PORTLAND, Ore. – Following an impressive week where they went 3-0 in games on the road, the Montana State University Billings women's basketball team was awarded as the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Team of the Week, as announced by the conference on Monday afternoon.
 
The honor was bestowed upon the Yellowjackets (8-7, 0-2 GNAC) following an undefeated week of play to round out non-conference play, pushing the team's winning steak to four and moving them back above .500 for the regular season.
 
"I was really happy with how we played in Las Vegas," said MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin. "We are starting to do things better both statistically and on the court. We have been consistent all season with rebounding, but offensively we have been up and down. We are becoming more fundamentally sound, and it is starting to come together."
 
The Yellowjackets would open the week's action on Monday with a victory over Rocky Mountain College, heading into the den of the Battlin' Bears and emerging with a 60-41 victory. The Yellowjackets would put in an impressive defensive effort, holding their opponents to just 28.6% shooting from the field in the game and 23.5% from three. Meanwhile, Allison Kunze's 16 points on 7-9 shooting and Kyla Momberg's 15 points would help guide the Yellowjackets to success, giving MSUB it's eight consecutive win against their rivals, and fourth consecutive season sweep in the series over Rocky.
 
Following their early week success, the 'Jackets would head south to Las Vegas to take part in the Holiday Hoops Classic, where the team would go 2-0 in games on Saturday and Sunday against a pair of quality cross-country opponents. MSUB would first collect a 60-53 win against Tampa on Saturday, with Cassie Chesnut leading the charge with 23 points, five rebounds, three steals, and a block, with Momberg adding her second 15-point game of the week, and Kaitlin Grossman finishing with a double-double, totaling 11 points and ten rebounds. Chesnut, who set a new single-game scoring high in that game, would surpass that total the following day with a 27-point performance in the Yellowjacket's 63-55 upset win over #25 ranked Daemen University. Chesnut would collect a double-double in an impressive all-around performance, adding 11 rebounds, and a trio of blocks and assists. Fellow freshman Rae Smart would also post a double-double, the first of her career with 12 points and 11 boards, while Brooklynn Brennan would post a career-high nine points to help guide MSUB in their winning effort.
 
On their current four-game winning streak, the Yellowjackets are averaging 68.0 points per game, while allowing just 47.8 points per contest. The 'Jackets will look to carry that momentum into GNAC play following the holiday break, where they will resume conference action on Saturday, January 3 against Seattle Pacific at Brougham Pavilion in Seattle. Tipoff is set for 3 PM MT (2 PM PT), with live video available on the GNAC Network, and live statistics available here.