Monday, March 18, 2024
by Thomas Lal

AZUSA, Calif. –  Montana State Billings overcame a 10-point deficit in the final quarter to hold the lead with just seconds left on the clock, but came up just short, falling 73-71 to Cal State San Marcos in the final of the 2024 NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball West Region Championships in Azusa, Calif.

The No. 4 seeded Yellowjackets were in the hunt all night during their first Sweet 16 appearance since the 2017-18 campaign but it was the No. 2 seeded Cougars who led for most of the night, including the all-important final seconds. Montana State Billings was led by Dyauni Boyce as she posted a game-leading 27 points to go along with five rebounds and two assists.

As a team, MSUB finished the game shooting 51% from the field, 50% from three-point range and 80% from the free-throw line. Cal State San Marcos was led by 22 points from Charity Gallegos and was led defensively by a familiar opponent in Truitt Reilly, a transfer to the program who previously spent two years at Western Washington, who notched eight rebounds and four blocks.

The No. 24 ranked Cougars came out of the gates hot while GNAC Player of the Year Kola Bad Bear hit a three-pointer for the No. 19 ranked ‘Jackets first points of the game. San Marcos knocked down its first six shots while MSUB hung on to keep things close. The Yellowjackets took their first lead of the game on a Kortney Nelson free throw after the junior guard drew a foul while cutting to the net. Despite the Cougars’ fast start, the ‘Jackets kept pace through the opening frame trailing by just one point, 18-17, heading into the second quarter.

It didn’t take long into the second period for Boyce to make her way into the double digits when she took the lead back with a free throw. Danielle Zahn continued MSUB’s early trend of strong three-point shooting by burying her own trey not long after to retake the lead after San Marcos had taken control. The pattern continued across the frame as the lead was tied five times and swapped six times before 20 minutes were through. While Bad Bear picked up her third foul with 3:46 remaining in the period, the MSUB offense continued to flow through Boyce and Nelson with Boyce finishing the first half on 15 points while Nelson had 10.

Boyce picked up right where she left off to start the second half, drawing an early foul and knocking down a three-pointer to start the third quarter. Fouls proved to be a huge momentum generator in the third quarter, beginning with Bad Bear picking up her fourth with 6:23 remaining in the period. The momentum would come back to the ‘Jackets later, however, as they drew two offensive fouls in a row, sending them into the bonus with 3:21 remaining in the frame. The Yellowjackets used that to great advantage, going 7-for-8 from the line in the period to remain within reach of the Cougars as San Marcos took a 57-50 lead into the final quarter.

It was Boyce who provided a necessary response for MSUB once again to start the final frame, pushing up a three-pointer through heavy traffic right after a San Marcos trey to cut the lead to seven once again. From there, Nelson and Boyce continued to lead the charge, helping the ‘Jackets chip away at the advantage by drawing fouls and getting to the line. Both went 7-for-9 from the stripe on the night, with Nelson totaling 19 points to go with eight rebounds, four assists and a steal. She earned that steal with 5:36 left in the game, diving on a loose ball seconds after knocking down a free throw to bring the lead down to four.

With 1:21 remaining, Shayla Montague drained a huge three-pointer to bring the lead down to one before Bad Bear finally gave the Yellowjackets a 69-68 lead with just 45 seconds left on the clock, their first since the second quarter. The 5-0 run to give MSUB its lead coincided with a three-minute scoreless drought for the Cougars, but came up just short as a foul with just 4.6 seconds remaining sent San Marcos to the line and put the game out of reach despite a last-second desperation layup attempt by Boyce.

Montana State Billings finishes the 2023-24 season with a historic 28-7 record (16-2 GNAC), the most wins in program history, and as the conference regular season champion for the second time in program history.