Bears Host Grizzlies in Regular-Season Finale with Big Sky Seeding on the Line

Monday, March 2

Greeley, Colo.

6 p.m. MST

University of Northern Colorado

Montana

Photo by: Kassidy Schwartz, UNC Athletics

3/1/2026 5:38:00 PM | Men's Basketball

By: Brooke Richards, Director of Strategic Communications

GREELEY, Colo. - Northern Colorado returns home Monday to close out the regular season with significant Big Sky implications on the line against Montana. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m., with coverage available on ESPN+ and Pirate Radio. The Bears enter at 19-11 overall and 9-8 in conference play after a road comeback at Idaho, positioning themselves for a potential move in the standings as tournament seeding is finalized. With multiple teams still separated by a single game and tiebreakers looming, UNC will look to build on its recent momentum and defend its home floor in what sets up as a high-stakes regular-season finale.

LAST TIME OUT: Northern Colorado capped its regular-season road slate with a 76-67 comeback win at Idaho, erasing a seven-point halftime deficit with a dominant second half at ICCU Arena. After trailing 40-33 at the break, the Bears flipped the momentum by shooting 50 percent over the final 20 minutes and holding the Vandals to just 25.6 percent from the floor. UNC outscored Idaho 43-27 in the second half, took the lead for good following a flagrant-one call that led to Brock Wisne free throws, and extended the margin behind timely three-point shooting and steady work at the stripe, finishing 17-of-19 on free throws. Quinn Denker paced the effort with a game-high 33 points, adding seven rebounds and seven assists, while Wisne contributed 15 and Vincent Delano provided nine points and five assists off the bench. The win moved the Bears to 19-11 overall and 9-8 in Big Sky play.

BIG SKY STANDINGS CONTEXT: With one game remaining in the regular season, the Big Sky race remains unsettled at the top and tightly packed through the middle. Portland State has clinched at least a share of the regular-season title at 12-5, but the outright championship and No. 1 seed are still in play. Montana State and Eastern Washington sit just one game back at 11-6, creating multiple scenarios heading into Monday's finales.

If Portland State wins, the Vikings secure the outright title and the No. 1 seed. If PSU loses and both Montana State and Eastern Washington win, the league would have tri-champions at 12-6, with tiebreakers determining seeds 1-3. In that scenario, the head-to-head comparisons against Montana, Weber State and Northern Colorado become critical in separating the top three.

Northern Colorado enters the final day at 9-8 in conference play, currently sixth in the standings, but with movement still possible. The Bears can finish anywhere from the No. 4 to No. 6 seed depending on Monday's results. UNC is 6-2 at home in league play and 3-6 on the road, and notably holds a 2-0 head-to-head sweep of Idaho, which locks the Vandals into the No. 7 seed.

Montana (10-7) and Weber State (10-7) are also jockeying for positioning in the 3-6 range, while Idaho State, Sacramento State and Northern Arizona are competing for the final tournament spots in the 8-10 seeds.

With several teams still within a game of each other and multiple tiebreaker layers in play, Monday's slate will finalize not only the regular-season champion but also set the full bracket for the Big Sky Tournament.

RECORD WATCH: Brock Wisne moved into 9th place on UNC's all-time scoring list with 1,395 career points and now sits fifth in program history in field goals made with 580.

Zach Bloch continues to make steady progress across multiple career categories, ranking seventh all-time at UNC in three-pointers made (197) and sixth in three-point attempts (504), while sitting in second in games played with 131, just two shy of holding the program record. Bloch also has 98 career steals, 15 away from cracking the all-time top 10, and is closing in on single-season marks as well, sitting in sixth in made three's with 87 and is four steals shy of the season top 10.

Quinn Denker remains one of the most productive playmakers in program history, currently ranking second on UNC's single-season assists list with 199, just four assists away from breaking the record.

As a team, the 2025-26 squad is only six assists away from breaking the programs single season record of 506, set by the 2024-25 team.

NATIONAL & CONFERENCE RANKINGS SNAPSHOT (Through Feb. 28, 2026):
Northern Colorado continues to profile as one of the most efficient offensive teams in the Big Sky while maintaining strong national positioning. UNC ranks 55th nationally and first in the conference in scoring offense (82.2 ppg), 40th nationally and first in assists per game (16.7), and 57th nationally and first in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.48). The Bears also rank 19th nationally and first in effective field-goal percentage (.570), reinforcing their identity as a high-efficiency group built on ball movement and shot selection. Additionally, UNC sits 28th nationally and second in the league in field-goal percentage (49.2).

On the glass and defensively, Northern Colorado ranks 51st nationally and first in rebound margin (+4.8) while checking in 35th nationally and second in defensive rebounds per game (27.10). The Bears also rank 22nd nationally and first in three-point percentage defense (30.2), highlighting their ability to limit perimeter efficiency.

Individually, Quinn Denker remains one of the top point guards in the country. He ranks sixth nationally and first in the Big Sky in assists per game (7.1), 10th nationally and first in total assists (199), and 32nd nationally and first in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.93), while ranking second in the conference in scoring at 19.0 points per game.

Brock Wisne ranks first in the conference and 34th nationally in field-goal percentage (57.7), while also sitting first in the league and 32nd nationally in total field goals made (199). He ranks eighth in the conference in scoring at 16.7 points per game and seventh in rebounds per game (6.3).

Zach Bloch continues to anchor UNC's perimeter attack, ranking 15th nationally and second in the Big Sky in three-point percentage (43.1). He leads the conference in total three-pointers made (87) and ranks second in three-pointers per game (2.90), providing consistent spacing for the Bears' offense.

SCOUTING THE GRIZZLIES: Montana enters the matchup at 16-14 overall and 10-7 in Big Sky play, winners of two straight following home victories over Sacramento State (81-73) and Portland State (74-68) to close the regular season. The Grizzlies are 11-6 at Dahlberg Arena this year and 5-8 on the road. Offensively, Montana averages 77.8 points per game while shooting 49.4 percent from the floor and 36.3 percent from three, adding 15.6 made free throws per game at a 77.1 percent clip. In conference play, UM is shooting 49.6 percent overall and 37.3 percent from deep while averaging 75.4 points per game.

Money Williams anchors the attack at 19.7 points per game overall and 20.8 per game in league play, adding 4.1 rebounds and 153 assists on the year. Te'Jon Sawyer provides 11.6 points and 5.5 rebounds per contest while shooting over 60 percent from the field, and Tyler Thompson has knocked down 65 three-pointers at a 40.9 percent rate. As a team, Montana averages 15.5 assists per game and owns a +4.1 scoring margin, though the Grizzlies carry a negative turnover margin (-2.8) and allow 73.7 points per contest.

SERIES HISTORY: Montana leads the all-time series 27-16 dating back to Jan. 27, 2007, including a 15-23 mark for Northern Colorado in Big Sky meetings. The Grizzlies claimed the first matchup this season, 88-79, on Jan. 3 in Missoula and have won three straight in the series. The two programs have split the last 10 meetings (5-5) dating back to Dec. 4, 2021, with several tight finishes in recent years, including UNC's 98-92 overtime win in Missoula (Jan. 11, 2024) and 81-57 victory on Jan. 11, 2025. The Bears' largest margin of victory in the series was 81-57, while the narrowest was a 64-62 win on Jan. 2, 2021, underscoring the competitive nature of the matchup in recent seasons.

UP NEXT: Northern Colorado turns its attention to the Big Sky Conference Tournament (Starch Madness), set to take place March 7-12 at Idaho Central Arena in Boise, Idaho. Official seeding and first-round matchups will be finalized following Monday's results across the league. Depending on final positioning, the Bears will open tournament play on Saturday or Sunday, looking to build momentum in a win-or-go-home format as the conference champion earns the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

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