March 1, 2008

Lady Jackets Notch 2OT Win
   Box Score
   MSUB Season Stats

MONMOUTH, Ore. – The Montana State Billings women’s basketball team gutted out an 80-79 double overtime win against Great Northwest Athletic Conference opponent Western Oregon Saturday night.  The Lady Jackets improve to 10-15 overall and 7-9 in league play.  The Wolves are 8-17 with a 4-12 mark in the conference.

After trailing by as many as 10 points with 5:41 to play in the first half, the Lady Jackets stormed back to take a brief lead after a Jetton Meadors (Billings) three-pointer at the 2-minute mark.  When the halftime buzzer sounded, Western Oregon held a one-point advantage heading into the locker room.

In the second half both teams traded the lead five times with neither the Wolves nor the Jackets leading by more than five points.  With 23 ticks on the clock, WOU’s Leada Berkey was sent to the line for a pair of free throws.  The senior came through for the Wolves knocking down both to send the teams into overtime knotted at 61.

Trailing by three deep into the first overtime, Berkey again came through for Western Oregon, hitting a three-pointer to tie the game at 71 apiece, promising a second overtime.  MSUB used points from Kayla McPherson (Glendive), Jen Smith (Belgrade), and Alira Carpenter (Lewistown) to ice the win by the narrowest of margins.

Carpenter led the Jackets with 24 points off 9-of-23 shooting from the field, while Meadors netted a season-high 15 points shooting a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line.  Dani Henderson (Reed Point) chipped in 14 points and handed out a game-high four assists.  Smith notched a double-double of 12 points and a career-high 12 rebounds.

As a team, MSUB shot 37 percent from the field and 21 percent from long range.  The Lady Jackets were 27-of-39 from the charity stripe for 69 percent.  The Jackets were outrebounded 62-54 and committed 24 turnovers while grabbing 10 steals.

Berkey led the Wolves with 24 points off 8-of-25 shooting from the field.  Teammate Vanessa Wyffels netted 17 points and a game-high 16 rebounds.

The Wolves shot 28 percent from the floor and 20 percent from behind the arc.  The team was 27-of-43 from the free throw line for 63 percent.

The Lady Jackets return to Alterowitz Gym March 6 and 8 to host their final home games of the season.  MSUB faces University of Alaska Fairbanks on Thursday and University of Alaska Anchorage on Saturday.  Both games tip off at 7 p.m.  Live stats, live video streaming, and a live internet broadcast can be found on the Yellowjackets web site.