Yellowjackets win battle at home against Vikings 53-47

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Birgitta Gray O: (406) 896-5917 E: birgitta.gray@msubillings.edu January 21, 2016 Yellowjackets win battle at home against Vikings 53-47 Women’s Basketball on Facebook MSUB Women’s Basketball on ISSUU GNAC Standings Post Game Interviews with junior Alisha Breen, senior Monica Grimsrud, and head coach Kevin Woodin Interactive Box Score

Junior Alisha Breen poured in a game-high 21 points in the conference win against Western Washington.

Junior Alisha Breen pours in a game-high 21 points, senior Monica Grimsrud adds 14, and senior Janiel Olson collects a game-high nine rebounds in 53-47 win against GNAC opponent Western Washington.

BILLINGS, Mont. – Alisha Breen poured in 21 points, Monica Grimsrud added 14, and Janiel Olson pounded the boards finishing with nine rebounds as the MSUB women's basketball team won the battle of the top-ranked Great Northwest Athletic Conference teams defeating Western Washington, 53-47, Thursday at Alterowitz.

For the second straight game, MSUB held its opponent to a season-low in scoring as the Yellowjacket defense forced 18 turnovers, made nine steals, and capitalized with 17 points off of turnovers. MSU Billings also won the battle on the glass, 37-34, and finished with seven 3-pointers to just three from Western Washington.

With the win, Montana State University Billings moves ahead in the GNAC standings with a 12-5 overall record and 8-1 in the GNAC. Western Washington falls to 12-6 and is now 8-2 in the conference.

The Vikings held a slight lead after the second quarter at 13-10, but with just under four minutes left before half-time, Breen scored four straight points to put the Yellowjackets ahead 22-20. Junior Tiana Hanson broke a 24-all tie with two free-throws at the end of the second quarter to give MSUB a slight 26-24 edge at half-time.

The Yellowjackets stretched their lead to 12 with a 3-pointer from Olson at the start of the third quarter. Western Washington fired back with a 12-0 run to take the lead back, 42-41, at the start of the fourth quarter. In the final eight minutes of the game, sophomore Rylee Kane hit a 3-pointer, Breen scored six straight points, and Grimsrud put the game out of reach with her third 3-pointer of the game with 20 seconds left to give MSUB the victory.

Kane finished with a game-high six assists and the Yellowjackets held themselves to seven total turnovers on the night.

Grimsrud and sophomore Marissa Van Atta each had three steals in the game.

WWU’s Kiana Gandy finished with a team-high 15 points. Kayla Bernsen and Tia Briggs each had 10 points and Bernsen finished with a team-high seven rebounds.

“Our start wasn’t ideal,” MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin said. “I give WWU credit as they took it to us right away and had us on our heels. I did like how we persevered though, and I thought Alisha’s three at the end of the quarter gave us some momentum. We struggled early finishing shots in the paint. I thought we got some good looks but we just couldn’t convert. Western did a great job with their zone defense tonight. It was a great team win though. Everyone contributed positively in one way or another.”

A free-throw from Bernsen gave the Vikings their largest lead of the game 13-4 with 2:35 left in the first quarter. Backto-back 3-pointers from Breen and Grimsrud pulled the Yellowjackets back within three.

A rebound from Van Atta provided an opportunity for Breen and she drained a 3-pointer. On the WWU possession, sophomore Vanessa Stavish stole the ball and Breen drove into the key for a layup.

“I knew Western would make a run and they did right away,” Woodin said. “Our defense rose to the occasion down the stretch and we got several key stops in the final three minutes. Monica’s 3-pointer was huge on our final possession and I am very happy for her. She has sacrificed a lot for MSUB over the years.”

After the break, the Yellowjackets came out firing in the second half. Van Atta nailed a jump shot inside the paint and came back down the floor with another shot inside the key. On a steal by Kane, Grimsrud fired home a 3-pointer to push the Yellowjackets ahead, 33-24, sending Western Washington to call for a timeout.

Briggs put the Vikings back on the scoreboard. Olson drained the second 3-pointer of the half for MSUB. Grimsrud followed that up with a 3-point play to keep MSUB ahead by double-digits. Amanda Lance from WWU countered with a 3-pointer for Western Washington, and a free-throw from Gandy dropped the deficit back down to four, 41-36, with four minutes left. With three seconds left in the quarter, Bernsen made a free-throw to close to within a possession.

Closing out a 12-0 run, Gandy tied the game at 42. Grimsrud made a steal and Breen danced into the lane for a layup to take the lead back, 46-44.

Gandy tied the game at 46 and it was Breen again in the key with a layup to push the ‘Jackets ahead at the four minute mark by two points. At the free-throw line, Gandy made one of two shots for 48-47.

Breen drove to the rim for another layup and Olson grabbed the defensive rebound after a miss from the Vikings. This time, Breen missed a shot, but it bounced off the rim and she recovered the rebound to give the Yellowjackets another 30 seconds on the shot clock. Olson made a huge rebound and Grimsrud stepped way back on the arc and drained a 3point shot for the last basket of the game.

“The game was low-scoring because both teams were playing very hard, especially on the defensive end,” Woodin said.

“I felt Janiel did a super job of captaining our defense tonight and Coach Heringer prepared our team very well. I also felt Rylee played a nice floor game tonight, and we protected the ball well as a team.””

UP NEXT: MSU Billings hosts GNAC opponent Simon Fraser as part of a second doubleheader this week. Tip-off against the Clan is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 23 at 5:15 p.m.

“We are looking forward to playing Simon Fraser on Saturday,” Woodin said. “They have been playing very well lately and it should be another great GNAC contest.”

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