2015-16 Northern Basketball Preview: Talented Lights ready for a new season

In college basketball, change is inevitable, and last season, the Montana State University-Northern Lights went through plenty of change. It didn’t matter much, though, as the Lights still had plenty of success on the court.

Still, change continues to come to the Lights, who finished 19-13 a year ago, and tied for third in the Frontier Conference with a 7-7 record. And once again, the Lights’ roster suffered some key losses, and will go through some change as they embark on a brand new season.

And while the MSU-N roster has again gone though some changes, including the loss of four-year starter and three-time All-Conference standout Corbin Pearson, a member of Northern’s exclusive 1,000-point club, one thing that remains constant is the Lights are led by a veteran head coach who, in 13 seasons, has led MSU-N to 275 wins, five Frontier Conference titles, five NAIA tournament appearances and nine 20-win seasons.

And entering his 14th year at the helm of the Lights, head coach Shawn Huse is excited about the upcoming season.

“Any time you start a new year, there’s pluses and minuses you have to get worked out,” Huse said. “And this team is no different. We lost some very experienced guys. We lost a great leader in Corbin Pearson. And we’ve brought in quite a few new guys to fill some roles. So, I think right now, the plus is, we have more bodies and more height than we’ve had at the forward spot in the past. The minus to that is, they’re all new and still have to gain Lights’ basketball experience. But overall, I really like this team so far. It’s early, but they are working hard and they are coming together really well, on and off the court.”

Pearson and Nick Blount are MSU-N’s biggest losses from last year’s team, as they combined to score 22 points per game. However, Northern does return four players who were all in the starting lineup at one time or another a year ago.

Headlining that group are seniors Trevail Lee (5-9) and Warren Edmonson (6-2). Lee scored 11 points per game, while Edmonson averaged 12 and was MSU-N’s top 3-point shooter. Both players earned Frontier All-Conference honors, and Huse will count on them to lead the Lights in the backcourt this season.

Also back at the shooting guard spot is sophomore Dylan Tatarka. As a red-shirt freshman, Tatarka (6-2) blossomed into a great role player for the Lights a year ago, and he’ll look to increase that role this season. Rounding out the returning starters is senior forward K.J. Rech (6-6), who is MSU-N’s top returning rebounder, while reserve forward Nikola Ivanovic (6-6) also returns. Sophomore guard Brett Thompson (6-1) and red-shirt freshman Kevin Oberweiser (6-1) round out MSU-N’s list of returnees.

“We have a solid group of returning guys, who have a lot of experience and will bring valuable leadership to this team,” Huse said. “Those guys understand Northern basketball, and we’ll lean on them to help all the new guys get adjusted.”

And Northern does have plenty of new talent on the roster this season, and while even of those players will be called upon to help the Lights right away.

In the post, MSU-N has added plenty of length, including transfers David Straughter (6-5) and William Walker (6-6). Straughter is an excellent swingman, who can score in a variety of ways, while Walker comes to Northern from former Frontier rival Westminster College, where he averaged seven points and four rebounds a year ago. While young, the Lights also got much bigger in the post with the additions of freshmen Seth Christiaens (6-10), Ryan Reeves (6-9) and Justin Dunsmore (6-6), all of whom are expected to add to Northern’s depth in the post.

Northern also has depth additions at the guard spot in the form of transfers Tyler Chandler (6-2) and Badhasa Margasa, a pair of junior college standouts who will give MSU-N plenty of extra firepower on both ends of the floor.

The Lights once again have a balanced mix of veteran returnees and talented newcomers, and Huse said things are coming together quickly and, while there is still a long way to go, he really likes how his group has bonded thus far.

“This is an interesting group,” Huse said. “They seem to be gelling quickly, their communication in practice has been really good. If they even just keep that going all season, they’ll be fine. Of course, it’s going to be a process. We’re going to make mistakes, and it will take time to gel on the court in competition, but with how much chemistry this team seems to have right, that’s a really good place to start.”

Gelling by the start of Frontier play, which comes early this season, is the goal. And no matter how many key returnees, or newcomers Northern has, the expectation never changes. The Lights will play the Northern brand of basketball Huse has been coaching now for over a decade — on both ends of the floor.

“I think we have the potential to be really balanced on offense,” Huse said. “We have a lot of threats at a lot of different positions, and we’ll be able to play different styles against different teams. It’s no secret that we have had a lot of success over the years with mid-sized to smaller forwards, and this year, that might be a little different because of the height we’ve added. We’ll still play the small ball on offense we’re used to playing, but we can also play a little more traditional basketball, too. This team has the potential to be very versatile on offense.”

Defensively, it will be business as usual for the Lights, who have led the Frontier in scoring defense in each of the last six seasons. Northern will be a gritty, in-your-face defensive team that goes all out on that end for 40 minutes.

“No question,” Huse said. “We want to be as tough to score on as we’ve always been. That mind set never changes. That’s Lights basketball. So we’ll be a team that gives a great defensive effort every night, we’ll battle for the hustle plays and loose balls, and we’ll be able to adapt to the different styles of play we go up against. That doesn’t change, and that’s what we’ll strive to be defensively again this season.”

And the season is now for the new-look Lights. Northern’s non-conference schedule includes this weekend’s trip to Canada, as well as a home stretch against Warner-Pacific, Portland Bible College and Dickinson State. The Lights will also play tough games in Las Vegas, as well as close out the non-conference schedule with home games against Concordia University-Edmonton. And that’s all to get ready for the tough Frontier Conference, which starts in early December, but heats up for good in January.

Still, non-conference games, or conference showdowns, the Lights don’t look ahead. Early

in the season, or in the dead of winter, Northern just wants to improve, get better each and every day, and build momentum for the stretch run in February.

That’s been the formula for success over the years, and like many other things about MSU-N basketball, that doesn’t change.

“Even with the changes to the conference schedule, our approach isn’t any different,” Huse said. “We’re going to work hard every day. We’ll play these non-conference games, which will be tough, and see how much better we can get before the conference games start.

“We’re working in a lot of new guys and there will be growing pains,” Huse added. “So we can’t look to far ahead or jump the gun. We just want to get better every day. That’s the goal.”

The Lights open their season this weekend with three games in Red Deer, Alberta. Northern faces Red Deer College in an exhibition game Thursday night, before playing Northern British Columbia Friday night and The King’s University Saturday. MSU-N’s first home game comes Oct. 30 against Warner-Pacific.