Bobcats head coach Danny Sprinkle led Montana State to the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
Laval, Que. – The 2021-22 season was a memorable one for Montana State after going 27-8, winning the Big Sky Conference and then heading to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1996.
Fourth year head coach Danny Sprinkle is a former Bobcats star and was a freshman on that 96 team that was the last to make into March Madness. Sprinkle would be named Big Sky Freshman of the Year and would go on to become the schools seventh all-time leading scorer.
Although Montana State had a rough go of things during their recent trip to Canada going 0-3 in the Northern Classic, there is still plenty of optimism for the Bobcats who should once again be in the mix for a conference title.
Sprinkle explained, “We have some high character guys and they’ll bounce back.” He added, “This is a great tournament and there are some really good mid-major teams, but you just have to keep learning and building for league.”
On the floor, Montana State is led by 6-foot-5 Jr. guard RaeQuan Battle who leads the team in scoring with 18.4 points per game. Battle is a former ESPN Top 100 recruit who spent his first two season at the University of Washington before transferring to Montana State last year.
The Bobcats most dominant player is 6-foot-9 Sr. forward Jubrile Belo who is second in scoring with 11.8 PPG and leads the team with 5.8 rebounds per game. Belo’s size and strength is a match up problem for just about every team they face.
In spite of the slow start in non-conference going just 4-5 through their first nine games, Montana State is still a high quality team with talent and depth at every position. Expect the Bobcats to be one of the top two or three teams in the Big Sky and be in contention for a return to March Madness in 2023.
Interview with Danny Sprinkle in Laval, Quebec Nov 26-2022.
