Three in three: Skylights finish non-conference play against Canadian schools

It will be a very busy week for the Montana State University-Northern women's basketball team, as the Skylights return from the holiday break.

Northern (4-8) will wrap up non-conference play with three games in three days starting Thursday. The trio of games starts Thursday with a game against Keyano College out of Fort McMurray, Alberta. The Skylights will then host St. Mary's University of Canada Friday and Lakeland College out of Alberta Saturday afternoon. And after a tough trip to Phoenix last week, Northern head coach Chris Mouat said his team is excited to be back in the Armory Gymnasium.

"We are looking forward to being back home," Mouat said. "We didn't play well in Phoenix and I know our kids will be excited to get back after it."

The Skylights have had an up-and-down first half of the regular season. They've had some good wins and tough gamers, but have also endured some tough losses. Still, it's all been preparation for the winter, which will feature a tough Frontier Conference slate, and Northern will use these last three games of 2022 to keep prepping for league play.

"For us, it comes down to getting better and cleaning up our own mistakes," Mouat said. "We have to limit our turnovers, win on the boards, and do a better job stopping dribble penetration. The biggest thing, however, is that we knock shots down when we have them. We simply have missed too many open shots and have been our own worst enemy at times when it comes to taking care of the basketball and executing. These three games will do a lot for us heading into conference play."

Northern is led by transfer point guard Brianna McCullough, who is averaging 14 points per game. She's already been named Frontier Conference Player of the Week twice, and has had a big impact on MSU-N's roster. Freshman Taya Trottier and junior transfer Jalen Callender have also been good in the back court, while senior Ryley Kehr has been a force for Northern as well, averaging 11 points and five rebounds per night. Sophomore Shyan Krass has also steadily improved as the season has went on.

And improving will again be the goal this weekend as Northern plays three relatively unknown, but strong teams.

"Keyano is a very nice team with some very dynamic players. They do good things at both ends of the floor and have won a lot of games already this season," Mouat said. "St. Mary's will bring excellent guard play as well as some good inside players. They attack the rim well and finish in their Dribble Drive Motion system. We will definitely have to be on our toes defensively, as they attack for 40 minutes. (And) Lakeland is traditionally near the top of the ACAC standings and have dealt with some injuries. However, I know they are a strong program and will be ready to go."

And that's just what the Skylights need. Three tough games to get ready for another two months of treacherous Frontier play.

"All three teams are well-coached and have good players," Mouat said. "All three do some different things defensively, so we will see a lot over the three games. I expect full and half-court man and zone as well as trapping and a lot of man."

MSU-N plays Keyano Thursday at 5:30 p.m. followed by St. Mary's Friday at 5:30 p.m. and Lakeland Saturday at 3:30 p.m. All three games will be played at the Armory Gymnasium. Northern also returns to Frontier play with home games against Rocky Mountain College Jan. 5 and Montana Western Jan. 7.