BILLINGS, Mont. – The Montana State University Billings women's basketball team locked up a sweep of this season's Rimrock Rivalry on home court, taking down Rocky Mountain College 77-49.
 
The win marked the ninth consecutive for the Yellowjackets (10-1, 2-0 GNAC), as they used an explosive 31-point second quarter to take a comfortable lead at halftime, and see out the second half to down the crosstown rival Battlin' Bears (6-3). The Yellowjackets outshot Rocky 43.8% to 36.2% overall, and knocked down a season-high 15 three-pointers to help bring home the win.
 
"It was a great win for us tonight against a good Rocky program," said Yellowjacket head coach Kevin Woodin. "We shot the three as well as we have all year, and our shooting from beyond the arc was critical in the win tonight. Our players did a great job of making the extra pass, and we attacked well from both inside and outside. We won on the boards again tonight, and to be plus 18 there was big for us as well."
 
Aspen Giese put in a season-high 23 points to lead the way for the 'Jackets, shooting 8-15 from the field and 7-13 from three, while adding four rebounds, three steals, a block, and an assist. Behind her with 12 points was Layla Baumann, who made her first career start for MSUB in the game. Baumann shot 4-8 from the field, knocking down a pair of threes, and added seven rebounds to her stat line, while tying her career high in scoring. Meanwhile, freshman Indie Browning set a new career record for points, finishing with 11 points for her first double-digit scoring effort, going 3-5 from beyond the arc. Dyauni Boyce completed her fourth career double-double, scoring ten points and grabbing a career best 13 rebounds to go with four assists, a steal, and a block. Kortney Nelson scored seven points while matching a career best with eight assists. Nelson also totaled three steals, as did Kaitlin Grossman, who also had six points, six rebounds, and three assists. Chenoa Louie had four points and four rebounds, while Both Avery Burkhart and Camryn Koester had two points in the game.
 
"We got some really good bench play tonight," said Woodin. "We had a lot of players contribute up and down our lineup, and it was great to get everybody in. We finished with 20 assists, which is a testament to how good we are at sharing the ball, and finding the right shot."
 
The first quarter was tightly contested, with neither team being able to gain much separation. MSUB would have six different players score in the first quarter, but would be unable to generate much separation as the two teams traded leads. The Battlin' Bears would use a late 8-2 run to head into the second quarter up 20-16, but similar to the first meeting between the two teams this season, MSUB would explode on the offensive side of the ball in the second, swinging the game firmly in their favor. The 'Jackets would score 31 points across the quarter, shooting 63.2%, and would hit 7-12 three-point attempts, allowing just 11 points on the defensive side of the ball. Their strong offensive showing would help the Yellowjackets flip the script heading into halftime, with the hosts heading into the break ahead 47-31.
 
MSUB would continue it's strong play coming out of halftime, this time flexing their dominance on the defensive side of the ball. The 'Jackets would hold the Battlin' Bears to just six points across the third quarter, holding their opponents to just 18.2% shooting, while knocking down 42.9% of their own shots and 50.0% of their three-point attempts to continue to expand their lead. The Yellowjackets would find themselves ahead 63-37 heading into the fourth quarter, where they would be able to put the game on cruise control, finishing out the final ten minutes with little issue to bring home an impressive victory on home court, and win their tenth game of the season.
 
THE BUZZ: Giese was selected as the Intermountain Health Player of the Game… MSUB has now swept Rocky in the past three seasons, winning the last six meeting between the two teams.
 
UP NEXT: The Yellowjackets are set to play their final home game of 2024 on Friday, December 13 at Alterowitz Gym when they face off against Montana Western. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 PM, with live video available here, and live statistics available here. Tickets can be purchased online here.