FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Birgitta Gray O: (406) 896-5917 E: birgitta.gray@msubillings.edu January 24, 2017 MSUB finishes January in Alaska MSUB Women’s Basketball on Facebook | MSUB Women’s Basketball on ISSUU | GNAC Standings Preview Interviews with Lexi Prevost and head coach Kevin Woodin
Lexi Prevost and the Yellowjackets are continuing a stretch of GNAC games on the road with a pair of contests in Alaska.
The Yellowjackets are continuing their longest conference stretch on the road this year heading to Alaska for a pair of contests. BILLINGS, Mont. – The MSUB women’s basketball team continues the toughest part of their 2016-17 schedule this week, opening the back half of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference season with games at No. 3 Alaska Anchorage on Thursday, Jan. 26, and on Saturday, Jan. 28 at Alaska. Last week the Yellowjackets were on the road for games at Simon Fraser and Western Washington. Against the Clan, MSUB held an early 15-14 lead at the end of the first quarter before SFU erupted on a 16-4 run to take a 30-19 lead in the middle of the second quarter. MSUB drew the double-digit deficit down to three, 43-40, in the third quarter before the Clan pulled away with another late run. In the game, MSUB struggled early with turnovers, but finished the second half in single digits, relying on defense to keep the game close until the offense began to catch up.
At Western Washington, MSUB again played well in the opening quarter, earning a 13-8 advantage with three minutes left. The Vikings responded with a 17-6 scoring run to move ahead by double-digits 34-19. In the second half, MSUB closed the gap to three points, 45-42 on a 23-11 run. With the game within reach, MSUB took the lead 55-53 with five minutes remaining. Both teams battled down the stretch before a 4-point play from WWU gave the Vikings a 2-point lead and MSUB was unable to find the hoop to send the game to overtime. MSU Billings is now 2-2 in the conference in the last four games and is eighth in the GNAC rankings. MSUB has improved in most statistical areas in the previous two weeks. The Yellowjackets had single digits turnovers (nine) at Western Washington and won the offensive rebounding battle 12-11. ROAD WARRIORS: MSUB finishes out the month of January on the road as 6 of 8 games will have been contested away from Alterowitz. These two weeks may be the toughest stretch in the conference this year as the ‘Jackets have to make back-to-back road trips against the top teams in the GNAC. SENIOR LEADERSHIP: As the one active senior on the roster, Tiana Hanson has been an instrumental leader for the Yellowjacket squad. The 6-foot forward from Shepherd, Mont., is fourth in the GNAC in points with 16.2 per game and fifth in rebounds at 6.9. Hanson is shooting better than 84 percent from the free-throw line, and is third in the conference in blocked shots with 1.1 per game. At the foul line, Hanson has made 95 free-throws this year which is 13th overall in the nation. Hanson scored 21 points and had 15 rebounds last week, including shooting 8 for 11 from the field against Simon Fraser for 19 points. Hanson has passed the 200 career mark in rebounds with 210. FLOOR GENERAL: After surpassing her career-high in points of 17 with 25 against Western Oregon two weeks ago, junior point guard Rylee Kane scored 18 against both Simon Fraser and Western Washington. She notched two 3-pointers against the Clan and had five assists in each game. Staying on the court for the full 40 minutes at Western Washington, Kane made six shots from the field and the free-throw line with three steals. The native of Red Lodge, Mont., is averaging 12.4 points and is 20 th in the nation with 5.6 assists per game. Last week’s point total has Kane at 603 career points at MSUB. CONSISTENT VAN ATTA : In both games last week, junior Marissa Van Atta earned consistent figures. At SFU, the forward scored 15 points and against Western Washington added eight points and seven rebounds. She is on a 6game free-throw streak at 19 for 19, which is more than half her season total. Van Atta hasn’t missed a freethrow since the game against Alaska on Dec. 29, 2016. STARTING ROLE: Lexi Prevost finished last week with 18 points and nine rebounds. The junior guard matched her season-high 33 minutes for MSUB against WWU finishing with a career-high seven rebounds. She had two 3point baskets in each game and leads the team on the season with 22 total. Last week’s two games moved Prevost over the 100 mark in career points with 106. Grace Weeks ended the week with 10 points and four rebounds. The junior is averaging 6.2 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. MSUB RESERVES: The Yellowjacket bench continues to provide their team with quality minutes. Brina Hull had six points and took three offensive charge in the game against the Vikings. Taylor Cunningham was 3 for 4 from the field against Simon Fraser earning seven points. BY THE NUMBERS: MSUB is averaging 60.9 points per game on 38.5 percent shooting. The team is 28.9 percent from outside with 29.4 rebounds per game. In their last game, MSUB forced 16 turnovers on WWU while limiting
their own to nine. The Yellowjacket defense also held the Vikings to 63 points, more than 10 points under their season average of 76.9. Thursday, Jan. 26 – at Alaska Anchorage University Seawolves– 9:00 p.m. Mountain time Alaska Airlines Center | Anchorage, AK | Live Stats | Live Video | 2016-17 Record: 17-1, 10-0 GNAC Head Coach: Ryan McCarthy, 5th season 2015-16 Record: 38-3, 18-2 GNAC 1st, national runner-up In 18 games this season, Alaska Anchorage has just one loss on its record this season and is a perfect 10-0 in the first half of GNAC action. The Seawolves enter the week ranked No. 3 in Division II and are fifth in the nation in scoring (83.3 ppg) and second in holding opponents (51.9 ppg). The Seawolves employ a deep balanced offense and a smothering defensive style to their game. Veteran point guard Kiki Robertson is 12th in the nation in assists at 5.9 and fifth in steals at 3.67. Autumn Williams is third in the GNAC in points at 18.8 and second in steals with 2.56 per game. From outside, Tara Thompson is averaging 2.5 3-pointers per game. Alaska Anchorage is beating opponents by a 31.4-point margin. The team is shooting a conference second-best 45.9 percent and leads in 3-point percentage at 37.2. The Seawolves lead the nation in steals with an average 17.1 per game and are second in forced turnovers at 28.17. All-Time Record (26-31, 11-17 Away): MSUB has played against Alaska Anchorage 56 times in their history with UAA holding a 5-game advantage. The last time MSUB won in Anchorage was in 2003. Last Game: During a New Year’s Eve game contested at Alterowitz, the Seawolves united for a dominate performance, defeating the Yellowjackets 87-44 behind a team-high 22 points from Robertson while forcing 35 turnovers against MSUB. Saturday, Jan. 28 – at Alaska Nanooks – 5:00 p.m. Mountain time Patty Center| Fairbanks, AK | Live Stats | Live Video 2016-17 Record: 9-8, 5-5 GNAC Head Coach: Cody Bench, 6th season 2015-16 Record: 12-18, 7-13 GNAC, 8th Coming into the week, Alaska may be the hottest team in the GNAC. The Nanooks went into Saint Martin’s delivering a 61-53 win and then turned around to defeat Seattle Pacific in Brougham Pavilion for the first time since 2000 and only the fourth time in program history, 72-59. Alaska has five starting seniors and the veteran team has shown depth in the first half of the conference season. The Nanooks are sitting at a 5-5 opening GNAC record in a tie for fourth in the rankings. Jordan Wilson is second in the nation and in the GNAC in points per game with 22.2. She leads the conference in shooting percentage at 60.1 percent and is also second in the GNAC from the free-throw line at 85.8 percent.
Kaillee Skjold is averaging 14.8 points and a conference-leading 9.5 rebounds per game. Victoria Milton has 4.3 assists per game. The Nanooks are fifth in the GNAC in points at 70.7 per game and second from the free-throw line at 78.5 percent. All-Time Record (51-13, 24-8): MSU Billings holds a large overall win record against the Nanooks. MSUB was defeated at home by Alaska this season for just the third time in the history of the two programs at Alterowitz. Last Game: MSUB struggled in all areas against Alaska in the first game of the season between the two teams, falling 71-53 on Dec. 29, 2016. --@MSUBSports | #JacketNation--