Colbert commits to Montana State

Marcus Colbert spent last weekend in Bozeman, Mont., and a few days later, decided he wanted to spend the next four years there.

Colbert, the senior point guard for Post Falls High, gave a verbal commitment Thursday to play basketball at Montana State of the Big Sky Conference.

"I like the campus, and I like the coaches a lot," Colbert said. "As soon as I got there, me and the players just clicked. Everyone in the town is about Montana State, so I really liked the college-town atmosphere. Coach (Brad) Huse wants to win, and that was one of the big things I liked."

The 5-foot-10 Colbert averaged 16 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.9 assists last year, and was named first-team All-Idaho in 5A for the second straight year by The Idaho Statesman newspaper of Boise.

As a sophomore, he helped the Trojans win a state title, and last year he helped them finish fourth at state.

The summer prior to his junior year, Colbert said he had full-ride offers from Montana, Cal Poly and Portland State, but those schools have since recruited junior college guards, he said.

This year, he was also considering Idaho, Idaho State (though neither had offered a scholarship) and Cal Poly. He committed after his first - and only - official recruiting visit.

In Bozeman, Colbert will be reunited with former Post Falls High star Shawn Reid, who played as a freshman at Montana State last year. Reid was a senior, Colbert a sophomore on the Trojans' state title team.

"Shawn being there is a plus for me," Colbert said. "We talked throughout his recruitment to Montana State last year. And we talked throughout my recruitment to Montana State. It helped a little bit."

Colbert wanted to get his college choice out of the way prior to the start of the high school basketball season.

“I didn’t want to have to deal with the stress of trying to figure out where I was going to go; I just wanted to worry about playing ball,” Colbert said. “With it (the decision) out of the way, there’s no stress for me; I’m just focused on my team and trying to win another championship.”

Colbert, also a running back/defensive back for the Trojans football team, says he’s “healthy and strong now” after problems with bulging discs kept him off the football field last year.

During the recruiting process, he said that “some coaches had wished that I was a little bit taller,” Colbert said. “But I always say, ‘I’m 5-10, but I play like I’m 6-10.’”