FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Birgitta Gray O: (406) 896-5917 E: birgitta.gray@msubillings.edu July 24, 2015 Electrifying season on tap for MSUB women’s basketball
MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin is releasing the 2015-16 women’s basketball schedule that includes contests against last season’s national runner-up, two regional powerhouse teams, and the always tough GNAC challengers. BILLINGS, Mont. – The MSUB women’s basketball team returns to the court in 2015 with a full plate. The Yellowjackets will go toe-to-toe with last year’s NCAA Division II national runner-up, the west region runner-up, as well as two powerhouse teams from the central region. First up for the Yellowjackets is an alumni game at the end of October. Then MSU Billings swings into gear opening the year with two contests against rival Rocky Mountain College. The ‘Jackets flip-flop venues launching the season with an exhibition game at the Fortin Center against the Battlin’ Bears on Nov. 3, before hosting RMC a week later for another exhibition in Alterowitz. Last year Montana State University Billings returned to hosting the Yellowjackets Women’s Basketball Classic, and this season MSUB is again hosting the event with three very exciting teams scheduled to attend the tournament that runs Nov. 13-14 in Alterowitz Gymnasium. The 2015 Yellowjacket Classic kicks off with a game between Academy of Art and Simon Fraser University on Nov. 13 at 5:30 p.m. followed by a contest between last year’s NCAA Division II national runner-up Cal Baptist University and MSU Billings at 7:30 p.m. The teams will trade partners and on Saturday Cal Baptist will take on Simon Fraser at 5:30 p.m. with AAU locked into a battle against the Yellowjackets at 7:30 p.m. The Yellowjackets have never faced Cal Baptist before, but did see Academy of Art two years ago at the west region tournament in Pomona, Calif. MSU Billings led-off the tournament with a first round draw against the Urban Knights defeating AAU by one point, 60-59, to advance. Coach Woodin is pleased with the level of competition offered at the Yellowjacket Classic this year, and is looking forward to commencing the 2015 season with games against the quality teams heading to Billings for the tournament. “I am very excited about our 2015-16 schedule,” Woodin commented. “Our non-league schedule is very challenging to say the least and our conference will once again be loaded with many great teams. We open our regular season at home with our own Yellowjacket Classic and we have three excellent teams coming in Cal Baptist, Academy of Art, and Simon Fraser. Our tourney will definitely give us a good evaluation on how we are playing right away. I think we have the potential to be an excellent team this year. I believe we will be better defensively and I am hopeful that we will have more depth than we did a year ago. It will be nice to play the two exhibitions against Rocky to help get us ready us for our Yellowjacket Classic.” After the games against the Lancers and the Urban Knights, the schedule doesn’t get any less challenging as MSUB heads to California for two contests. MSU Billings is set to square off against the west region runner-up from last year, and the team that beat the ‘Jackets in the NCAA west region championship two years ago, Cal Poly Pomona on Nov. 20. Twenty-four hours later the ‘Jackets make the short trek north for a game against Cal State San Bernardino on Nov. 21.
The last week of November, MSUB is home for two games against regional opponent Chadron State on Nov. 27 and an exhibition game against the University of Great Falls on Nov. 28. Both games are set for the earlier time of 5:15 p.m. as they are part of a double-header billing with the MSUB men’s basketball team. The first weekend of December, the Yellowjackets open Great Northwest Athletic Conference action with a home game against Central Washington on Dec. 3, with a second conference contest on Dec. 5 against Northwest Nazarene. The CWU game in Alterowitz will begin at the regular time of 7:00 p.m., but the NNU game on Saturday will have an earlier start time of 1:00 p.m. With the GNAC addition of Concordia (Ore.), the conference has moved to 11 teams and MSUB will be the team without a travel partner this year. The Yellowjackets will now have 20 conference contests in the regular season. “I think it is great to have Concordia join our league this season,” Woodin said. “We will not have a travel partner because of the eleven team league so the main difference will be not having any one game weeks. That is something we can easily adjust to.” MSUB finishes up the five game stretch at home with a contest against the University of Montana Western on Dec. 12. The Yellowjackets complete their schedule before the winter break with a trip to the Las Vegas Holiday Hoops tournament. MSU Billings attended the tournament two years ago and the Yellowjackets are returning to the big city in the desert to play a team from the Great Lakes Valley Conference in Quincy University on Dec. 18, with a game scheduled against Tarleton State University on Dec. 19, a team from the Lonestar Conference. Both teams made their conference tournaments last year and are perennially a threat in their region. The Yellowjackets are adding two new teams to their docket, as MSUB has yet to face either opponent in competition. “We really enjoyed the Las Vegas tourney two years ago as we played two quality opponents and the tournament was well run,” Woodin said on returning to Holiday Hoops play. “Both Quincy and Tarleton State have solid, winning programs, and the tournament will be a great event and challenge for us.” After the rest period in December, MSUB opens play up with its farthest conference road trip of the season heading to Alaska for a contest against Alaska Anchorage on Dec. 31, and then Alaska on Jan. 2. For four weeks, the Yellowjackets trade home and away weekends. After the tough trip to Alaska, MSUB hosts Saint Martin’s and Seattle Pacific, followed by a road trip to Concordia and Western Oregon, then returning home to host Western Washington and Simon Fraser to round-up the first half of GNAC competition. “The GNAC will once again be very tough,” Woodin said. “Many teams return key players, including us. I believe we have what it takes to compete at a high level in our league and it will be nice to start off at home in early December. The conference tourney should be very exciting at the end of the year as the depth of talent in our league is so impressive.” The closing games in January will see the ‘Jackets hosting the Alaska schools on their home court followed by five weeks of solid conference play. The 2016 season concludes with four games on the road which has the Yellowjackets hosting their final two home games on Feb. 11 against Western Oregon and Feb. 13 versus Concordia. Both games are the third and fourth double-headers of the season with the men’s basketball team, but the women’s team will take the later times as the game against the Wolves will be the program’s annual Think Pink Night with the final home game set against Concordia as the seasons designated Senior Night. “Our final month of the season will be very challenging as six out of our last eight games are on the road,” Woodin said. “It will be important for us this season to get off to a good start in conference play. Winning on the road in the GNAC is so difficult, but usually the teams that do it the best are the ones who advance to the postseason.”
The 2016 GNAC tournament will return to Saint Martin’s University this year with the top-6 teams advancing to the postseason tournament to be played from Mar. 2-5 in Lacey, Wash. October 24 – Alumni*, 1:00 p.m. November 3 – at Rocky Mountain College*, 7:00 p.m. 10 - Rocky Mountain College*, 7:00 p.m. Yellowjacket Basketball Classic 13-14 13 - Simon Fraser vs. Academy of Art, 5:15 p.m.; Cal Baptist*, 7:30 p.m. 14 – Cal Baptist vs. Simon Fraser, 5:15 p.m.; Academy of Art*, 7:30 p.m. 20 – at Cal Poly Pomona, 7:00 p.m. 21 – at Cal State San Bernardino, 6:00 p.m. 27 – Chadron State College, 5:15 p.m. 28 – University of Great Falls*, 5:15 p.m. December 3 – Central Washington+, 7:00 p.m. 5 – Northwest Nazarene+, 1:00 p.m. 12 – University of Montana – Western, 7:00 p.m. Las Vegas Holiday Hoops 18-19 18 – Quincy University, 5:45 p.m. 19 – Tarleton State University, 3:30 p.m. 31 – at Alaska Anchorage+, 5:00 p.m. January 2 – at Alaska+, 2 p.m. 7 – Saint Martin’s+, 7:00 p.m. 9 – Seattle Pacific+, 7:00 p.m., 14 – at Concordia (Ore.)+, 7:00 p.m. 16 – at Western Oregon+, 7:00 p.m. 21 – Western Washington+, 5:15 p.m. (DH) 23 – Simon Fraser+, 5:15 p.m. (DH) 28 – Alaska+, 7:00 p.m. 30 – Alaska Anchorage+, 7:00 p.m. February 4 – at Seattle Pacific+, 5:15 p.m. 6 – at Saint Martin’s+, 5:15 p.m. 11 – Western Oregon (Think Pink Night)+, 7:00 p.m. 13 – Concordia (Ore.) (Senior Night)+, 7:30 p.m. 18 – at Simon Fraser+, 5:15 p.m. 20 – at Western Washington+, 5:15 p.m. 25 – at Northwest Nazarene+, 5:15 p.m. 27 – at Central Washington+. 5:15 p.m. March 2-5 Great Northwest Athletic Conference tournament, at Saint Martin’s, Lacey, Wash.
*-Exhibition match. +-Great Northwest Athletic Conference Match. All times local. All home games at Alterowitz Gymnasium in Billings, MT.
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