by Nicole Auerbach, USA TODAY Sports

Montana guard Will Cherry, the likely Big Sky preseason player of the year, broke his foot during a pickup basketball game this weekend and will miss the first part of the season, the school confirmed to USA TODAY Sports on Wednesday morning.

Cherry is a 6-1, 177-pound guard from Oakland, Calif. He was a first-team All-Big Sky selection last season after averaging 15.8 points, 3.3 assists and 2.6 steals per game. He’s hoping to follow in the footsteps of friend and former Big Sky foe Damian Lillard, a two-time Big Sky player of the year who was the No. 6 pick in June’s NBA draft.

Now, Cherry will have to wait a little bit before he can get out on the court and impress NBA scouts. But the Grizzlies hope that wait won’t be too long.

“At this point we are not sure how long he will be out, but are hoping that he can return in late November,” Montana associate athletic director Dave Guffey wrote in an email to USA TODAY Sports.

Montana plays six games in November and doesn’t start conference play until Dec. 19 (at Northern Arizona).

Montana coach Wayne Tinkle told CBSSports.com he expects sophomores Keron DeShields and Jordan Gregory to fill in for Cherry while he’s out. CBSSports.com first reported the news of Cherry’s injury.

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