Skylights host Orediggers ahead of huge LC State showdown

There’s just no denying it, and no getting around it — the Armory Gymnasium is about to play host to the biggest game of the NAIA season thus far. And yet, the Montana State University-Northern Skylights can’t afford to look that far ahead.

The No. 11 Skylights are in the midst of a six-game Frontier home stand, and the fourth game of that stretch comes Saturday night when they host No. 2 Lewis-Clark State in what is most certainly the NAIA Game of the Week. But before the Skylights (4-2, 14-3) can even think about the Warriors, they’ll have to get by a suddenly surging Montana Tech squad. The Skylights and Orediggers meet tonight at 6.

“Montana Tech and Lewis-Clark State present huge challenges for us,” Northern head coach Chris Mouat said. “Both are extremely athletic and really push the tempo on offense. And, both are filled with kids that can both knock down shots and get you at the rim. So this is a big weekend for us and two really tough games.”

MSU-N knows all about tough games, having ground out a split with Rocky Mountain College and UM-Western last weekend at home. In the latter game, MSU-N was brilliant on both ends of the floor, including getting a double-double from Sierra Richards, who is averaging 12 points and seven rebounds per night.

The Skylights are now hoping the momentum they built with their win over Western, now the 25th-ranked team in the country, will carry into tonight’s game with Tech, which is Northern’s first conference rematch of the year. The Skylights beat the Orediggers 66-63 in Butte last month, and given how tough that game was, and how well the Orediggers (3-4, 9-9) have played since, Mouat expects nothing less than another grind tonight.

“Tech has already won some big league games, and they can really score it,” Mouat said. “Hattie Thatcher is their engine and leads them well.  She plays very hard and has already had some monster games offensively. She is very quick to the rim and has great range from the 3-point line. Tech is an outstanding free-throw shooting team and keeping them off of the line will be really important if we are going to be successful. They have a lot of scoring balance, and Monica Landdeck has made an immediate impact for them. As a team, they play very hard and Carly has done an outstanding job with the program. They play hard and execute well.  We had a heck of a game with them in Butte, and we know they’ll be ready to play.”

Thatcher is Tech’s engine no doubt (5-5), but fellow senior Martha Dembek (5-9) is having an explosive season, as she averages 16 points per game. Dembek is also part of a talented and deep Tech lineup which includes senior center Rachel Ferris (6-2), sophomore sisters Kourtney (5-8) and Kaylynn Coverdell (5-9), sophomore Sammy McGree (5-7), veteran Calee Remsen (5-10) and transfer Monica Landdeck (5-9), who averages 12 ppg and is one of the top 3-point shooters in the league. And with Tech averaging 73 points per night, and shooting 36 percent from downtown, Northern’s talented and tenacious defense will be severely tested tonight.

And if the Skylights pass that test, their reward is a rematch with LC State (7-0, 19-0), who plays at UGF tonight and, with a win in Great Falls, will bring a 20-game winning streak to Havre. That win streak includes a 67-42 home win over Northern back in December.

“Lewis-Clark State has every bit earned their number two national ranking,” Mouat said. “They have great depth and are as good a shooting team as anyone in the country.”

Indeed. The Warriors are putting up solid numbers this season. They are No. 2 in the NAIA in scoring at 85 ppg, and they are No. 9 in scoring defense, allowing just 56 points per night. LCSC is also No. 5 in the country in 3-point shooting, No. 8 in offensive rebounding and No. 18 in total rebounding. So to say they can do it all, would be a big understatement.

And talent is a big reason why. Senior Caelyn Orlandi (5-9) is having a big season, and she has the luxury of going inside to 6-0 Brittany Tackett, who averages 15 points and six rebounds per night, while leading the NAIA in field goal percentage. And veterans like Natahnee Spencer (5-6), Megan Risinger (5-10) and Brooke Litalien (5-7) only add to LCSC’s firepower on both ends of the floor.

“They (Warriors) have an outstanding point guard in Caelyn Orlandi, who scores very well but also leads the country in assists,” Mouat said, “and Brittany Tackett is an amazing player in the paint for them. That being said, they are by no means a two-person show. They have excellent shooters across the board, and they have a whole bunch of them. And, they play 3-4 different kids inside who can really do damage.”

LCSC being so good is also what makes Saturday night so intriguing. Because the Skylights are no slouches either. Northern is second in the NAIA in rebounding and fourth in scoring defense, which means, a Skylights team allowing just 52 ppg is going up against the No. 2 scoring offense in the country. Northern also has Natalee Faupel on its side, and the senior who averages 16 points per game, has had plenty of big nights against the Warriors in the past. Add to that Jacy Thompson being one of the best one-on-one defenders in the country, Cydney Auzenne starting to heat up from the outside, a veteran point guard in Molly Kreycik, and the red-hot play of Richards in the post, and the Skylights may just be the only team capable of slowing down the LCSC juggernaut.

Still, as good as Northern is, Mouat admits, the task at hand Saturday night, even in the friendly confines of the Armory, will be a tough one.

“LC State is where they are at for many reasons, and their undefeated record is very much earned,” Mouat said. “They defend and rebound, and they can score very quickly.  We know we will have to play much better on both ends of the floor than when we did in Lewiston to give ourselves a chance to win the game. They are simply a team that you cannot make many mistakes against, because they make you pay immediately.”

The Skylights and Warriors will meet in the nationally ranked showdown Saturday night at 6 p.m. in the Armory. But first, the Skylights play host to Tech tonight at 6. Northern is also home next Thursday to host UGF and next Friday to take on Carroll College.