by Logan Tracy
BILLINGS, Mont. – The Montana State University Billings women’s basketball team picked up their fifth consecutive victory, taking down Seattle Pacific University 66-55 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
With the gym packed in red to help support the Yellowjackets (22-4, 13-1 GNAC) for the program’s No More Stolen Sisters game, in support of missing and murdered indigenous women, MSUB overcame a 32.3% field goal percentage by taking excellent care of the ball, committing just six turnovers while forcing 20 turnovers from the Falcons (10-14, 7-7 GNAC).
“This was a great win for us,” said head coach Kevin Woodin. “Both teams battled really hard tonight. I thought our defense was great all night tonight. We created pressure all game, and did a great job boxing out and rebounding on that end of the court. We were a little cold from the field until late, but we protected the ball very well. I thought we had been a little sloppy with the ball on our last road trip, so I was really proud to see how we responded here.”
Shayla Montague led all scorers with 19 points, shooting 7-10 from the field and 4-6 from the three-point line, along with grabbing four rebounds. Kola Bad Bear had 18, going 10-11 from the free throw line, while adding four rebounds and four steals. Kortney Nelson finished with 12 points, going a perfect 6-6 from the charity stripe, while totaling six rebounds and six assists. Aspen Giese had eight points with ten rebounds, two assists and two steals, while Dyauni Boyce had seven points, four assists, and a steal. Danielle Zahn had two points and three assists off the bench for MSUB. As a team, the ‘Jackets went a combined 19-21 from the free throw line, while making 35% of their long-range attempts.
The Yellowjackets took an early first quarter lead courtesy of Montague, who scored nine points in the opening five minutes, including a pair of four-point plays. But Seattle Pacific would surge back in the back half of the first quarter, finishing the final five minutes on an 11-2 run, taking a 19-13 at the end of the quarter. MSUB would righten the ship in the second quarter however, allowing just one made basket over the first seven minutes, opening the second period on a 16-2 run. The ‘Jackets outrebounded SPU 13-6, locking down the boards and preventing second chance opportunities, while scoring over half their points in the quarter from inside the paint, taking a 35-28 lead into the break.
“Seattle Pacific came out ready to go in the first quarter,” said MSUB associate head coach Alisha Breen. “We didn’t play poorly in the first quarter, but they came out and knocked down some shots. But we started changing defenses, and it confused them, while helping us lock in more. Our girls are so good at being able to communicate those changes and adjust on the fly.”
MSUB would shoot just 25% in the third quarter, but still managed to outscore the Falcons 14-11 in the period, increasing their lead to double-digits going into the fourth quarter. The ‘Jackets defense continued to lock down, allowing SPU to attempt just seven shots in the quarter, forcing eight turnovers. They’d continue to keep Seattle Pacific at bay in the fourth quarter, finishing with their best shooting quarter of the night to respond to every attempt at a comeback, seeing out a hard-fought victory to remain the top team in the GNAC standings.
