By NIC HALLISEY
Montana completed the trifecta on Tuesday, winning its third consecutive Big Sky Conference Men’s Basketball Ready Nutrition Player of the Week award. The Grizzlies have now won all three awards since league play began, and making the feat even more impressive is the fact that three different players have been recognized.
On Tuesday, it was Derrick Carter-Hollinger’s turn in the spotlight. The freshman averaged 16.5 points per game on an incredible .789 shooting (15-of-19), in addition to 9.0 rebounds, 3.0 blocks and 2.0 assists per game.
Carter-Hollinger is the first freshman to earn player-of-the-week honors since Dec. 12, 2017 (Portland State’s Holland Woods). He is the first Montana freshman to win the award in at least a decade, as far back as the Big Sky’s records go.
Derrick Carter-Hollinger. Photo Courtesy of Grizzly Athletics.
This marks the first time since the 2012-13 season that three different players from the same team have been recognized in consecutive weeks.
Carter-Hollinger had a breakout performance in a 90-63 road win at Eastern Washington – a rematch of the past two Big Sky title games and a contest featuring the media’s preseason favorites (Montana) vs. the coaches’ preseason pick (Eastern Washington). In that game, Carter-Hollinger scored 20 points, pulled down 14 rebounds and blocked four shots – all career highs.
The freshman had 16 points by halftime – surpassing his previous career best – and made his first seven shot attempts. His performance helped Montana jump out to an early lead that propelled the Grizzlies to a 27-point win while shutting down the nation’s third-best offense.
In Monday’s win over Portland State, Carter-Hollinger was again big, scoring 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting. He had seven straight Griz points in the first half to help Montana build a 27-17 advantage. The Grizzlies didn’t trail over the final 31 minutes of the game in an 85-70 victory.
While Carter-Hollinger earned recognition on Tuesday, the award could have been given to a handful of Grizzlies, including Sayeed Pridgett. The senior was also nominated after nearly averaging a triple-double on the week. In two wins, Pridgett scored 16.5 points per game on .500 shooting, in addition to 9.0 assists and 8.0 rebounds.
Three weeks into league play, Montana is alone in first place at 5-1. While Montana’s defense has been stellar all season, the Grizzlies have upped their offensive game of late, averaging 87.5 points over the past two victories.
Montana will host Idaho on Saturday, before embarking on another three-game road trip.