Box Score FAIRBANKS – The Alaska Nanooks Women's Basketball team keeps their playoff dreams alive with a crucial Great Northwest Athletic Conference win over Montana State Billings. The Nanooks kept their lead throughout the entire second half to put the Yellowjackets away 74-55.
Despite a tight first half between both teams, the Nanooks went into halftime leading 27-25 over MSUB. Alaska then pulled away from the Yellowjackets and continued to hold the lead, ultimately claiming the GNAC win.
Head Coach Cody Bench was satisfied with her team's performance on the court, "I'm really proud of the effort we put in tonight, really happy with the energy we brought. We were excited for this game, knowing that we could potentially make the post-season and that has been our goal. This team has been focused all week in practice and we came out tonight and executed 40 minutes of what we wanted to do."
The hottest duo on the court tonight were Alaska players Jordan Wilson and Kaillee Skjold, each ending their night with 20 points. Tonight was Wilson's first game back after suffering an injury early in the second half of the season. The junior from Henderson, Colorado concluded with eight free-throws, eight rebounds and went 4-6 from the field. "It's great to come back to home court and for Coach (Bench) to trust me with that amount of minutes. To come back from an injury and to finish a pretty physical game feels good," described Wilson.
Skjold, who tied Wilson with minutes (35) and points (20), was one of two players who had a double-double. The sophomore hit two 3-pointers, went 8-10 from the field and finished the game with 10 rebounds. "I love pushing and I love full court man to man, so Coach played in my hand tonight. When everyone is feeding off of each other's energy, it's easy to get my own mind right and play at my best," Skjold said of her game plan.
Stephanie Toumson also earned a double-double in tonight's win with four free-throws, going 3-4 from the field, collecting 10 rebounds with a total of 11 points. Benissa Bulaya went 3-4 from the field and a game-high 10 assists.
Not only was Alaska's inside persistence the difference maker, Coach Bench was proud of tonight's defensive efforts as well, "We got the rebounds and shot well from the free-throw line but our defense held them to under 30% from the field. We stressed a lot of defense this week, so it was good to see the heart and effort our team put out."
Kayleen Goggins of Montana State Billings lead both teams in points with 24. Goggins, a senior, went 7-11 from the field, hit eight free-throws, collected nine rebounds and had one 3-pointer. Behind Goggins, Quinn Peoples finished with 12 points for MSUB.
The win over the Yellowjackets come as a relief for the Nanooks, who just ended a four game losing streak. With tonight's win, the Nanooks keep their playoff hopes alive. In order to advance to playoffs, Alaska needs to finish within the top six in the GNAC standings. To secure the sixth place position, Nanooks need to beat Seattle Pacific University Saturday, a Saint Martin's win over Central Washington and a Alaska-Anchorage win over Montana State Billings.
Nonetheless, Coach Bench is satisfied with concluding the Nanooks regular season equal or above a .500 winning percentage. "With a win tonight, I'm very happy. Not only because they executed but we will finish with a .500% season and that hasn't happened in maybe a decade at UAF, with potential to still go to playoffs. Those are things I haven't seen in a couple years. With this group of sophomores and transfers, I'm very proud and thankful, and these girls are apart of that."
The Alaska Nanooks return to the Patty Center Saturday, February 28th with their last home game of the season vs. Seattle Pacific University at 5:15 p.m.
