Skylights try to topple Warriors Saturday

For the third season in a row, the Montana State University-Northern Skylights are one win away from playing in the Frontier Conference championship game. But for the third year in a row, the Skylights will have to get that win on the road.

Following Monday night 58-47 win over Carroll College at the Armory Gymnasium, the No. 21 Skylights (21-8) take to the road to face No. 15 Lewis-Clark State (25-4) in a Frontier women’s semifinal game. The Skylights and Warriors will meet Saturday at 7 p.m. in Lewiston, Idaho.

And while Northern played extremely well in Monday’s win over Carroll College, in order for the Skylights to even have a chance Saturday night, they’ll have to do something they failed to do in either of their two losses to LC State during the regular season–and that’s get off to a good start.

Back on Feb. 1, the Skylights lost in Lewiston 80-68, and the first half doomed them, as they fell behind 45-25. One week later, the Warriors were in Havre and again they jumped all over Northern. LCSC raced out to a commanding 32-8 halftime lead, and while MSU-N fought back, the Warriors prevailed 58-49.

“That’s the first thing that jumps out heading into this game,” Northern head coach Chris Mouat said. “We have to play better at the start of the game. We have to play better offensively.

“LC is a team who has had our number this year,” he added. “And we couldn’t possibly play worse than we have in the first half of each of the games we played against them this season. So that will be a huge priority, just to play better from the start.”

If Northern can figure out a way to get its offense going against a stingy LCSC defense, and slow down the powerful Warriors in the first 20 minutes, then there is no question the Skylights can walk out of Lewiston with a win. In the second half of each of the regular season meetings with LCSC, the Skylights out-scored the warriors both times, and in both games, nearly came all the way back from the huge deficits.

Still, slowing down LCSC is easier said than done. Northern is the No. 1 scoring defense in the NAIA, but at times, it has seemed to matter little against LC. The Warriors are a classic inside-out team, led by point guard Brittaney Neibergall, as well as leading scorer Tanis Fuller (5-10). Fuller is a tough matchup for the Skylight defense because she is built like a post player but has the speed, quickness and shooting range of a two-guard. Add in the play of freshman guard Caelyn Orlandi (5-9) and the post presence of Loree Hill (6-2), who can also step out and shoot the 3-pointer, and the Warriors just seem to be a difficult matchup for everyone, including Northern’s vaunted defense.

“They’re (Warriors) really good,” Mouat said. “They have good size, they have quick guards, they can really shoot from the perimeter, and their pressure defense is really good. They just don’t have a lot of weaknesses. So you really have to play at your best for a full 40 minutes to have a chance against them.”

And that’s the goal for a Northern team which appears to be locked into an NAIA national tournament berth win or lose Saturday night. The Skylights just want to play well for 40 minutes, and they certainly have the players to do so.

It’s a given that MSU-N will play well on defense. Northern's 6-5 junior A’Jha Edwards is playing her best basketball of the season offensively, and she should be a factor against LCSC. Point guard Taylor Cummings has also been sensational as of late, while Rachelle Bennett is capable of scoring at a high level offensively, as is Megan Feldman. And if MSU-N can get some timely shooting from sharp-shooters Kassie Barta and Kacie McKeon, then Northern will certainly have a chance on Saturday night.

And that’s really all the Skylights want. They want to be in the game down the stretch with a chance to win. They are well aware of how good LCSC is and how tough it is to win in Lewiston. They also know they can play better and they know if they do, a shot at a Frontier title is still in site.

“I think we’ll play better this time around” Edwards said. “We just have to play better offensively, and I think we’re doing that now.

“The goal this time of year is to keep playing, to move on,” Mouat added. “We did that against Carroll. So now we’ll go down to LC and hopefully give them our best shot and see what happens. I think the girls have the right mindset right now. They will go into this game with a lot of confidence.”

Saturday night’s game between Northern and LCSC will tip off at 7 p.m. M.S.T. in Lewiston, Idaho. The winner will advance to Tuesday night’s championship game against either No. 1 seed Westminster or No. 4 seed UM-Western.