DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Montana State University Billings women's basketball team concluded it's non-conference slate for the season with a 65-61 win over St. Mary's University, splitting their two games at the Daytona Beach Shootout.
 
Playing in their final game of 2023, the Yellowjackets (11-3, 2-0 GNAC) were able to outlast the Rattlers (2-8, 2-2 LSC) in a game where momentum swung from quarter to quarter in the first half, before an intense second half saw the 'Jackets take control late behind clutch shooting to emerge victorious.
 
"We started strong tonight," said Yellowjacket head coach Kevin Woodin. "But St. Mary's played really well in the second and third quarters to come back in the game. But I really liked the fight our players showed late. We went down by nine points, but mounted a comeback and showed a lot of guts, and I'm proud of the way we responded after a tough loss Saturday."
 
Dyauni Boyce scored a team high 21 points, adding seven rebounds and four assists. Shayla Montague scored 14 points, going 4-9 from three-point range, while adding four rebounds and an assist. Chloe Williams had 13 points, along with a pair of rebounds and assists. Kortney Nelson added six points, six rebounds, and an assist, block, and steal, while Natalie Andreas scored five points, and Kola Bad Bear had four.
 
The Yellowjackets got off to a hot shooting start to the game, hitting 60% of their field goal attempts in the first quarter, while holding the Rattlers to just 21.4% shooting to hold a double-digit lead after the first ten minutes. But St. Mary's would respond strong in the second quarter, picking up their shooting and forcing 7 MSUB turnovers to close the Yellowjackets lead to a 31-28 advantage at halftime.
 
Both teams adjusted their defenses at halftime, but the Rattlers would find take advantage of a slow start on the offensive end by the Yellowjackets to grab the lead. Following a 12-0 St. Mary's run to start to the quarter, the 'Jackets found themselves trailing by nine at the 5:45 mark in the third quarter. It would be the turning point though for MSUB, who would pick it up following a timeout, allowing the Rattlers to score just two more points in the quarter, while attacking the paint offensively to force fouls, as they connected on six free throws in the final minutes to tie things up as the game made it's way into the fourth quarter.
 
In the final ten minutes of play, the Yellowjackets finally found their shooting touch from the perimeter. MSUB went 5-10 in the fourth quarter from beyond the arc, connecting on more triples than it had all game leading into the quarter. Key in the teams efforts was Montague, who connected on three of her four made three-pointers in the final quarter, helping to lead the 'Jackets on an 14-0 run in the quarter to help MSUB grab back the lead, and hold off the Rattlers attempts at a comeback to finish off the team's Florida road trip with a win.
 
"We started to guard better midway through the third quarter," said Woodin. "And we finally started hitting some shots in the fourth quarter. We did a good job of making the extra pass, and players like Shayla and Dyauni made some big buckets. I'm really proud of our team's perseverance, and it'll be nice to get a break before getting back into GNAC play."
 
THE BUZZ: Montague was selected as the Intermountain Health Player of the Game… she now sits at 196 made three-pointers in her MSUB career, just two shy of tying Amy Winslow for third in MSUB program history.
 
UP NEXT: The 'Jackets get some time off before resuming their GNAC games with a matchup on the road January 4 against Central Washington. Tipoff is set for 5:15 p.m. PT (6:15 p.m. MT).