How BYU's Braeden Gunlock is adapting from small-town Montana to Big 12 women's basketball

PROVO — It's exactly 100 miles between Bigfork and Missoula, Montana, much of it around the edge of Flathead Lake in some of what BYU women's basketball coach Lee Cummard calls the most beautiful scenery in his years recruiting for the Cougars.

He would know; he made it plenty.

"You've got a bunch of pine trees and blue water; it's really pretty," Cummard said. "Just a beautiful part of the world."

And well worth the drive, when BYU landed a commitment from Bigfork native Braeden Gunlock.

The 6-foot guard was a four-time Montana all-state selection and 2023 Class B state champion at Bigfork High before she committed to the Cougars over Boise State, Eastern Washington, Hawaii, Idaho, Idaho State, Montana, Montana State and Yale.

On Wednesday night, Gunlock received a heroes' welcome to Montana's Dahlberg Arena, where her dad Troy bought "probably an entire section" of the arena and began handing tickets to her town of just over 5,000 people.

That included a school bus that brought the high school basketball teams to Missoula for the night, winding the 100 miles of highway up about 300 feet in elevation to flagship university of the Treasure State.

"It's really special to get to play in Montana, while not playing for a team in Montana, in front of a lot of people from my hometown, for my state," Gunlock told KSL.com. "It's just really special.

"Bigfork definitely isn't a city," she added, laughing. "But it will always hold a special place in my heart. As somebody who came from a small town to this level of play, I think it's really special. Not a lot of people end up leaving Montana, so I know I'm fortunate for this opportunity to leave Montana and make a name for myself."

Playing without leading scorer Delaney Gibb, who was a late scratch, Marya Hudgins poured in a career-high 23 points with four rebounds and two assists to help BYU hold off the host Grizzlies, 70-69 and improve to 5-0.

Olivia Hamlin added 12 points and eight rebounds in the freshman's first start, and Lara Rohkohl supplied 10 points, nine rebounds and two steals for the Cougars.

Arielle Mackey-Williams canned a triple with 2:03 that brought BYU, who led by as much as 7 int he second quarter before trailing by 5 in the fourth, to tie the game at 69-all. Hudgins drove into the lane moments later, drew a foul, and hit 1-of-2 free throws to cap a 6-0 run in the final 3:08 to help the Cougars hold on.

Mack Konig scored 19 points, and Avery Waddington had 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Grizzlies (1-4), who shot 14-of-39 from 3-point range.

Sports played a key role in the Gunlock home in Bigfork, where Braeden played basketball, soccer, volleyball and ran track and field. Her father, Troy, ran track for Weber State before finishing his career playing football at Montana State-Northern from 1999-02, and mom, Courtnee, played basketball from 1995-00 at Carroll College, where her sister, Paeten, is committed.

Courtnee Gunlock coached both of her daughters in basketball through high school, and Braeden Gunlock — who also earned all-state honors in soccer twice — into the versatile defender capable of switching one through four.

"I was very in between soccer and volleyball in high school, and I went with soccer to help with footwork, decision-making, speed; you don't get that as much out of volleyball," Gunlock said. "And it really helped me in basketball."

Still, basketball was always her passion — largely because of the way it brought her closer to her mother.

"I loved playing for my mom, though it was definitely hard at times." Gunlock said. "She was a lot harder on me than any other player. But I think that shaped me into who I am today. I'm very grateful for that. But not playing for your parent is way different — I guess in a way, it's easier to take feedback."

The coach's daughter also fits the program, even though her initial signing and arriving on campus was split by a coaching change when Cummard was elevated from associate head coach to the top office.

"We want people who fit us just as much as we want to fit them," Cummard said of Gunlock. "That's super important — and she fits us. I think we fit her really well. I think she's going to continue to get better, get more comfortable at this level, and I know she's looking forward to being back in her area."

Gunlock agreed with the fit.

"The coaches are super supportive, and I love my teammates," she said. "I think they've made stepping into this level really easy for me; it was something I was definitely nervous about, coming to BYU. But the coaches have made me really comfortable, as well as the players."

BYU is back home to host Weber State at 2 p.m. MST Saturday.

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