Lady Griz tough out a six-point win

Saturday, January 22

Missoula, Mont.

2 PM

Montana

12-4, 5-2BSC

Northern Arizona

7-8, 4-3BSC

Northern Arizona

Montana

Photo by: Derek Johnson

1/22/2022 6:04:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Montana Sports Information

Montana didn't have to work overtime to pull out a 66-60 victory against Northern Arizona on Saturday afternoon at Dahlberg Arena in Missoula. It just felt like it, with a lot of extra effort packed into a 40-minute game.

The Lumberjacks (7-8, 4-3 BSC) were relentless on the offensive end, grabbing 18 offensive rebounds and putting up 76 shots, 23 more than the Lady Griz (12-4, 5-2 BSC), a discrepancy that usual suggests defeat.

But the home team, working through the shot clock and beyond on extended possessions, defended the visitors, the best shooting team in the Big Sky Conference at nearly 46 percent, into 30.3 percent shooting and its third-lowest scoring total of the season.

Only Washington State and Arizona have held Northern Arizona to fewer points this season.

"Credit to NAU. The other night (in an 88-73 loss at Montana State) they got smashed on the glass and defensively didn't look good," said Lady Griz coach Brian Holsinger. "They came out and were a different team tonight.

"But defense wins, right? And we defended like crazy. I'm proud of our kids. They were gritty. (Northern Arizona is) hard to guard. Credit to our kids for toughing this one out."

Carmen Gfeller led Montana with 18 points and 13 rebounds, one off her career high. It was her third double-double of the season, her first since November.

She went 12 for 14 from the free throw line, with eight of those attempts coming in the fourth quarter.

Gfeller was key for two reasons. First, Abby Anderson was limited to six minutes in the first half because of foul trouble. In her absence, Gfeller had nine rebounds at the break, all on the defensive end.

"She stepped up big and had some huge rebounds," said Holsinger. "I'm proud of her because every day I'm on her about defensive rebounding.

"Offense comes really easy for her. She's so talented offensively. She's much improved on her defense and rebounding."

Second, Northern Arizona limited Montana's good looks from the 3-point line, where the Lady Griz were 12 for 29 in Thursday's 93-57 win over Portland State. On Saturday they went 4 for 14.

"We've been free-flowing from the 3-point line," said Holsinger. "I told the team, I promise you at some point a team is going to come in and be like, don't give up threes. They made it tough on us."

Montana had to have a presence inside to make up for it and got it from Gfeller and Anderson, who added eight points and seven rebounds.

The Lady Griz also got a big boost from Sammy Fatkin, whose 13 points might hint she knocked down some outside shots.

She hit a 3-pointer in the first half, but three of her four baskets in the second half were at the rim on strong drives to the basket. She also grabbed a season-high seven rebounds and added two assists and a steal.

"Sammy has always been a scorer. I've challenged her to become a player," said Holsinger. "She's seeing the floor and playing so much better. She had some huge buckets for us."

In a game that had eight ties and nine lead changes, with neither team going up by more than nine points, Montana took the lead for good on a 3-pointer by Haley Huard midway through the third quarter.

The Lady Griz, up two at the half, led 46-41 after three quarters and by four or more for the entirety of the fourth. They needed to be a solid 10 of 13 from the line to offset Northern Arizona's four 3-pointers in the period. Montana went 22 for 28 from the line overall.

"I'm proud of our kids," said Holsinger. "These are the kind of games you have to win to be a good team in this league."

That Huard scored 11 points isn't a surprise, not after putting up 18 on Thursday on 6-of-9 shooting from the arc.

But it's the way Huard scored that showed the development she's making as she transitions from the high school to the college game. (She also had three blocked shots to show her improvement on that end of the floor as well.)

She finished a strong drive into the lane with her left hand in the first half, scoring through a foul for an and-one. She finished again with her left hand in the second half, a counter to a defender who takes away the arc.

"That left hand, huge. I looked around like, I don't think I've ever seen that shot," said Holsinger. "She got really aggressive.

"She'll have to improve on that. As teams see her and know how good of a shooter she is, she is going to have to put the ball on the floor."

Khiarica Rasheed, a preseason All-Big Sky selection, had 17 points and 11 rebounds. She had hit two 3-pointers all season, then went 2 for 2 on Saturday from the arc.

Regan Schenck had 13 points, six rebounds and four assists as she and Sophia Stiles, two of the best point guards in the league, played mostly to a draw.

Stiles finished with nine points, nine rebounds and three assists.

Montana did a number on the other Lumberjacks defensively. The team's three other leading scorers on the season outside of Rasheed went 6 for 29 for 16 points, 15 below their average.

It was a team effort by the Lady Griz, who got big contributions, even if the statistics don't make it jump off the box score, on the defensive end from a number of players.

Nyah Morris-Nelson got 15 minutes, Kylie Frohlich 13, Katerina Tsineke 12 and Dani Bartsch 10.

About Morris-Nelson, Holsinger said, "It's so fun for a coach to be able to trust somebody on defense that they are going to do the right thing.

"I thought she was fantastic tonight. Guarding their guards off the dribble is not easy. They are athletic and they are coming at you. She did an awesome job."

The game drew a crowd of 2,539, the best attendance since the Gonzaga game back on Nov. 14.

"We're starting to get them. They are starting to come, and we need them," said Holsinger, whose team benefitted from the crowd's vocal backing during the critical third quarter, when Montana took the lead for good.

"I'm telling you, this team is fun to watch. I hope the word gets out there. It was great to have a few more tonight. We just want to keep building this thing."

Next up will be a battle on Monday night at Montana State, a matchup of teams that are both 5-2 in league, both on three-game winning streaks, both tied for third in the Big Sky, one in the loss column behind Idaho State (12-6, 8-1 BSC) and Southern Utah (9-6, 5-1 BSC).

The Lady Griz and Bobcats (10-8, 5-2 BSC) will tip off at 7 p.m. at Worthington Arena, where Montana hasn't won since the 2013-14 season.

"We'll be ready to battle Monday night. There will be no shortage of energy, I can promise you that," said Holsinger. "We'll give them everything they can handle."