MSU-N Basketball Preview: Veteran Skylights look to soar this season

Under normal circumstances, the Montana State University-Northern women's basketball team would have been well into their season by Thanksgiving weekend. But, these are far from normal times.

So, now, Thanksgiving weekend marks the start of a new journey for the Skylights, and longtime head coach Chris Mouat, who will begin a shortened schedule due to COVID-19 with a pair of non-conference games at Carroll College this weekend.

And while the season had to be pushed back due to the pandemic, and there are certainly many challenges ahead, Mouat said his team is more than excited that they get to finally hit the floor for a new year.

"We are really excited," Mouat said. "I think our kids appreciate the opportunity to be together and that they genuinely care about each other. They have shown true care and concern for one another every step of the way, and I really like that about this group. We have a very unique mix of newcomers and returners, and they've done a great job coming together in the few practices we have had."

Caring will be a big part of the 2020-21 Frontier Conference and NAIA basketball season. With the pandemic not slowing down, there will be plenty of obstacles as teams navigate the season, a season in which the Skylights were picked to finish third in the Frontier after going 15-16 overall a year ago, and 4-14 in league. However, that record is a bit misleading as Northern started the season strong, and at one point was ranked No. 11 in the nation, before injuries completely derailed January and February.

Now healthy again, Mouat has high hopes for a veteran Skylight team that returns a big group off veteran players, led by essentially five returning starters in All-Conference point guard McKenzie Gunter (5-5, Sr.), 2018 All-Conference performers Peyton Kehr (5-9, Sr.) and Sydney Hovde (6-0, Sr.), two-year starter Allix Goldhahn (5-9, Jr.) and Frontier Sixth Man of the Year Tiara Gilham (5-10, Sr.). The aforementioned group has played a ton of games together, and when healthy, they are a dangerous and talented bunch. Add to that point guard Morgan Mason (5-8, So.), forward Ryley Kehr (5-10, So.) and guard Reilly Walsh (5-8, Sr.), who all gained valuable playing time last season, and the Skylights do indeed return a veteran lineup.

Of course, there are always key newcomers to add to the puzzle, too, and Northern has brought those into the mix as well.

Harlem freshman L'Tia Lawrence (5-9) is expected to have an immediate impact on the Skylights, while 6-2 Salt Lake Community College transfer Cameron Mooney will also play a big role for Northern this winter. Glendive freshman Savannah Toms (6-0) and Browning's Dulci Skunk Cap (5-9) will also be in the mix this winter as well, and that group provides excellent depth for a Northern squad that should be extremely talented on both ends of the floor.

"I think this team has a chance to be good, but with limited practices, I know it's going to take time," Mouat said.

The Skylights should be good, returning so much of their offensive production from a year ago. As always, Northern also expects to be a stingy defensive team, as it always is under Mouat. As always, though, every team has its strengths, and the things that need improvement, and, the Northern women are no different as they prepare for the new season.

"This team plays hard and they get along," Mouat said. "It's so early because of the limited amount of practices we have had, but those two things stand out as of now. We have a strong leadership core and have a lot of experienced kids who are really doing a good job helping the newcomers find their way in our program. We've had a few stops and starts here and there for various reasons, so I think more of our strengths will play out as we just get more time on the floor together.

"Right now, offensive execution is something we are really working on," he added. "We have a lot of kids who are new to our system and they are working hard to take everything in. We have a long way to go in terms of taking care of the ball, shot selection, and rebounding at both ends. But again, any time you are in a new environment, things are going to take time."

Time is something the Skylights don't have as much of this season. Normally, MSU-N spends much of the fall playing key non-conference games to prepare for the rigors of the Frontier. But, the pandemic has prevented that from happening, so, the Skylights, like so many teams in the Frontier, will play only a handful of games before jumping into the Frontier, which starts league-wide with games on Dec. 5-6, before returning fully in January.

And, it isn't just COVID that will be different about this Frontier season. Lewis-Clark State is no longer a member of the league, and, the schedule has changed, as teams will play a 20-game slate with host teams playing the same opponent on back-to-back nights - which is a throwback to the original Frontier days. Games will also be played Sundays this year, as well as early weeknights, too.

"The schedule is unique, but we are in a unique time, so finding a way to simply get games in safely is huge," Mouat said. "I think the back-to-back nights will be a big challenge and they don't provide for much turnaround time, but with everyone playing each other four times, it puts everyone in the same position. When we played each other three times, we knew we were either going to someone's place twice and they were coming here once, or vice versa. That situation created some balance issues in the schedule. I think this is the best scenario in a very unique year."

The schedule won't be the only challenge. The league itself will be very good. That hasn't changed, and Mouat, who is one of the longest tenured coaches around, knows just how tough things are going to be.

"The league will again be very, very good," Mouat said. "Carroll and Providence got the most votes in the preseason poll from the coaches in the league, which I think is very justified. Both are experienced teams who didn't need to replace too many kids from last year's teams. They have all of the pieces to be really good not only in the Frontier but also nationally. But you always have to look at Rocky, Western and Tech as possible contenders. They are really talented and return good players from a year ago. Western won our last national tournament, and with five of our teams qualifying for the national tournament last year, I think it's obvious that you can't fall asleep on anyone in this league. All of our teams are so well-coached that there is no such thing as a night off. We will have our work cut out for us, for sure."

The Skylights will have their work cut out for them, but so does everyone who plays them. Yes, Northern is going to be a very good, very dangerous team in Frontier play this season, especially if the Skylights can finally avoid the injury bug that has plagued them the last few seasons. No, there's no doubt, Northern will be a tough team come the next three months, and Mouat is ready to finally watch his team get started.

"As always, we ultimately want to be hosting in the first round of the Frontier Tournament. Playing at home is always the goal and being on our court means the world to our kids," Mouat said of his team's biggest goals this season. I think a simple goal for us is to be playing our best basketball at the end of the year. Peaking at that time will be important."

The Skylights make their long-awaited debut with games against Lewis-Clark State today and Valley City State Saturday in Helena. Northern begins Frontier play Dec. 5-6 at Rocky Mountain College. As of now, MSU-N's first home games are slated for Jan. 4-5, but, they could add a few non-conference games in the month of December.