Women's Basketball
- Title:
- Head Women's Basketball Coach
- Email:
- MSUBobcatsWBB1@gmail.com
- Phone:
- 406.994.4442
When Tricia Binford took over the Montana State women’s basketball program in the spring of 2005, she inherited a program in search of stability and someone to guide the Bobcats back to the upper echelons of the Big Sky Conference.
Now, 19 years later, the former Boise State and WNBA standout is MSU’s longest tenured coach as well as its winningest in history with an unprecedented level of excellence on the court, in the classroom and within the community. Those three hallmarks make Bobcat basketball one of the most respected programs in the country.
For the past 17 seasons, Binford has not had a losing season, a stretch that ranks No. 1 in the annals of Bobcat women’s basketball. Montana State has also averaged over 2,000 fans in recent seasons, ranking second in the Big Sky and among the top 50 in all of NCAA Division I women’s hoops.
To say Binford has turned MSU, Worthington Arena and the greater Gallatin Valley into a hot-bed for the sport is an understatement. In the past ten seasons, the Cats have posted an amazing 109-26 overall mark (80%), including a stellar 74-19 (79.6%) record in Big Sky Conference action inside the warm confines of the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse. Montana State’s stretch of 31 consecutive home court wins from Dec. 2015 - Jan. 2018 ranked second only to national power UConn at the time the streak was snapped. And, from 2016-18 MSU strung together 19 consecutive Big Sky victories at home.
During the 2022-23 campaign, and for the fifth time in eight seasons, the Bobcats claimed the Big Sky Conference regular season title, along with a Big Sky Conference tournament championship. MSU finished 13-5 in Big Sky action, sharing a regular-season championships with Sacramento State and Northern Arizona.
The Bobcats reached unprecedented heights during the 2019-20 season, which saw Binford guide her squad to a 19-1 league mark. No other women’s basketball program in Big Sky history has ever won 19 conference games. For its efforts, MSU entered the 2020 Big Sky Conference Tournament as the No. 1 seed and advanced to the title game before Covid-19 grinded the sports world to a halt 24-hours prior to tip.
On the court, Binford’s squads have been a part of five championship games, winning the Big Sky Tournament title in 2017 and 2021. MSU has made 18 straight postseason appearances, including owning the No. 1 seed in 2016, 2017 and 2020. In the classroom, the Bobcats have been ranked among the top 12 academic teams in the nation at the NCAA Division I level in five of the last twelve years. And, within the community, the women’s program has consistently given back its time.
Binford has notched 329 career victories at Montana State, which ranks first on MSU’s all-time basketball coaching ladder and second in Big Sky history. Against Weber State on Feb. 5, 2021, she guided the Bobcats to a 74-71 win en route to surpassing legendary coach and player Brick Breeden (283) for the top spot on Montana State’s all-time wins list for both men and women. Binford’s current total of 207 victories in Big Sky Conference play is second in league history behind Montana’s Robin Selvig.
In her 19 years in the Gallatin Valley, Binford has produced a whopping 136 Big Sky Conference All-Academic honorees; 38 Big Sky Conference Players of the Week; 35 All-Big Sky Conference performers; one Two-Time Academic All-America; six CoSIDA Academic All District VII recipients; three Big Sky MVPs: Fallyn Freije, Peyton Ferris and Jasmine Hommes; two Big Sky Tournament MVPs – Peyton Ferris, Darian White; four Big Sky Conference Defensive Players of the Year; three Big Sky Newcomers of the Year; two Big Sky Conference Freshmen of the Year; four Big Sky Top Reserves of the Year; one All-America Honorable Mention in Katie Bussey in 2012; and six MSU/Big Sky Conference Female Scholar Athletes of the Year.
Binford became the 11th Head Women’s Basketball Coach at Montana State on April 13, 2005. Prior to MSU, Binford, served two seasons at Utah State. At USU, Binford earned her coaching wings under head coach Raegan Scott-Pebley. The duo helped reestablish the Aggie program following a 16-year hiatus. With the Aggies, Binford was responsible for recruiting, defense, and guard play.
Binford, who also served as an assistant coach at her alma mater - Boise State University - from 1999-2001, was the 31st overall pick in the 1998 WNBA draft, and played professionally with the Cleveland Rockers from 1999-02, where she participated on the 2001 Eastern Conference Championship team. She played with the Utah Starzz from 1998-99. She also played professionally in Australia for two years, including stints with the NWBL’s Brisbane Blazers, Latrobe Demons and Launceston Tornadoes. Playing in the NWBL in 1997, she set a single-game scoring record with 67 points - which was part of a quadruple-double along with 14 assists, ten steals and ten rebounds.
As Tricia Bader, she was a three-time All-Big Sky Conference selection on some of the best teams in Boise State history. She led the Broncos to a national ranking and the NCAA tournament. Binford was also a member of the 1993 West Team at the U.S. Olympic Festival coached by current Connecticut head man Geno Auriemma. For her efforts, she was named the 1996 Idaho NCAA Woman of the Year and was inducted in the Boise State Hall of Fame in 2001. Binford left Boise State with the school’s career assists record and was second in steals. She posted a career 1,171 points — all from the point guard position.
Binford prepped at Roaring Fork High School in Carbondale, Colo., where she was the Colorado Player of the Year and a Street and Smith’s High School All-American in 1991. She received her degree in criminal justice from Boise State in 1995.
PERSONAL INFO: Born on Feb. 26, 1973 in Decatur, Ill....daughter of Jim and Lyn Bader...has a sister Kristin Hall and a brother Jeff...husband Todd graduated from Idaho (‘96)...two children, Justin and Brooklyn.
| 2005-06 | 3-23 | 2-12 | 8th | |
| 2006-07 | 13-16 | 8-8 | 5th | BSC Tournament |
| 2007-08 | 18-13 | 11-5 | 3rd | BSC Tournament |
| 2008-09 | 15-15 | 8-8 | 3rd | BSC Tournament |
| 2009-10 | 18-14 | 9-7 | 5th | BSC Tournament |
| 2010-11 | 17-14 | 11-5 | 3rd | BSC Tournament |
| 2011-12 | 19-11 | 10-6 | 3rd | BSC Tournament |
| 2012-13 | 17-13 | 11-9 | 6th | BSC Tournament |
| 2013-14 | 15-15 | 10-10 | 6th | BSC Tournament |
| 2014-15 | 15-15 | 9-9 | 5th | BSC Tournament |
| 2015-16 | 21-10 | 14-4 | 1st | BSC Champions; WNIT 1st Round (Utah) |
| 2016-17 | 25-7 | 15-3 | 1st | BSC Champions- NCAA 1st Round (Washington) |
| 2017-18 | 16-15 | 9-9 | 7th | BSC Tournament |
| 2018-19 | 16-15 | 11-9 | 5th | BSC Tournament |
| 2019-20 | 25-6 | 19-1 | 1st | BSC Champions - Covid-19; no NCAA Tournament |
| 2020-21 | 17-7 | 13-3 | 3rd | BSC Tournament |
| 2021-22 | 22-13 | 14-6 | 2nd | BSC Champions- NCAA 1st Round (Stanford) |
| 2022-23 | 20-13 | 13-5 | 1st | BSC Regular Season Co-Champions |
| 2023-24 | 17-16 | 10-8 | 4th | BSC Tournament |
| 2024-25 | 30-4 | 17-1 | 1st | BSC Champions; NCAA 1st Round (Ohio State) |
| Total | 359-253 | 224-128 | .587 Overall Winning Percentage |
