BILLINGS, Mont. – The Montana State University Billings women's basketball team defeated University of Alaska Fairbanks 84-58, returning to their winning ways in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
 
The Yellowjackets (23-5, 14-3 GNAC) and Nanooks (4-20, 1-16 GNAC) played even through the first quarter, before the home team got into a rhythm offensively, outscoring Fairbanks 66-40 over the next three quarters.
 
"I'm very happy with our win tonight," said head coach Kevin Woodin. "I thought we only got better as the game went on. Fairbanks started the game very well, we were fortunate to be tied after the first quarter. But we were able to get some runs going in the second and get some separation."
 
Aspen Giese scored at team high 18 points, adding seven rebounds, four assists and a block. Shayla Montague was right behind her, scoring 17, going 5-10 from three-point range. Taryn Shelley scored 12 points, moving into eighth on the MSUB all-time scoring list. Dyauni Boyce had eight points, collecting five rebounds, three steals and two assists. Natalie Andreas also had eight, with three boards and a pair of assists. Chloe Williams led the Yellowjackets with seven rebounds and had seven points to go with it. Cariann Kunkel scored six and Kortney Nelson had five, adding a team high five assists and a trio of steals. As a team, the 'Jackets had 10 players score in the game, and picked up 24 assists as a team.
 
"It was a great team win for us," Woodin raved. "Every single player contributed to our victory tonight. I though we did a great job offensively of spreading the ball around and making the extra pass. 24 assists is an impressive number, and it goes to prove how unselfish we are."
 
The Yellowjackets had their hands full early. The Nanooks shot 53.8% from the field in the opening quarter, forcing the 'Jackets to play catchup for a majority of the quarter. But after taking a small lead with 8:07 in the second, the Yellowjackets began to take control. Fairbanks hung close in the second, battling back to tie it twice. The 'Jackets would end the half on a 9-1 run however to take a 38-30 lead into halftime.
 
MSUB continued to improve in the second half, locking things down on the defensive end. The 'Jackets forced eight second half turnovers, and outrebounded Fairbanks 21-16 over the final two periods. Meanwhile, the 'Jackets didn't commit a single turnover in the second half, playing efficient offense. The 'Jackets ended the third quarter on a big run, before comfortably seeing things out in the fourth.
 
"I thought we started to play better on both ends in the third quarter," said Woodin. "We put some excellent sequences of play together."
 
Ellen Silva scored 18 points for Alaska Fairbanks, adding six rebounds. Destiny Reimers and Kayla Johnson each scored 11, while Emma Wass added six. "Fairbanks was hard to guard tonight," Woodin commented. "I thought Silva played especially great. But our defense really improved in the second half, and we earned an important GNAC win."
 
"We are looking forward to Anchorage on Saturday, and are excited to honor our seniors Taryn and Cariann."
 
THE BUZZ: Giese was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game… The Yellowjackets are now 57-15 all-time against Alaska Fairbanks, and have won eight of their last nine against the Nanooks… The Yellowjackets are in the midst of their best season since the 2017-2018 season, where they went 25-12 overall (12-8 GNAC), and made it all the way to the NCAA DII Elite Eight… with Western Washington's win tonight, the Yellowjackets clinched the second seed at the GNAC Championships next week.
 
UP NEXT: The Yellowjackets conclude their regular season on Saturday, February 25 when they face off against University of Alaska Anchorage. Tip off is scheduled for 7:30 PM. Live video will be available here, and live statistics will be available here.
 
MSUB seniors Taryn Shelley and Cariann Kunkel will be honored at the conclusion of the game. "We are looking forward to Anchorage on Saturday," said Woodin, "And are excited to honor our seniors Taryn and Cariann."