Three former basketball Lights have recently accomplished significant milestones off the court. Mike Lavalley and Devin Bray have earned their law degrees and Pat Jensen has been named men’s head basketball coach at Montana Western. All three of these former players made significant on court contributions at MSUN while also being high achievers academically.
Devin Bray (Blewett School of Law, University of Montana) finished his business administration major, accounting minor, and psychology minor with a 3.9 GPA. He earned a Student Excellence Award, was Academic All-Conference for four years, a Dak Stats Scholar Athlete for three years and was a selfless contributor to Northern and Havre. While in law school he interned for McClain & Associates Law Firm and Worden Thane PC. He also worked this past spring for Federal Bankruptcy Judge Benjamin Hursh. He will take the Bar Exam in July.
Devin on his time at Northern: “I am grateful to have been able to spend five years at MSU-Northern. The community support is unmatched. Coach Huse provided me with an opportunity to succeed in both basketball and in the classroom, while instilling values that will now help me find success in my career. The Northern basketball family is a special, high character group, and I am proud to be a part of it. Go Lights!”
Mike Lavalley (Sandra Day O’Connor School of Law, Phoenix, Az) earned an education degree at Northern with a 3.77 GPA. He was named Academic All-Conference for four years and a Dak Stats Scholar Athlete for three. He was also a selfless service contributor to Northern and the Havre community including his work as a tutor in Student Services at MSU-Northern. Before attending law school, Mike worked a prestigious list of jobs, including a position on Senator John Tester’s staff.
Mike on his time at Northern: “I am extremely humbled and proud to be the third generation in my family to graduate from MSU-Northern, and to play on some of the greatest teams in Northern Men’s Basketball history; undefeated in the Armory for two years straight while capturing back-to-back Frontier Championships. Working hard while staying grounded in my Blackfeet and Indigenous teachings, and with support from my family, teammates, and the Northern Community, I found much success on the Hi-Line. I am grateful for these experiences as they are catalysts for my professional career.”
Three-time NAIA Academic All-American, four-time Academic All-Conference, and yet another selfless service contributor to the communities of Northern and Havre, Pat Jensen graduated from Northern in 2015 with a 3.73 GPA, earned two bachelor’s degrees (business administration, and health promotions), a minor in marketing, and went on to earn two masters degrees (business administration and athletics administration) at Idaho State where he also began his coaching career as a graduate assistant. By the time he left Idaho he had worked his way up to Director of Player Development. Pat joined Western’s staff as an assistant in 2018 and also served as associate head coach and interim head coach before being chosen as Western’s full-time head coach this past March.
Pat on his time at Northern: “I am so thankful and appreciative for my time at MSU-Northern. The whole Northern community is such a special place. Coach Huse made such a positive impact on my life and I was fortunate to play with so many incredible teammates while I was there.”
The post-grad accomplishments of these three outstanding Northern Alum exemplify the Northern University motto “An Education That Works.”