Skylights hope to give seniors wins over LC State, Western

The Montana State University-Northern Skylights have played many close Frontier Conference games over the course of the last two months. And two of those games have come against the Lewis-Clark State Warriors, both of which ended up being bitter losses.

Tonight, the Skylights (4-12, 12-16) can do something about that, however, when they host the No. 17 Warriors in the second-to-last game of the regular season. MSU-N then closes out Frontier play Saturday night when the Skylights host fourth-ranked UM-Western on senior night.

But before Northern gets to what will be an emotional game against the Bulldogs, they'll focus on the Warriors (9-7, 19-8). Northern lost at home to LCSC 51-49 back on Jan. 8 and in Lewiston, Idaho, 61-56 Jan. 19. The Skylights led in the fourth quarter of both of those games, and MSU-N is hoping to reverse its fortunes against the Warriors tonight.

"L-C State is a very deep and athletic team," Northern head coach Chris Mouat said. "They pressure constantly and are tough on the boards, and they've been really explosive offensively. They have good balance and a great inside presence in Jossilyn Blackman. Hailey Turner is a returning All-American and has been a key player for them her entire career. This team can hurt you from the perimeter as well as in the paint. They have beaten some of the best teams in the country all season long and are coming off of a big win at Western."

The Warriors are indeed talented and tough. They average 69 ppg and yield just 57, and with their size, are one of the top rebounding teams in the conference. But MSU-N has become tougher, too, since the two rivals last met. The Skylights are one of the top defensive teams in the Frontier over the last month, and offensively, they are extremely balanced with good production from Peyton Kehr and Allix Goldhahn on the outside, as well as Sydney Hovde, Hailey Nicholson and Tiara Gilham in the paint. Add to that the steadily improving play of Sabin Keo, and Northern has been playing some of its best basketball since the Skylights lost that heartbreaker in Lewiston a month ago.

And yet, Mouat knows that his Skylights will have to be at their very best this weekend in the Armory Gymnasium, because after tonight's game against LCSC, Western comes calling. The Bulldogs (13-3, 23-3) are closing in on a Frontier regular season title, and may need Saturday's game to clinch it. Led by star guard Brianna King, and a veteran supporting cast, Western is simply one of the best teams in the country, and they own two double-digit wins over the Skylights this season already.

"Montana Western is a very complete team," Mouat said. "Bri King is one of the top players in the nation and she can do it all. She makes them go, and does a great job of not only scoring but finding people for shots. As a team, they are very, very good shooting the basketball and they execute their stuff offensively as good as anyone. One thing that really stands out about them is the fact that they play much bigger than they are. Western is physical and tough.

"We will need to be at our best in both of these games, because we are again facing two nationally ranked opponents who play at a very high level," he continued. "We will need to continue to focus on taking care of the ball and rebounding at both ends. We will need to execute and finish at the offensive end of the floor and avoid scoring droughts that have hurt us in the past."

A couple of things that will help Northern in its final two home games are that the Skylights will be at home, and they will be hungry to win on senior night. MSU-N will honor seniors Gokce Aslan, Lily Hilderbrand and Jessica Curl Saturday night, and as always, the game and the ceremony will be emotional.

"This group of seniors is special, and they've all given a great deal to Northern, the Havre community, and our basketball program," Mouat said. "All three are outstanding students in the classroom and are very active in the community, and all three are set to do amazing things after graduation. Collectively, they carry a 3.71 grade point average and both Lily and Jessica will be named Academic All-Americans at the conclusion of the season."

Saturday night's senior night game between Northern and Western tips at 6 p.m. in the Armory. Tonight's game between the Skylights and Warriors also tips off at 6.

Skylights (4-12, 12-16) vs #17 LC State (9-7, 19-8) tonight at 6 p.m.; vs #4 Western (13-3, 23-3) Saturday at 6 p.m.

In Armory Gymnasium

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Skylights Projected Starters

G Gokce Aslan, 5-3, Sr., 5 ppg

G Allix Goldhahn, 5-8, Fr., 7 ppg

G Peyton Kehr, 5-10, So., 13 ppg

F Hailey Nicholson, 5-10, Jr., 9 ppg

F Sydney Hovde, 6-0, So., 11 ppg