Four University of Northern Colorado men’s basketball players were named to end-of-season Big Sky Conference teams with three earning first-team recognition, the conference announced Friday. Langston Reynolds,

The No. 9 seeded Bears’ reward for the win is a meeting with top-seeded conference power Montana State in the second round Sunday at Idaho Central Arena in Boise, Idaho.

The goal is to go dancing in March Madness,” Northern Colorado coach Steve Smiley said. “It’s a great plan B and really cool. It’s truly an honor and this is a big deal.”

Guard Jaron Rillie scored a team-high 24 points, including 11 of the Bears’ 24 points in a sluggish first half to lead UNC to its first Big Sky title since the 2010-11 season.

The Northern Colorado Bears play the Weber State Wildcats in the Big Sky Tournament. Sunday's game is the third meeting of the season between the two teams.

Saturday’s 4 games allowed the lower-seeded men’s and women’s teams a chance to test their mettle and see who will move onto the second round.

BOTTOM LINE: Northern Colorado takes on Portland State in the Big Sky Tournament. The Bears' record in Big Sky play is 6-12, and their record is 7-4 in non-conference play. Northern Colorado averages 64.2 points and has outscored opponents by 3.8 points per game.

Northern Colorado visits the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks after Isaiah Hawthorne scored 25 points in the Bears' 92-74 win against the Idaho Vandals

Idaho State’s four-point lead at halftime, 36-32, was the measure of the game as the Bengals and Idaho battled to a 33-33 stalemate in the second half of ISU’s 69-65 win over the Vandals.