Frontier Fun: Lights and Saints renew old rivalry

The Montana State University-Northern men's basketball team has gotten to play exactly one game this season. One. That's harsh, but it's also the reality of college basketball in a global pandemic.

That one game Northern played, a rousing win over Yellowstone Christian College, was also nearly a month ago already, so it would be an understatement to say the Lights (1-0) are excited to hit the court tonight. Of course, tonight won't just be any old game though, instead, it's the long-awaited Frontier Conference debut for the Lights, who host longtime rival Carroll College at 7:30 inside the Armory Gymnasium. It's the first of back-to-back games this week between the Lights and Saints, and again, it's the official conference opener for Northern, while Carroll has played a pair of league games to this point.

"We are certainly excited to play again," Northern head coach Shawn Huse said, "It's great to be back playing in the Armory."

The Lights should be excited because, even though they've played just one game, they are on the verge of what looks to be a promising season. Led by senior guards Mascio McCadney and David Harris, as well as a host of new talent, the Lights have the makings of a team that can really contend in what could be a wide-open Frontier Conference race over the next two months.

Still, to do that, the Lights would like to get off to a good start, and that will have to come against the Fighting Saints, who are just two years removed from a run to the NAIA national championship game, and who, despite the loss of two-time All-American and former Havre High superstar Dane Warp, still have some quality pieces in place.

"It will certainly be a quality challenge for us," Huse said. "They return a little more experience from last year's team, and have played a substantial amount of games through this Covid-induced basketball season. We know we need to learn on the job quickly in these two, if we are going to have success."

Carroll does have the most games of any Frontier team under its belt, and the Saints do have some firepower, as well. The Saints do return star forward Jovan Sljivancanin, who scored 17 points and grabbed 11 rebounds per game, as well as point guard Shamrock Campbell and the talented Dennis Flowers. Campbell is also currently leading the Frontier in three-point shooting for a Carroll squad that averages 72 points per night and is always tough on defense under head coach Kurt Paulson.

Of course, no matter the season, Carroll is always one of the stalwarts of the Frontier Conference, and this winter will be no different. And that's what makes the rivalry between the Saints and Lights so great. Unfortunately, this week, there will be no fans there to see it as the Frontier is continuing on with its no spectator policy for the time being. Fans can stream the game for free by going to http://www.golightsgo.com, and while Huse says his team certainly misses the advantage of those great Armory crowds, for now, they will carry on and be thankful to just be playing Frontier basketball.

"It's great to be back playing in the Armory," he said. "Of course, it will be even better when fans can return safely. But we certainly look forward to playing at home and will take whatever we can get right now."

The Lights meet Carroll tonight and Tuesday, with each game starting at 7 p.m. in the Armory Gymnasium. Northern then takes to the road for a doubleheader at Montana Western Saturday and Sunday.