GREAT FALLS, Mont. – The University of Providence men's basketball team will look to build off their win last Saturday as they continue their road trip this week. The Argos (11-8, 2-4) will take on MSU-Northern on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. before traveling to Dillon to take on Montana Western on Saturday.

The Argos defeated Rocky Mountain College 90-83 last Saturday to give the team their first win of the new year. The squad has been stretched thin due to illness since the return from the holiday break, and had their first full week of practice last week. The game on Saturday was the first time the team had their full team so far this new year. 

"We had three practices before we got to play which was huge for us," said head coach Steve Keller, who earned his 300th career collegiate victory following Saturday's win. "Our conditioning was better. We also got more practices with Brendan which helped us get more in sync. Our guys stepped up last week, especially in the second half. They played a great game."

The game marked the third game of Brendan Howard's tenure for the Argos. Howard recorded 30 points and eight rebounds and the win and was named the Frontier Conference Player of the Week. He has gelled with the rest of the team extremely quickly, including with guard Marcus Stephens, who notched 31 points in the win on Saturday. Howard and Stephens both lead the conference in points per game; Howard is averaging 23.7 points while Stephens is averaging 21.6 points.

Despite the much-needed win, the team has quickly turned their attention to their upcoming opponents. The Argos have already lost to the Lights (15-6, 3-3) in Havre earlier in the season and know how tough it is to play in the Armory Gymnasium. The team hasn't played Montana Western yet as they had to forfeit against them due to conference Covid-19 policies.

"It's tough to play on the road in the Frontier Conference," Keller said. "It's also tough to play at home in the Frontier Conference. They're all tough. The road wins are special if you can get them. Both these teams are tough. They're going to compete and they're going to be tough to beat."