Lights bounce back by bouncing the Fighting Saints

After a heartbreaking double-overtime loss Thursday night in Great Falls, things weren't going to get any easier for the Montana State University-Northern Lights. And yet, Northern rose to the occasion with a stunning, bounce-back win over one of their biggest rivals.

Saturday night, inside the Armory Gymnasium, the Lights knocked off No. 23 Carroll College 66-62 in the Frontier Conference home-opener, as MSU-N improved to 1-1 in league play.

“The bounce back, resilience, toughness and character this team showed impressed me and validated what I feel about these guys,” Northern head coach Shawn Huse said. “We have enough of a new squad that I was not sure what it would look like tonight until I saw it. I thought we would bounce back and play well, but seeing is believing when it comes to conference play. There are still several areas where we are not at our peak yet, but I feel we are making strides as we learn one another and gain tough game experience.”

It was indeed a great bounce-back win for the Lights, as they battled the Fighting Saints from start to finish. At the start, Northern got several buckets from Zack Martinzez, and when Tanner McCliment-Call drilled a 3-pointer halfway through the first half, the Lights were in front 20-15. But Carroll battled right back, as the Saints finished the first half on an 11-3 run and took a 33-31 lead into intermission.

Northern, though, rebounded out of the halftime break. The Lights shot 50 percent in the second half, as Jesse Kelter went to work on the inside. And when C.J. Nelson hit a floater in the paint as time expired on the shot clock, it capped a 10-0 Northern run, and the Lights led 53-45 with 8:13 to play.

Carroll didn’t go away quietly, however, as Johnny Hillman hit a three to close the gap late in the contest. But when Dae’Kwon Watson drained a corner three with 3:37 to go, Northern went ahead by seven points and was able to keep Carroll at bay from there.

The Lights’ offense was good all night, shooting 54 percent from the field, while going 4-of-11 from downtown. Northern also forced Carroll into16 turnovers, and got stops when they needed them most.

MSU-N was led by Keltner’s 14 points, but the Lights were balanced, as they got 12 from Martinez, and 10 each from McCliment-Call and Nelson. Carroll, which fell to 1-1 in league play, got a double-double from Brenden Temple, while Hillman added 13.

The Lights will now head to Helena this weekend where they’ll play two games at the Carroll College Classic.

“Next weekend will be another tough challenge and opportunity,” Huse said. “We play two quality teams on the road and will need to be locked in to have success in those ones. And it can also be a good chance to get this year’s team some quality experience on a league opponent’s floor and environment.”

Lights 66, Carroll 62

CC - Braydon Kock 10, Andrew Cook 8, Garrett Long 7, Johnny Hillman 13, Brenden Temple 14, Gui Pedra 3, Derek Kramer 2, Isaiah Moore 5. Totals: 23-53 13-18 62.

MSU-N - Myles Dalton 2, Immanuel Anderson 15, Zach Martinez 12, C.J. Nelsonn 10, Jesse Keltner 14, Dae'Kwon Watson 9, Tanner McCliment-Call 10, Anthony Bragg Jr. 2, Jacob Randall 2. Totals: 25-46 12-18 66.

Halftime: Carroll 33-31. 3-pointers: CC 5-14 (Koch 2, Long 1, Pedra 1, Moore 1), MSU-N 4-11 (Martinzez 1, Watson 1, McCliment-Call 2). Rebounds: CC 26 (Temple 11), MSU-N 22 (Nelson 4). Fouls: CC 16, MSU-N 16; Fouled out: None.