Esme Morales with head coach Tricia Binford (back)
Photo by: Bobcat Creative Services
Esmeralda Morales Plays Roles of Student, Teacher in Leading Bobcats to NCAA Tournament
3/21/2025 9:27:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Big Sky season, tournament MVP leavers her mark on the MSU program
BOZEMAN, Montana – There's a block of time every week, usually 15 or 20 minutes, when Montana State women's basketball coach Tricia Binford spends time in her office with Bobcat point guards Esmeralda Morales and Natalie Picton.
"We organize the playbook, the call list," Binford said, "so they know what kind of things we'll probably gravitate to depending on what our opponents are doing defensively. I give them updated end-of-quarter, end-of-game, low shot clock situations thoughts so they can be the quarterback on the floor and don't need to be looking over to the bench for calls."
During that time, when ideas flow and the three share thoughts and insights, the hidden part of Morales' game shines. "First of all, she's a coach on the floor," Binford said. "She's living it, so there are certain things the players will see on the floor beyond what we see. Even watching video sometimes they'll pick things up, so we bounce ideas all the time."
Praise also flows freely from Morales' teammates. "Esme brings something different that I haven't had in a point guard," says fifth-year senior Katelynn Martin. Sophomore point guard Natalie Picton, who Morales replaced in the starting lineup, calls her first-year teammate, "A leader, for sure. She's probably one of the best people I've ever met, she's always very energetic. She's like a teacher."
Morales' presence has been a revelation for the Bobcats in 2024-25. She became a catalyst in transforming an emerging team that finished 17-16 in 2023-24 while losing just one starter into a dominant conference champion. Montana State became the first Big Sky team to pile up 30 wins, set a program record with 19 consecutive wins, capturing the program's eighth Big Sky regular season championship and advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time.
And it all began last spring with the thought that immediately flashed into Binford's consciousness when she heard Morales, the Big Sky's leading scorer in 2023-24 at Portland State, had entered the transfer portal. "I thought, 'She's exactly what we need,'" Binford said with a smile.
Even against the expectation of being a perfect fit for the Cats, the 5-5 guard from Spanaway, Wash. has somehow exceeded Binford's hopes. Morales led her team and finished third in the Big Sky in scoring (15.2), fourth in steals per game (1.9), and seventh with 3.6 assists per contest.
"Esme was the missing piece that we needed," Binford said, "and she has absolutely stepped up and shined in any big moment needed. She hits big shots, she makes passes to get her teammates going. She's a gamer."
In the days and weeks after arriving at Montana State in June, the big moment for Morales was any opportunity she had to connect with her new teammates and coaches. "It's a lot of learning and listening and building new connections," she said. "Coming into a program that already has good players, and I'm a transfer, and for me I only have a year, so how can I get a connection with everyone?"
Morales starred at Portland State from 2021-24, earning First Team All-Big Sky honors as a junior in 2023-24. She moved into eighth place in Vikings history with 1,363 points before moving into the transfer portal last spring. Many reasons large and small led to that decision, she said, but the biggest was the ideas of growing and challenging herself.
"I just wanted to keep learning and growing," she said. "(Portland State) was comfortable, but I wanted to take on something new."
The intersection between improving defensively and earning an opportunity to play basketball professionally also factored into her decision. "Going overseas (to play professionally), you have to know how to play man defense," she said. "That's been my goal in the season and the summer, to show people I can play defense. I'm still learning the little details, but that was my biggest goal, showing people I can guard."
Bobcat Associate Head Coach Sunny Smallwood said the only factor the staff was unable to fully evaluate from the opposing bench regarding Morales' potential as a Bobcat was her defense. Portland State ran a zone defensive system, rather than the pressure, switching man-to-man defense employed by the Bobcats.
"From a defensive standpoint it was more of an unknown than a surprise," Smallwood said of Morales' ability to adapt. "Having played in a system where they played zone for three years, not knowing what her attack-minded mentality might look like, not knowing what her work ethic might look like considering we're a team that plays so hard and never takes possessions off. That's the expectation. That was one of the nicest things to find out about her, she embraced (MSU's defensive approach). From the time she was learning the system she embraced everything about it."
Binford also appreciated Morales' work to get up to speed quickly on the defensive end. "I was impressed how quickly she picked up our defense," Binford said. "She is as seasoned as any veteran on the defensive side after really learning it over the summer."
While Morales' skill impresses immediately, Binford praises her as "an elite teammate. She has the ability to lead and bring out the best in everyone around her. She won this team over in less than two weeks during the summer, and she built her relationships immediately. She's invested in her teammates."
Morales said she treasures the relationships she's made since arriving at Montana State, and the environment Binford and her staff has created. "It's family," Morales says with a smile. "Right here it's family. Anybody will do anything to get a win, or to make somebody better, or to build (at teammate's) confidence up. Everyone here is selfless and they just want to do what the team needs. It's family, it's strong. Our thing is 'All for one,' and it really is all for one. We're all in this for each other."
Drawing from Binford's expertise and experience as a Big Sky Conference legend with time in the WNBA, Morales said, has been invaluable. So, too, has been her approach.
"She listens," Morales said. "Most of the time coaches and people higher up are, 'It's my way,' but for her it's, 'What do you think?' Especially with the senior class, it's like, 'What do you guys feel like?' She's very understanding and she listens to us and how we feel. She's smart, she has a very high IQ, and I try to pick her brain on why she might want to go this way instead of that way on certain teams."
Morales also appreciates Binford's steady hand at the controls. "We have had a great season, but she has the same energy, the same attitude, she can push us every day, and she doesn't get complacent. When we see our coaches relaxed that's when players (relax), but she's like, 'We need to push the needle forward, we need to get better.' So learning from that, how can I continue to grow?"
Montana State won the Big Sky regular season title wire to wire, only losing in the season's final weekend after injuries to two starters altered the team's lineup. Dylan Philip remains out, while Marah Dykstra missed the final three regular season games before returning to provide heroics in the league tournament.
After spending most of the season as the hunted league leaders, Morales said playing as the lesser known entity is liberating. "We're underdog now, so we can go out there and just play free without the pressure of, like, we have to win it. We're underdogs now, so just go out there and just play (like) us."
No Bobcat has risen to the occasion, whether as favorites or underdogs, than Morales. She reeled in Big Sky Player of the Year honors after finishing in the top five in the Big Sky points, steals and assists and as a fitting coda landed Big Sky Tournament Most Valuable Player honors.
Still, Binford's favorite moments coaching Morales revolve around the student and teacher traits merging during a game. "There have been time outs, or times grabbing her at halftime, when she's had thoughts about things we're doing or plays to run," Binford said. "And (the coaching staff's) reaction is like, 'Yes, let's try it. Let's do it.' That open dialogue has been continuous during the year, and it's been such a positive."
Does Binford think Morales has a career in coaching when her playing career ends? "Oh, yes," the veteran head coach says without hesitation. "Absolutely. She has everything it takes to be a great coach."
For Morales, nothing sums up her experience at Montana State quite like those after-practice chat sessions with Binford and Picton. "It's a lot of learning," she says with a smile, "and I like to learn."
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"We organize the playbook, the call list," Binford said, "so they know what kind of things we'll probably gravitate to depending on what our opponents are doing defensively. I give them updated end-of-quarter, end-of-game, low shot clock situations thoughts so they can be the quarterback on the floor and don't need to be looking over to the bench for calls."
During that time, when ideas flow and the three share thoughts and insights, the hidden part of Morales' game shines. "First of all, she's a coach on the floor," Binford said. "She's living it, so there are certain things the players will see on the floor beyond what we see. Even watching video sometimes they'll pick things up, so we bounce ideas all the time."
Praise also flows freely from Morales' teammates. "Esme brings something different that I haven't had in a point guard," says fifth-year senior Katelynn Martin. Sophomore point guard Natalie Picton, who Morales replaced in the starting lineup, calls her first-year teammate, "A leader, for sure. She's probably one of the best people I've ever met, she's always very energetic. She's like a teacher."
Morales' presence has been a revelation for the Bobcats in 2024-25. She became a catalyst in transforming an emerging team that finished 17-16 in 2023-24 while losing just one starter into a dominant conference champion. Montana State became the first Big Sky team to pile up 30 wins, set a program record with 19 consecutive wins, capturing the program's eighth Big Sky regular season championship and advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time.
And it all began last spring with the thought that immediately flashed into Binford's consciousness when she heard Morales, the Big Sky's leading scorer in 2023-24 at Portland State, had entered the transfer portal. "I thought, 'She's exactly what we need,'" Binford said with a smile.
Even against the expectation of being a perfect fit for the Cats, the 5-5 guard from Spanaway, Wash. has somehow exceeded Binford's hopes. Morales led her team and finished third in the Big Sky in scoring (15.2), fourth in steals per game (1.9), and seventh with 3.6 assists per contest.
"Esme was the missing piece that we needed," Binford said, "and she has absolutely stepped up and shined in any big moment needed. She hits big shots, she makes passes to get her teammates going. She's a gamer."
In the days and weeks after arriving at Montana State in June, the big moment for Morales was any opportunity she had to connect with her new teammates and coaches. "It's a lot of learning and listening and building new connections," she said. "Coming into a program that already has good players, and I'm a transfer, and for me I only have a year, so how can I get a connection with everyone?"
Morales starred at Portland State from 2021-24, earning First Team All-Big Sky honors as a junior in 2023-24. She moved into eighth place in Vikings history with 1,363 points before moving into the transfer portal last spring. Many reasons large and small led to that decision, she said, but the biggest was the ideas of growing and challenging herself.
"I just wanted to keep learning and growing," she said. "(Portland State) was comfortable, but I wanted to take on something new."
The intersection between improving defensively and earning an opportunity to play basketball professionally also factored into her decision. "Going overseas (to play professionally), you have to know how to play man defense," she said. "That's been my goal in the season and the summer, to show people I can play defense. I'm still learning the little details, but that was my biggest goal, showing people I can guard."
Bobcat Associate Head Coach Sunny Smallwood said the only factor the staff was unable to fully evaluate from the opposing bench regarding Morales' potential as a Bobcat was her defense. Portland State ran a zone defensive system, rather than the pressure, switching man-to-man defense employed by the Bobcats.
"From a defensive standpoint it was more of an unknown than a surprise," Smallwood said of Morales' ability to adapt. "Having played in a system where they played zone for three years, not knowing what her attack-minded mentality might look like, not knowing what her work ethic might look like considering we're a team that plays so hard and never takes possessions off. That's the expectation. That was one of the nicest things to find out about her, she embraced (MSU's defensive approach). From the time she was learning the system she embraced everything about it."
Binford also appreciated Morales' work to get up to speed quickly on the defensive end. "I was impressed how quickly she picked up our defense," Binford said. "She is as seasoned as any veteran on the defensive side after really learning it over the summer."
While Morales' skill impresses immediately, Binford praises her as "an elite teammate. She has the ability to lead and bring out the best in everyone around her. She won this team over in less than two weeks during the summer, and she built her relationships immediately. She's invested in her teammates."
Morales said she treasures the relationships she's made since arriving at Montana State, and the environment Binford and her staff has created. "It's family," Morales says with a smile. "Right here it's family. Anybody will do anything to get a win, or to make somebody better, or to build (at teammate's) confidence up. Everyone here is selfless and they just want to do what the team needs. It's family, it's strong. Our thing is 'All for one,' and it really is all for one. We're all in this for each other."
Drawing from Binford's expertise and experience as a Big Sky Conference legend with time in the WNBA, Morales said, has been invaluable. So, too, has been her approach.
"She listens," Morales said. "Most of the time coaches and people higher up are, 'It's my way,' but for her it's, 'What do you think?' Especially with the senior class, it's like, 'What do you guys feel like?' She's very understanding and she listens to us and how we feel. She's smart, she has a very high IQ, and I try to pick her brain on why she might want to go this way instead of that way on certain teams."
Morales also appreciates Binford's steady hand at the controls. "We have had a great season, but she has the same energy, the same attitude, she can push us every day, and she doesn't get complacent. When we see our coaches relaxed that's when players (relax), but she's like, 'We need to push the needle forward, we need to get better.' So learning from that, how can I continue to grow?"
Montana State won the Big Sky regular season title wire to wire, only losing in the season's final weekend after injuries to two starters altered the team's lineup. Dylan Philip remains out, while Marah Dykstra missed the final three regular season games before returning to provide heroics in the league tournament.
After spending most of the season as the hunted league leaders, Morales said playing as the lesser known entity is liberating. "We're underdog now, so we can go out there and just play free without the pressure of, like, we have to win it. We're underdogs now, so just go out there and just play (like) us."
No Bobcat has risen to the occasion, whether as favorites or underdogs, than Morales. She reeled in Big Sky Player of the Year honors after finishing in the top five in the Big Sky points, steals and assists and as a fitting coda landed Big Sky Tournament Most Valuable Player honors.
Still, Binford's favorite moments coaching Morales revolve around the student and teacher traits merging during a game. "There have been time outs, or times grabbing her at halftime, when she's had thoughts about things we're doing or plays to run," Binford said. "And (the coaching staff's) reaction is like, 'Yes, let's try it. Let's do it.' That open dialogue has been continuous during the year, and it's been such a positive."
Does Binford think Morales has a career in coaching when her playing career ends? "Oh, yes," the veteran head coach says without hesitation. "Absolutely. She has everything it takes to be a great coach."
For Morales, nothing sums up her experience at Montana State quite like those after-practice chat sessions with Binford and Picton. "It's a lot of learning," she says with a smile, "and I like to learn."
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