BILLINGS, Mont.  – Two MSUB players scored 13 points, and two had 12 in the 71-61 Great Northwest Athletic Conference win against Alaska Fairbanks on Saturday night.
 
Alisha Breen and Annie DePuydt both had 13 points and Quinn Peoples and Kayleen Goggins added 12 each as Montana State University Billings (6-3, 1-1 GNAC) won its first conference game of the season.
 
MSU Billings had a big night on the boards pulling in 44 rebounds to Alaska's 23. The Yellowjackets were back-and-forth during the game, going up by as many 20 points in the game, but the University of Alaska Fairbanks (6-4, 0-2 GNAC) found ways to get back into the game.
 
In the first half, MSUB opened up a 20-point lead, 37-17, as Peoples drained a 3-point basket with 2:10 left. Alaska's Jordan Wilson scored eight points, and Daron Mainville two as the Nanooks responded by scoring the last 10 points of the first half. The Yellowjackets still had a 10-point lead going into the half, 37-27.
 
"I was pleased with our start," head coach Kevin Woodin said. "I thought our team was very connected early and they were executing on both ends of the floor. We did, however, get a bit sloppy near the end of the half and Fairbanks took advantage of that and got back into the game."
 
At the half MSUB was shooting 13-28 for 46.4 percent. The team was 4-10 from 3-point territory with 18 rebounds. The Nanooks were 10-30 from the field for 33.3 percent going into the half and 1-6 from 3-point range.
 
The second half was a much more even affair. UAF's Wilson kicked off a 5-0 run on a lay-up followed by a 3-point basket from Arinesha Smith to draw the deficit down to five points, 37-32. At the 14:15 mark, MSUB's Monica Grimsrud made a great move in the paint to score the next two points, after an inbound pass went from Marissa Van Atta to Courtney Henry. The Yellowjackets continued with the momentum, as a jumper from Breen brought the point spread back up to 14 points, 52-38.
 
Under the five minute mark, UAF made one last run, bringing the deficit down to seven, 58-51, as a full-court press caused MSUB to turn-over the ball giving the Nanooks two easy points. A 3-point play from Breen on a jumper plus the extra point off a foul put MSUB back up by 10, 61-51 with 3:54 left in the game. DePuydt did the same a minute later and MSUB continued to hold off Alaska down the stretch.
 
With under a minute left, Alaska Fairbanks was forced to foul. DePuydt made both baskets giving the Yellowjackets a 13-point lead. Alaska made a 3-point shot at the buzzer to end the game at a 10-point loss for the Nanooks.
 
"It was a great win for our team tonight," Coach Woodin said. "Our league is so balanced and it was important for us to respond with a positive effort after losing on Thursday. In the second half, we played hard but give Fairbanks a lot of credit, they battled hard and we could not put them away."
 
Alaska's Wilson was the game's high-scorer with 28 points. Kaillee Skjold led the team in rebounds with six. The Nanooks ended the game shooting 22-63 for 34.9 percent.
 
"We rebounded the ball better tonight which was critical," Woodin said. "We still need to cut down on our turnovers as 22 is simply way too many."
 
Breen was the Yellowjackets' leading rebounder finishing with nine, Peoples had eight and DePuydt and Grimsrud both ended the game with seven.
 
"Individually, I thought Annie DePuydt had her best overall game of the year," Coach Woodin said. "It is great to see her getting more comfortable out there and her determination is very impressive. Monica Grimsrud gave us some great minutes off the bench and impacted the game on both ends. She is going to be a major factor for our team this season. Courtney Henry did a lot of nice things tonight for us. She protected the ball better and also helped us on the defensive boards and hit a couple of key shots."
 
Alaska had more points off of turnovers 24-12, but MSUB had more second chance 16-11, points in the paint, 34-26, and more points from its bench, 18-13. MSU Billings ended the game shooting 25-56 overall, was 4-13 in 3-point shots, and 17-25 from the free-throw line.
 
NEXT UP: Montana State University Billings hosts Jamestown next Saturday at home. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Live video and live stats will be available at msubsports.com.