PORTLAND, Ore. — The start to the second half of Great Northwest Athletic Conference play has been impressive for the Montana State Billings men’s basketball team.
The Yellowjackets went on the road last week and upset No. 11 Saint Martin’s 77-71, handing the conference-leading Saints their first GNAC loss of the 2025-26 season. MSUB followed by out-running Western Oregon 84-74 on Saturday, locking up a pair of wins and earning Athletic Solutions GNAC Team of the Week honors on Monday.
The Jackets improved to 18-16 on the season and moved into a tie for second place in the GNAC standings with a conference record of 7-4. MSUB made it three wins in its last four games all on the road, as it prepares for the final seven games of the regular season.
While last week’s wins brought life to the Jackets as title contenders (their only GNAC regular-season crown came in 2024), first and foremost the goal is to secure a top-six spot in the standings and earn a GNAC championships tournament berth.
“We just want to continue to get better,” said third-year coach Luke Fennelly, whose team is next in action Thursday at Alterowitz Gym against Western Washington (11-11, 5-6 GNAC). “It is nice to be home this week, but you can’t relax in the GNAC. It’s a heck of a league and there are no easy ones. WWU is well-coached and has a high-octane offense. We are just working to be our best and to get better each and every day.”
Thursday’s win over the Saints was a far cry from a lopsided 87-68 loss the Yellowjackets suffered when the teams first met this season on Jan. 3 in Billings. The Jackets out-rebounded the Saints 50-45 and limited SMU to just 23-for-69 (33.3%) shooting including 6-for-26 (23.1%) from 3-point distance. Jakob Milling produced a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double and Miles Gurske led the offense with 21 points while adding eight boards and five assists.
The Jackets completed the season sweep of the Wolves on Saturday after their 83-75 New Year’s Day win when the sides met in the Magic City. The Jackets built a narrow, three-point edge by halftime, before out-racing WOU 54-47 in the second half to secure the win.
MSUB shot 55.6% (15-for-27) in the second half and committed a season-low seven turnovers in the efficient performance. This time it was Seattle Pacific transfer Mason Landdeck who led the offense, making 11 of 15 free throws on his way to a team-high 23 points to go with six boards, five assists and a pair of steals.
Croix Cox just missed a double-double with a team-best nine rebounds to go with eight points, and Gurske (17 points), Jonas La Tour (15 points) and Brandon Tchouya (15 points) each reached double digits in scoring.
Landdeck has found success in his new home, ranking third in the GNAC this season with a team-leading 19.6 points per game. The senior is also third in the conference with 4.8 assists per game, another figure that leads the team.
Gurske, who is the other Yellowjacket along with Landdeck to have a GNAC player of the week to his name this winter, ranks second on the squad in scoring with 15.1 points per game and has started all 24 contests. He extended his streak of reaching double figures to 10 games last week, and he is also 1 of 4 Yellowjackets to average 5.0 rebounds per game or more in 2025-26.
Tchouya is second on the team in rebounding at 5.5 and third on the team in scoring at 12.8 points per game, coming off the bench to average 25.3 minutes per game across all 24 contests. La Tour, another SPU transfer, is averaging 10.2 points per game
The other two Yellowjackets to start every game this season are Cox and Milling, who have been major contributors as well. Cox averages a team-best 5.7 rebounds per game to go along with 9.8 points per game, while Sonoma State transfer Milling is close behind at 5.1 rebounds per game and 7.5 points per game. Cox’s field-goal percentage of 65.6 ranks him second in the GNAC this season.
Success has followed Fennelly at the outset of his head coaching career, as he has amassed records of 32-15 (.681) in conference play and 59-28 (.678) overall since taking the reins in 2023-24.
He piloted the Jackets to their first regular-season title and was named GNAC coach of the year in his debut season, and MSUB has been a title contender ever since.
