Lights welcome Orediggers, Warriors in for Frontier rematches

The Montana State University-Northern Lights opened Frontier Conference play with a huge road sweep back in December. Winning one on the road in the league is hard enough, let alone two in a row.

But that’s exactly what the Lights did to Montana Tech and Lewis-Clark State last month, and now, the Lights get those teams in their gym. Northern (3-3, 14-4) hosts Montana Tech tonight and LC State Saturday night, with both games tipping at 8 p.m. in the Armory Gymnasium.

“Every conference game presents new challenges,” MSU-N head coach Shawn Huse said. “We are excited to be at home again and look forward to getting back on the floor.”

The Lights should be excited about getting back at it, not only because they’re at home but because it’s a chance to put last Saturday’s loss to UM-Western behind them. In fact, Northern has lost three of its last four games, despite the fact that Huse feels his team is playing well. Northern continues to lead the NAIA in scoring defense, allowing just 59 points per game, and the Lights are No. 2 in field goal defense and No. 10 in the country in total rebounding. Those numbers, combined with the balance the Lights get from Ryan Reeves (11 ppg), David Straughter (10 ppg) and Cameron Epps (9 ppg), will go a long way in helping Northern make sure it stays in the hunt for a Frontier title.

“We played very well last weekend despite what the final score said on Saturday,” Huse said. “Our guys have worked very hard in practice this week and know there are a great deal of conference games remaining, we just need to keep improving in some areas, and stay the course in others.”

Playing at home will help too.

Tonight’s game features a Tech team (0-7, 6-12) that has lost nine straight, including a 14-point home loss to the Lights. Still, with the talent the Orediggers have, Tech could come out of its funk at any time. Tech has three players scoring in double digits, with Chris O’Neil (6-0) averaging 11 points per night, followed by John Chapman (6-2) at 10 ppg and Lukas Vining (6-3) at 10 ppg as well. And while the Orediggers have some offensive firepower, they struggle on defense, giving up a Frontier-worst 72 points per outing.

The Lights also own a victory over Saturday night’s opponent, LC State (3-4, 13-6). The Warriors are the defending Frontier champions, and, at one point this season, were ranked in the NAIA Top 10. However, in Frontier play, LCSC is still clearly adjusting to life without All-American forward Jake Wiley, who now plays at NCAA Division I Eastern Washington, as well as a host of key seniors who graduated from last year’s squad.

Nevertheless, LCSC is still an offensive machine, averaging 89 points per game, and has a bona fide scorer in Doug McDaniel (6-3), who leads the Frontier at 19 ppg. Anthony Sullen (6-2) has also emerged as a strong scorer, while veterans Ty Higbie (6-5) and Trea Thomas (5-10) are always capable of putting up big numbers. The Warriors also still play their pressure brand of defense, a style that allows just 65 points per game, so Huse won’t be expecting anything but LC State’s best Saturday night, just as he’s expecting the best from struggling Montana Tech tonight.

“LC and Tech come at you in different ways, yet both are very effective,” Huse said. “We expect that it’s going to be another typical weekend in the Frontier, with two very tough games.”

Tough games indeed, but the Lights also have confidence knowing they’ve beaten both squads once already this season. Northern will lean on its tremendous depth as an advantage as Kevin Oberweiser, Dylan Tatarka, Justin Dunsmore, Charles Porter, William Walker and Devin Bray come off the bench to give the Lights 38 points per game.

Both tonight’s game with Tech and Saturday’s game with LC State will begin at 8 p.m. in the Armory Gymnasium. Northern is right back on its home floor to take on rivals UGF next Thursday and Carroll College next Friday.