game losing streak (which included a 28-14 beatdown given by their arch-rival, Montana — at home).

7. Portland State 5-4
Last week: No. 7
    The Vikings smacked Evergreen State 98-65 at the Stott Center in Portland, Ore., Monday afternoon.
    The gift: Jeffrey Solarin. Yes, taking the Idaho State junior forward from Pocatello and moving him west serves to punish the Bengals, and this newspaper directly resides in Idaho State fan territory. The committee (of one) realizes this but like we said, each gift is individualized to the respective team.
    And who wouldn’t want Solarin on theirs? He’s 6-foot-4 but rebounds like a pre-back surgery Dwight Howard, and he’s efficient as all get out. Solarin is fifth in the Big Sky in rebounding (7.7 per), third in field-goal percentage (.600) and first in offensive rebounds (4.7 per).
    A terror around the basket, Solarin is one of the best newcomers in the conference. Considering how Portland State came this close to nabbing him away from Northwest College, we just think it’s a nice gesture covering him up in customized Viking wrapping paper and sending him on over.

8. Weber State 2-5
Last week: No. 8
    The Wildcats visited UCLA Sunday and fell to the Bruins 83-60.
    The gift: An injection of mojo. There’s not many things the committee (of one) thinks Weber State lacks. Considering, though, that the Wildcats are 2-5, we didn’t think it could hurt if we hooked them up with some of the swagger they were strutting around with a year ago when they were rolling to a school-record 30 wins and a second-place finish in the postseason CollegeInsider.com Tournament.

9. Sacramento State 3-5
Last week: No. 9
    For the fourth time this season, Sacramento State failed to reach the 60-point mark as the Hornets lost at home to Cal State Fullerton 59-51.
    The gift: A marksman. Only Southern Utah is having a harder time than Sac State scoring. The Hornets are shooting 39.3 percent from the field and two guys (junior guards Mikh McKinney and Dylan Garrity) are putting up double figures — 14.9 and 12.0, respectively.
    Head coach Brian Katz is doing everything he can. The Hornets have started eight different guys and 10 players are averaging 12.8 minutes a game or more.

10. Northern Arizona 3-8
Last week: No. 10
    Northern Arizona lost at No. 1 Arizona on Monday night 77-44.
    The gift: Its point guard back. Sophomore DeWayne Russell left Northern Arizona right before the season began. As a true freshman, he averaged 14.4 points, 3.2 assists and helped the Lumberjacks to a surprising seventh-place finish in the Big Sky.
    It’s hard to gauge what his absence has meant. The ’Jacks lost an exhibition game to NAIA-opponent Arizona Christian right before Russell departed (he scored 27 points), but he was one of the league’s bright young stars. It stinks he decided to not stay around.

11. Southern Utah 1-8
Last week: No. 11
    The Thunderbirds lost by 37 to San Diego State (while scoring 39 total points) and 15 to San Diego, tying SUU’s smallest losing margin of the season.
    The gift: In terms of size, this is the biggest gift of them all — an entirely new roster. That comes off as a bit harsh. The committee (of one) means no disrespect to the current crew of Thunderbirds doing their best to compete at the Division I level. But we just feel that in the spirit of giving, we’d go all out for the T-birds.
    We also considered handing SUU a new mascot, something like the Coyotes, the Otters or Jackrabbits (all native to southern Utah), but who could we make fun of every week then?