A pair of Butte girls will meet on the basketball court tonight when MSU-Billings plays Rocky Mountain College in Billings.
Tipoff is at 5:30 p.m. at Alterowitz Gym.
Junior guard Kalli McCloskey, who helped lead Butte High to back-to-back appearances in the Class AA State championship game, is having a big season for Rocky. Sophomore Quinn Peoples, who led Butte Central to the 2011 Class A State title, is in her second year starting for MSU-Billings.
McCloskey averages 10.8 points per game for the Battlin’ Bears, who are 4-4 in non-conference play. McCloskey scored 13 points to go along with five assists and four steals in Rocky’s last game, a 104-41 beating of Walla Walla University Dec. 14 in Havre.
McCloskey reached double digits scoring three times. She scored 15 points against Northwestern Christian (Ore.) and 20 against Dickinson State.
The game is the first in Billings for the Bears this season, though it will be a home game for MSU-B. Rocky plays in a tournament in Phoenix Dec. 28-29 before opening Frontier Conference play Jan. 4 at MSU-Northern.
The Yellowjackets are 5-0 at home and 7-2 overall. Peoples averages 9.4 points per game. She scored 23 points in a win over Dixie State last month.
MSU-B plays host to Montana Western in an exhibition game on Wednesday. The Yellowjackets play at Montana State in Bozeman Dec. 29 before opening Great Northwest Athletic Conference play Jan. 3 at Saint Martin’s University in Lacey, Wash.
