Southeast Montana News

‘Jackets Defeat #8 WWU behind Giese’s Heroics

The Montana State University Billings women's basketball team took down #8 Western Washington University in overtime 66-64 on an Aspen Giese three pointer in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.

 

The Yellowjackets (22-4, 13-2) and Vikings (20-3, 14-2 GNAC) faced off in a marquee matchup between the first and second place team in GNAC, and the #8 and #20 ranked teams in Division II. The game was as close as advertised, with the final result requiring an overtime period that went down to the wire. The Vikings looked to have found their winning basket when Brooke Walling's baseline shot with 2.9 seconds went in to give the Vikings a 64-63 advantage. But Giese would play spoiler, with a three point shot from the top found the bottom of the net with 0.1 seconds left, giving the Yellowjackets the upset victory. With the win, MSUB pushed their winning streak to 11 consecutive games, and moved into a tie with Western Washington for the top spot in the GNAC.

 

"This was a great win for our program." Said Yellowjackets head coach Kevin Woodin. "This is an excellent Western Washington team, and what I was really proud of tonight was our perseverance. We fought hard until the very end."

 

Giese finished with a career high 25 points, going 10-11 from the field. She also totaled five rebounds, three steals, an assist and a block. "Aspen Giese was absolutely incredible, on both ends of the court." Raved Woodin. "I thought she played the best game of her college career tonight."

 

Dyauni Boyce was the 'Jackets next highest scorer, ending with 13 points. Shayla Montague added in ten points, three rebounds and assists, with a steal and a block. Danielle Zahn had five points with two assists and a steal, and Kortney Nelson had four points, including a free throw to send the game to overtime, along with three steals. Both Nelson and Zahn beat the buzzer early in the game, crucial shots to help push the 'Jackets to victory. Cariann Kunkel finished with a career high ten rebounds.

 

The 'Jackets got off to a hot start, similar to the first meeting between these two teams at Alterowitz. MSUB outscored the Vikings 19-12 in the first quarter, shooting 57.1% in the quarter. Their run would continue into the second where they would push the lead as much as 16, as they held a top notch Vikings offense to no made three pointers, and 12 first half turnovers. Going into the half, MSUB held a 32-22 lead over the hosts.

 

"Our first half was critical." Woodin said. "We played with a lot of confidence, and getting up big was crucial."

 

But the Vikings would not go away quietly. They flipped the script from the first meeting between the two teams, mounting a second half comeback. Western Washington adjusted well out of the break, improving on both ends of the court. The offense started to look more like itself, while the defense made life difficult for MSUB. The 'Jackets found themselves up by nine with just under two minutes remaining, but WWU rallied hard, closing that gap before a Stephanie Peterson three pointer with ten seconds gave the Vikings a 57-56 lead. Down to potentially their final opportunity, Nelson drove to the lane for MSUB, drawing a foul with two seconds remaining. She would sink the first shot, before her second attempt rattled in and out, sending the game to overtime.

 

"I give a lot of credit to Western Washington." Said Woodin. "They came back from a double-digit deficit in the first half. They hit some really big shots in the second half and overtime. This game featured two great teams battling until the very end. Nobody backed down all game."

 

Each team made huge shots down the stretch, neither wanting to fall short in a game with major implications for both team's seasons. The teams traded baskets within the final 30 seconds: Boyce hit a shot in the post with 24 seconds left, then Walling hit what seemed like it could be the winning shot. But Giese, who had come up big all night for MSUB, got the job done one more time, which proved to be the deciding factor.

 

"Just a tremendous effort from both teams." Woodin said. "I'm happy we were able to come out with the win. It was a tremendous team effort, and I'm very proud of all of our players."

 

Walling tied with Truitt Reilly with 12 points to pace the Vikings. Walling added eight boards, three assists, three steals and two blocks, while Reilly added seven boards and two blocks.

 

THE BUZZ: Giese was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game… The 'Jackets swept the regular season series against the Vikings for the first time since the 2017-2018 season… With three games left in the season for MSUB, they sit tied with WWU with two losses in GNAC play… The Vikings have just two games remaining.

Original source can be found here.