by Logan Tracy
FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Montana State University Billings women’s basketball team defeated University of Alaska Fairbanks by a score of 74-65 to clinch sole possession of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference’s regular season title.
On the road and needing just one victory to guarantee the top seed in the GNAC Tournament next week, the Yellowjackets (25-4, 16-1 GNAC) took care of business against the Nanooks (4-22, 3-14 GNAC), winning their eighth straight game, and 11th in their past 12 games against Alaska Fairbanks. With the win, the Yellowjackets broke the program record for most conference wins in a season with 16, while tying their record for most wins in a single season.
“I’ve been coaching in the GNAC for more than a decade,” said Yellowjacket head coach Kevin Woodin. “And I know how hard it is to win a GNAC regular season title. There’s a lot of great teams, great coaches, tremendous travel that goes into every season. To be a GNAC Champion this year is something that our players will remember forever. We’re excited about Saturday’s game, and the tournament moving forward, but hats off to our players and coaches. This is an incredible accomplishment for our program, and for our school.”
Aspen Giese led the way for MSUB, totaling a career high 29 points. Giese, who also added seven rebounds, three steals, two assists, and a block, shot 10-16 from the field, and was 7-11 from three-point range, besting her previous career high of 25 set last season against Western Washington.
“Aspen was incredible tonight,” said Woodin. “She’s worked hard the last couple of weeks on her shot, and that work is paying off. She made shots from all levels, and our team did a great job of finding the hot shooter. I’m so happy for her.”
Dyauni Boyce and Chloe Williams each scored 12 points, with Boyce adding three rebounds and two assists while making half her attempts from beyond the arc, and Williams collecting four rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Kola Bad Bear added 11 points with six rebounds, along with a trio of steals and a block. Shayla Montague had six points on a pair of threes, and Kortney Nelson scored four to go with her team high seven rebounds and five assists.
The Yellowjackets found success early from the field, with Boyce, Williams, and Giese each scoring six of MSUB’s 18 first quarter points. But the Nanooks would open strong from the field as well, knocking down 50% of their shots in the opening ten minutes to keep things close, never letting MSUB run away with the lead and trailing by just one point after the first quarter ended. Fairbanks would continue to battle hard into the second quarter, tightening up on defense and taking the lead from the Yellowjackets with 5:21 remaining in the half. They would lead by as much as nine in the second quarter, but the ‘Jackets would come rallying back, finishing the final two minutes on a 6-0 run to trail 32-31 at the halftime break.
“Fairbanks played a very good first half,” Woodin said. “We went up by six early, but they did a good job of battling back. I thought offensively we were a little streaky with our shooting and missed some free throws we usually make, but I was happy with the little 6-0 run we ended on.”
MSUB would take the momentum back at the opening of the third quarter, with Giese knocking down a trio of threes in the opening 2:33 minutes of the third quarter to help the Yellowjackets regain the lead. Fairbanks would continue to battle, tying the game once more, but the ‘Jackets would continue to assert their dominance in the third quarter, making 50% of its long-range attempts and outscoring the Nanooks 22-14 in the third to hold a seven-point lead heading into the fourth quarter. The Nanooks would continue to battle until the final whistle, keeping it close and knocking down shots to keep MSUB on its toes, but the ‘Jackets would finish the game with their best hooting quarter of the night, knocking down 46.7% of their shots and 66.7% of their three-point attempts in the final quarter to see out the victory.
