MONMOUTH, Ore. – The Montana State University Billings women's basketball won it's fifth consecutive game, taking down Western Oregon University 76-60 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
 
It was a complete victory for the Yellowjackets (21-4, 10-2 GNAC), who took care of the little things to pick up an impressive road victory over the Wolves (8-13, 4-9 GNAC). MSUB outrebounded the hosts 49-33 in total, and 19-6 on the offensive glass, while taking excellent care of the ball with a season low nine turnovers. Combined with MSUB's success from three-point range (13-30), it would make the Yellowjackets hard to defeat, as they moved one step closer to sealing their spot in the GNAC Championships.
 
"I'm very pleased with today's win," said MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin. "We played consistently throughout the game and won all four quarters. I thought we played a complete game both on offense and on defense; it was to shoot the ball better from the three-point line, and we did a great job of sharing the ball. We were able to attack inside and outside effectively, which was crucial to our success. One of our main areas of focus in this game was improving on the boards as well, and we did a great job of that, outrebounding them by 16."
 
The 'Jackets would have two players finish with double-doubles, with senior duo of Dyauni Boyce and Kortney Nelson collecting their fourth and second double-doubles of the season respectively. Boyce would finish the game with 14 points and ten rebounds, going 5-13 from the field with two threes, and knocking down both of her free throw attempts. She also dished out three assists. Meanwhile, Nelson would score ten points and grab a career-high 15 rebounds, going 3-8 from the field and 3-4 from the line. The GNAC's leader in assists would collect five more in the game, while adding three steals. The double-double was Nelson's second consecutive, after totaling ten points and 12 rebounds in MSUB's win last Thursday against Saint Martin's.
 
Two other Yellowjackets would tie Boyce's team high in scoring, with Aspen Giese and Layla Baumann combining to knock down eight three. Giese would score her 14 points on 5-11 shooting from the field, and 4-8 shooting from beyond the arc while adding two rebounds, an assist, and a steal. Baumann would tie her career-high in scoring, knocking down 4-7 from three and 5-10 from the field, and would also grab three rebounds in the contest. Like Baumann, Chenoa Louie would provide a spark off the bench with 13 points, going 5-6 from the field and going a perfect 2-2 from deep, the first multi-three game of her career. Kaitlin Grossman would total eight points and eight rebounds each, while Chloe Williams would do a bit of everything, racking up a career-high eight assists to go with five rebounds, four steals, three points, and two blocks.
 
"We had so many players step up today," raved Woodin. "Kortney and Dyauni were both impressive, two double-doubles in the same game is rare, so it was great to see them both achieve that. "Chloe's assists were huge for us, and she really helped set the tone for us defensively."
 
Both teams would open the game strong, trading baskets over the first five minutes of the opening quarter. But coming out of the first media timeout down 9-8, Giese's first three-pointer of the game would help spark an 11-3 run to finish the quarter. The Yellowjackets would find success from beyond the arc, shooting 3-7 from three to help spark the offense early to take an 18-12 lead into the second quarter. From there, the Yellowjackets would shoot even better over the final ten minutes of the first half, shooting 9-17 from the field as a group and making 4-7 from three. OF the 'Jackets 22 points in that span, 12 would come from Louie, who shot a perfect 5-5 with two threes, and a pair of free throws off the bench. Louie's spark would help MSUB expand their lead, taking a nine-point advantage into halftime.
 
"We got good play off the bench today," said Woodin. "And Chenoa was critical for us in the second. She hit a couple of threes, and really sparked our offense in the second quarter, and helped us build momentum."
 
While the Yellowjacket offense would slow down in the third quarter, the defense would continue to ensure MSUB would stay ahead of the Wolves, allowing just three made shots from the field and forcing the Wolves to go 0-6 from three. A 10-4 run over the final 2:23 of the third quarter would help the 'Jackets head into the fourth quarter up by 12, and despite the Wolves knocking down half of their shots across the final ten minutes, it wouldn't faze the Yellowjackets, who would put the game on cruise control with 23 points in the final period, putting the finishing touches on a quality team win.
 
"We made a few defensive adjustments at halftime that paid off," Woodin said. "We guarded them better in the final two quarters, and really did a good job of shutting down their leading scorer. I'm proud of our group for a complete team win. Anytime you can go 2-0 on a conference road trip is something to be proud of, and we're looking forward to returning home next week."
 
THE BUZZ: Both Boyce and Nelson earned Intermountain Health Player of the Game honors… Boyce now sits at 1,443 career points, just nine points away from passing Sherry McQuinn to move into eh top ten in scoring in MSUB program history… Giese now sits at 196 career three-pointers, two away from moving into fourth place in program history, and four away from 200 in her career… Boyce's played in her 129^th game as a Yellowjacket, with the senior set to tie the program record for games played in her next game, a record held by associate head coach Alisha Breen… the Yellowjackets are now 35-9 all-time in games against the Wolves, and have won seven straight games against Western Oregon.
 
UP NEXT: MSUB returns to Alterowitz Gym next week for a pair of games, opening the weeks action on Thursday, February 13 when the team takes on Central Washington University, where the 'Jackets will look to avenge their loss from earlier this season. Fans are encouraged to join the Yellowjackets in wearing pink, as the team celebrates their annual pink game in coordination with the Intermountain Health Eva Project. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:15 PM, with live video available here, and live statistics available here. Tickets for the games can be purchased online here.