BILLINGS, Mont. – Following some last-minute heroics, the Montana State University Billings women's basketball team earned the team's first victory of the regular season, taking down Colorado State University Pueblo 64-63 on day two of the D2CCA Tipoff Classic at the Trailhead, hosted by MSUB at Alterowitz Gym.
 
The Yellowjackets (1-1), and Thunderwolves (1-1) would go blow-for-blow across all 40 minutes of an intense matchup, where both teams looked like they could emerge from the battle with a victory. The Yellowjackets would put together an impressive start to lead by 11 at the half, but CSU Pueblo would battle back into the game, setting up a back-and-forth final quarter. But after being fouled on her layup attempt with 15 seconds remaining, Kyla Momberg would sink a pair of clutch free throws to give MSUB the lead, and a big stop on the Thunderwolves' final attempt would see the 'Jackets emerge with the win.
 
"For Kyla to make two big free throws in that high-pressure situation was important," remarked MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin. "Both teams were out of timeouts, so you just had to make them and then trust your defense, and we we're able to get a final stop and a rebound. These kinds of games can go either way, and I'm glad we came out on top tonight."
 
After setting a career-high with 16 points last night against University of Mary, Momberg would score 16 for the second night in a row, hitting 5-10 from the field, 2-4 from three-point range, and going a perfect 4-4 from the free throw line. The Box Elder, MT local would add on a pair of rebounds and assists, and one steal. Behind her, freshman Cassie Chensut would finish just one rebound short of a double-double, scoring 13 points with nine boards, two blocks, and a steal. Allison Kunze would add on ten points, going a perfect 6-6 from the free throw stripe, while also grabbing five rebounds. Kaitlin Grossman scored seven points with five rebounds, two blocks, and two assists. Tailey Harris and Brooklynn Brennan would each add six points, with Harris totaling four rebounds and steals to go with two assists, and Brennan snagging four steals, three rebounds, and two assists. Kaylie Neary scored four points on 2-3 shooting, and Rae Smart would add two points to her seven rebounds, five assists, and one steal.
 
The Yellowjackets would open the game with an impressive start on both ends of the court, hitting 8-13 (61.5%) from the field in the opening quarter and 4-6 (66.7%) from three across the opening ten minutes. Meanwhile, the defense would limit the Thunderwolves to 3-14 (21.4%). After trading baskets early, MSUB would open up a lead by ending the final 6:23 of the first on an 18-4 run, holding a 22-8 lead heading into the second quarter. The Yellowjacket's shooting would cool off in the second quarter, with Pueblo chipping away at the lead, but MSUB would maintain their lead with it's continued defensive pressure, keeping the Thunderwolves under 30% shooting from the field once more and not allowing a single three-pointer across the opening two quarters, taking a 31-20 lead into the half.
 
Back-to-back threes by Harris and Chesnut would see MSUB start the second half strong, but CSU Pueblo would heat up, continuing to make shots and chip away at the lead. The Thurderwolves would finally find their shooting touch, making 11-16 (68.8%) from the field and going 5-8 (62.5%) on threes, thundering back and officially evening the score back up at 45-all with 1:48 remaining. And after a layup by Smart briefly returned the lead to MSUB, three points to end the quarter would see CSU Pueblo lead 48-47 going into the fourth quarter.
 
The final ten minutes would be back-and-forth, with Grossman putting MSUB back in the lead to open the fourth quarter before a 7-0 run would put the Thunderwolves ahead by multiple baskets. After battling it's way back to keep close though, MSUB would still trail by four with 3:47 remaining. But Momberg would cut the lead to a single basket with a layup at the 3:08 mark, and after a missed three-pointer, a great hustle play for the 'Jackets would see Smart collect a ball that looked to be going out of bounds, flinging it to an open Brennan for an easy layup and to tie the game. The Thunderwolves would briefly retake the lead, but a big jumper by Chesnut would even things up once more. But Chesnut and Grossman would foul out late in the fourth, and another free throw would restore a one-point lead to Pueblo with :36 second on the clock. But looking for a clutch play, MSUB would put the ball back in Momberg's hands, where the junior would draw a foul and head to the line. After converting both of her free throws the Thunderwolves would rush the ball down the court to heave up a last attempt, but that effort would roll off the rim no good, and the Yellowjackets would swarm all over a loss ball to take possession before the buzzer sounded, sealing MSUB's victory.
 
"I thought we really started well tonight," said Woodin. "It was a fun environment, and I thought we rode that momentum on home court. We played a really great first quarter both offensively and defensively, but I think we got a little complacent in the middle quarters. Give Pueblo a lot of credit too, they started to hit threes and made the game close. We were down the last five minutes by a bucket or two, but I thought we gritted it out and stayed in the game. We shot the ball much better from the free throw line tonight, and I think we're continuing to learn as we play more games. We're a brand-new team that lost a lot of key players, so we have a lot of new faces. But I thought our assistant coaches did a very good job with a really quick scout, and I liked our poise. We're a very young team, but we were determined to do whatever we needed to win, and we came out on top."
 
THE BUZZ: Momberg was named the Intermountain Health Player of the Game… through two tournament games, Momberg is averaging 16.0 points per game to lead MSUB… Neary and Shelbi LaBrie entered into their first regular season contests for the Yellowjackets on the game… MSUB is now 5-1 all-time in games against CSU Pueblo.
 
UP NEXT: The Yellowjackets finish off the D2CCA Tipoff Classic at the Trailhead with the final game of the tournament on Sunday, November 9, facing off against Colorado School of Mines. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 PM at Alterowitz Gym. Live video is available on the GNAC Network, and live statistics are available here. Tickets are available for purchase online here. Full tournament information can be found on the Tipoff at the Trailhead Homepage.