Ramblings from a Grizzly Fan in Anchorage

Hi everyone.

First, just to get this out of the way, I grew up in Missoula and spent 18 years there before going off to college and eventually to Alaska for work. So, my opinion will obviously be biased toward the U of M. Also, I had the pleasure of attending many Lady Griz games growing up. It was especially fun to watch some of the teams from the late '80s and early '90s.

With that out of the way, here are my thoughts:

1) Both teams were ranked too low. IMHO, Tech should be a third seed while Montana should be seventh. The Big Sky Conference will continue to receive lower rankings until they make a good post season run in the NCAA tournament.

2) Ignore the grizzly fans who say that Tech is overrated. I am pretty sure that the vast majority of Missoulians feel that Tech is an extremely hard draw for a first round game.

3) The atmosphere at UM games used to be outstanding. Several coaches went as far to rank it one of the most intimidating places to play. UW's coach vowed to never come back to Missoula after a game there years ago. HOWEVER, IMHO the crowds are not as vicious as they used to be. Personally, I don't see the home court being that big of an advantage for Montana. Yes, it will help. However it won't make or break the game. Also, what you have heard about Monte the mascot is true -- he really does add a lot to the atmosphere. In some repects, he is worth the price of admission. Other schools have paid him to perform for their games.

4) Tech fans who are posting here about their second round matchup need to be careful. As we all know, anything can happen during the post season and none of the teams should be overlooked. I am certain that the Tech coaching staff isn't prepping for round 2 yet. Tournaments are won one game at a time.

5) The city of Missoula also appears to be getting a bad rap here as well. I would encourage anyone to visit the area before posting negative comments about it. Missoula is an unusual place -- numerous political ideologies, culturally progressive, environmental beliefs spanning from liberal to conservative, and a mish mash of the old west clashing with bistros and coffee shops. It's very picturesque and the people there are very friendly. I'm sure any true Grizzly fan would be happy to meet any of the Tech fans after the game -- win or lose -- for a drink.

6) Finally, although Tech has to be the favorite and will likely win, I think it will still be an entertaining game. For UM to win, they will need to play their best game of the year. If they do, anything could happen.

Charles

P.S. We still have 20 inches of snow on the ground here in Anchorage!

[Cal&Ken]

Hey charlesbell74. Nice post. I think you are finding that TECH fans like to talk trash. We have been to enough tournaments though to know that anything can happen. I am sorry they have sent us so far away because it makes it difficult to bring the crowd that would usually follow. I am sorry I will not be able to make the game. You are right, we should win. The fans may be looking past your game, but, I doubt the team is. If so, I am sure they will be watching the rest of the games from the dorm back at TECH.

[oledawg66]

You partially answered a question I posed on another thread about the women's selection committee. I personally think they are a total joke. They don't rank teams as much as they rank markets. Tech and Montana are both from small markets, therefore they wouldn't dream of seeding us #2, where we should be, or 3, or seeding Montana 7. It could be an interesting match up, ie: Men's tourney - Princeton vs Texas. But I don't think its right for your girls to be playing the #6 team in the country under the guise of a 5 seed. BTW - it was 82 here today, the flowers are out and the trees are blooming and budding.