Cats Picked First by Media, Walker and Goracke Selected Preseason All-Big Sky
10/23/2024 1:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Brandon Walker and Brian Goracke named Preseason All-Big Sky as three-time defending Big Sky champions slotted first by media, second by coaches in preseason polls
FARMINGTON, Utah – Montana State men's basketball was picked to finish first in the 2024-2025 Big Sky Preseason Media Poll, while junior Brandon Walker and senior Brian Goracke were both named to the Big Sky Preseason All-Conference Team, the league office announced on Wednesday.
The Big Sky's first three-time defending champion in 44 years, Montana State earned 14 of 33 first-place votes from the media to collect 297 points. Montana was picked second in the media poll with 11 first place votes and 279 points.
In the Big Sky Preseason Coaches' Poll, Montana State was picked to finish second, earning two first-place votes and 72 points. Montana was selected the favorite by the league's coaches with seven first-place votes and 78 points.
Montana State was the only school in the Big Sky to land two players on the preseason all-conference team.
Walker, a junior from Oak Cliff, Texas, was selected Preseason All-Big Sky by the league's coaches and media after a stellar sophomore season that ended with an honorable mention All-Big Sky nod. Last season, the forward finished third on the team and 12th in the Big Sky in scoring (13.1 ppg), while ranking third in the Big Sky and 39th in NCAA Division I in field goal percentage (56.3%). Walker played in all 35 games for the Bobcats, starting in 34, and tallied 12 games with at least 16 points. The Texas native led the Cats to their first road win over a Power Five opponent since 2011 with a career-high 26-point outburst against Cal on Nov. 16. In the Big Sky Tournament championship game, Walker scored 14 points on 7-of-11 shooting, adding six rebounds in a title-clinching victory over arch-rival Montana, then scored 14 points on 7-of-10 shooting with six rebounds in an overtime loss to Grambling State in the NCAA Tournament.
Goracke, a senior from Monroe, Oregon, was selected Preseason All-Big Sky by the league's coaches and media after finishing tenth in the Big Sky last year in scoring (13.5 ppg), eighth in made 3-pointers (69), and third in free throw percentage (86.5%). Goracke started in 33 of 35 games for the Bobcats and was selected Big Sky All-Tournament Team after helping lead the Cats to three straight wins in Boise, averaging 12.3 points per game on 50.0% shooting from the floor and 46.7% from beyond the arc. A year after transferring from Division II Point Loma to follow his head coach, Matt Logie, Goracke hit multiple 3-pointers in 22 games and scored in double-figures in 24 games. The sweet-shooting wing propelled the Cats to a heroic comeback win over Weber State in the Big Sky Tournament quarterfinal, scoring 25 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Goracke's buzzer-beating, three-point game-winner against Southern Utah on Dec. 19, 2023, was a SportsCenter Top 10 Play, and was followed up with a career-high 29 points on 11-of-15 shooting in a road Big Sky win over Idaho State on Dec. 28. The Oregon native hit four 3-pointers and scored 15 points in the Cats' overtime loss to Grambling State in the NCAA Tournament.
The Bobcats welcome back three starters from last year's championship team, with Walker and Goracke joining three-time Big Sky champion Tyler Patterson (128 career games), with three other rotation players back in the fold in senior wing Patrick McMahon, senior forward Sam Lecholat, senior forward Chika Nduka, and junior guard Jed Miller.
Impact transfers Jabe Mullins (Washington State), Max Agbonkpolo (Utah State), Bryce Zephir (Salt Lake CC), Jeremiah Davis (Fullerton College), BJ Kolly (Western Washington), and freshman Trap Johnson (Belton HS) comprise a talented class of new Bobcats.
MSU is positioned to be one of the most experienced teams in the country, with seven seniors and graduate students in the projected rotation, plus five juniors.
Montana State opens the 2024-2025 season on November 7 on the road at Wisconsin—one of three teams on the non-conference schedule who were single-digit seeds in last season's NCAA Tournament (No. 5 Wisconsin, No. 9 Northwestern, No. 9 TCU).
Eight of the 12 teams the Cats face in the non-conference finished with records of at least .500 or played in the postseason.
Season tickets and single-game tickets are now on sale here. Montana State's Worthington Arena has been the best home-court advantage in the Big Sky, with the Cats going 35-9 at home over the past three seasons.
2024-25 Big Sky Men's Basketball Preseason Media Poll
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Montana State (14) – 297
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Montana (11) – 279
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Weber State (7) – 270
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Northern Colorado (1) – 211
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Northern Arizona – 209
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Eastern Washington – 139
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Portland State – 124
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Idaho State – 108
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Idaho – 104
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Sacramento State – 74
2024-25 Big Sky Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll
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Montana (7) – 78
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Montana State (2) – 72
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Northern Colorado – 62
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Weber State (1) – 61
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Northern Arizona – 51
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Portland State – 38
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Idaho – 32
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Idaho State – 21
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Eastern Washington – 19
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Sacramento State – 15
2024-25 Big Sky Men's Basketball Preseason All-Conference Team
Trent McLaughlin, Northern Arizona (MVP)
Brian Goracke, Montana State
Brandon Whitney, Montana
Miguel Tomley, Weber State
Brandon Walker, Montana State
Julius Mims, Idaho
