Lights pick up a sweep in Idaho

Playing a tough Cascade Conference power for the third team in three weeks, the Montana State University-Northern Lights were simply not going to be denied.

The Lights bested Southern Oregon 85-76 at the Lewis-Clark State Tournament Friday night in Lewiston, Idaho – the start of a 2-0 weekend for Northern. The No. 15 Lights also demolished the University of Alberta-Augustana 91-54 on Saturday night.

"I was very happy for our guys and our staff all weekend," Northern head coach Shawn Huse said. "They worked extremely hard all week after the tough loss at Warner Pacific. Our week of prep and plan execution was on point, and we definitely concentrated and battled for 80 full minutes."

Against the Red Raiders, 3-pointers and defense were the difference. MSU-N started strong and led 42-33 at the break, then led the whole second half. The Lights withstood SOU's nearly 60-percent shooting clip by getting timely stops and making big three's to keep its lead. The Lights hit 13-of-29 bombs including a career-high six form David Maddock. The senior guard poured in a game-high 25 points as four Lights reached double figures. LaVon Myers scored 14 points and hit three trey's, while Shaun Tatarka and Devin Jackson each knocked in 12 points against an SOU squad which turned around and beat host Lewis-Clark State in Saturday night.

Northern kept its good shooting going on Saturday night against Augustana. The Lights scored 44 points in the first half, built a 19-point lead and never looked back. Jackson led the way with 18 points, while Sean Kelly had 11 points and Joe Simpson and Ben Mitchell each added nine. Chris Brown led with six rebounds, and 11 different Lights scored to reach the box score.

Northern's lengthy road trip continues this weekend with a pair of tough games in Vallejo, Calif. The Lights will finally play at home again on Dec. 3.

"We look forward to completing our non-conference road journey next weekend," Huse said. "Both opponents are very quality and have had a great deal of recent success. They both play a solid brand of basketball so we will need to be prepped and ready despite the short week."

Lights 85, Southern Oregon 76

MSU-N — Sean Kelly 1-1 0-0 2, Joe Simpson 3-7 3-4 9, Devin Jackson 3-10 4-6 12, Shaun Tatarka 5-10 0-1 12, LaVon Myers 4-8 3-4 14, David Maddock 8-14 3-4 25, Jordan Harris 1-3 0-1 2, Mike LaValley 0-0 0-0 0, Chris Brown 1-1 1-2 3, Ben Mitchell 0-1 0-0 0, Corbin Pearson 3-3 0-0 6. Totals: 29-58 14-23 85.

Halftime: Northern 42-33; 3-point field goals: 13-29 (Jackson 2, Tatarka 2, Myers 3, Maddock 6); Rebounds: 27 (Four with 3 each); Fouls: 27; Fouled out: Simpson.

Lights 91, Augustana 54

MSU-N — Joe Simpson 4-6 0-0 8, Corbin Pearson 3-4 0-2 6, Shaun Tatarka 3-10 0-0 8, LaVon Myers 3-9 0-0 8, Mike LaValley 2-5 0-0 6, David Maddock 3-7 0-0 7, Devin Jackson 7-13 0-0 18, Jordan Harris 1-4 2-2 4, Sean Kelly 4-7 2-3 11, Chris Brown 2-4 2-3 6, Ben Mitchell 4-7 1-1 9. Totals: 36-76 7-10 91.

Halftime: Northern 44-25; 3-point field goals: 12-39 (Tatarka 2, Myers 2, LaValley 2, Maddock 1, Jackson 4, Kelly 1); Rebounds: 37 (Brown 6); Fouls: 10; Fouled out: None.