BILLINGS, Mont.  – The #15 Montana State University Billings women's basketball team fell just short in their season opener, losing 73-72 to #24 Texas Woman's University to conclude the first day of play at the Tipoff Classic at the Trailhead hosted at Alterowitz Gym.
 
With a packed home crowd out to support them, the Yellowjackets (0-1) played a close battle against the Pioneers (1-0) to open their season. The 'Jackets, who spent a majority of the game just a few points behind the Owls, nearly made a comeback with an exciting rally down the stretch. But Texas Woman's would manage to close out the game, picking up a hard-fought victory.
 
"I thought tonight was a great women's basketball game between two very good teams," said Yellowjackets head coach Kevin Woodin. "Texas Woman's played very well, and were hard to guard all night, but we fought hard to come back into the game, and did a good job not turning the ball over. We may have fell just short, but I'm proud of how our team played."
 
The Yellowjackets were led by Dyauni Boyce and Kola Bad Bear, who both had standout starts to the season. Boyce scored 24 points for the 'Jackets, to go with five rebounds, five steals, and four assists. Meanwhile Bad Bear, making her Yellowjacket debut after transferring in from Montana State, score 22 points on 9-12 shooting, with four rebounds and an assist. Behind them, Aspen Giese scored ten points to go with seven assists and four rebounds, while Shayla Montague scored eight points, with five rebounds and four assists.
 
"Kola and Dyauni did a great of establishing themselves inside today, and were really effective in the paint," said Woodin. "We didn't shoot the ball great from the perimeter overall though, which definitely impacted us today."
 
The game lived up to its primetime billing from the opening whistle, with the two teams trading baskets in a back-and-forth first quarter. Boyce scored seven points in the opening period, but the Pioneers held a 15-14 lead following the first media timeout at four minutes, after which the game quickly morphed into a defensive battle, with a Texas Woman's jumper being the only basket for the rest of the quarter. The second half would remain low scoring in the early stages, but it would pick up once more, with both teams picking it up late. Boyce finished the half with 15 points to pace the 'Jackets, but it would be the Pioneers who held a 38-32 lead heading into the half.
 
The third quarter was where Bad Bear began to catch fire, scoring 11 in the third as the Yellowjackets began to work their way towards a comeback. Texas Woman's would prove difficult to stop however, continuing to punish the paint and get baskets on the inside as MSUB battled to get back into the game. They would manage to do so in the fourth quarter, cutting the lead to one as Bad Bear dominated in the paint before a three pointer by Montague would put the 'Jackets up by one late. But the Pioneers would respond once again, with an and-one finish by Ashley Ingram proving to be the decisive bucket as the Pioneers grabbed a tough road win.
 
Ingram scored 19 points for Texas Woman's, going a perfect 6-6 from the field, while fellow forward Scout Huffman chipped in with 20 points. Leila Patel scored 13, while Jada Celsur added 11 points for Texas Woman's.
 
THE BUZZ: Bad Bear was selected as the Intermountain Health Player of the Game… Boyce's five steals were a career high for the junior, while she finished just two points shy of matching her career high for points in a game… with two made three-pointers in tonight's game, Montague moved up to 169 in her career, just three away from moving into sixth in program history.
 
UP NEXT: The Yellowjackets continue their run of games at the Tipoff Classic with a game tomorrow against University of Mary. Tipoff is set for 4:45 PM at Alterowitz Gym. Live video will be available here, and live statistics will be available here. Tickets for the D2CCA Tipoff Classic at the Trailhead can be purchased online here.