Denham signs to play ball at MCC

Malta senior Kelbee Denham will be wearing white and blue next year as a member of the Miles Community College (MCC) Pioneer Women's basketball team in Miles City.

Denham, daughter of Morris Denham and Stephanie (Fried) Denham of Malta, will be the third of three siblings to play collegiate basketball. Kylee Johnson, the oldest of the three played basketball at Montana State University Billings in the 2009-2010 season and then finishes her career at Montana State University-Northern from 2010-2013. Her older brother Kendall Denham played at MSU-Billings from 2013-2018. Their mother Stephanie played for the Miles Community Pioneers and helped MCC win NJCAA region 9 championships in 1989 and 1990. Stephanie then transferred to Eastern Montana College and married Morris.

Seeing her siblings play college ball, Kelbee said that she has a pretty good idea of what college will be like.

"It takes a lot of dedication and patience," Denham said. "You need to have good communication skills to get ahold of coaches and to be able to talk to them."

Kelbee hopes to major in Business Administration while at MCC.

"Miles Community has a great basketball program," Denham said. " Coach (Taylor Harris) and I have had a really good relationship right off the bat."

The PCN contacted Coach Harris to share his thoughts on adding Denham to his team.

"I am beyond excited that Kelbee chose to come to MCC," Coach Harris said. "I remember spilling my coffee, racing to get to my phone when she called to tell me she was coming!"

Coach Harris saw Denham play at the State B Tournament in Butte and knew that she would be a great fit on the team. He also complimented Malta's High School basketball program saying that the team was well-coached.

Coach Harris is also familiar with what the Denham family name has meant to their school and to basketball over the years.

"She comes from such a well-respected family, with familiarity to MCC," he said. "Her family and core values will add to our culture on day one. The community of Malta will be extremely proud of this young woman for years to come!"

Denham is unsure of which position she will play at MCC, but she believes she can be used in a number of ways from the point guard position to the forward position.

Prior to signing to play at MCC, Denham visited Williston State College. She had a chance to see the campus, dorms, and facilities. She has yet to take a tour of the MCC campus but said that she had been to Miles City and likes the area.

Denham was asked about her favorite memory as an M-ette and said that it was winning the Northern B title this past season. She was also asked what she could take to Miles City from her experience of being an M-ette.

"What I take from being a Malta M-ette is what it takes to be a great teammate," she said. "I know what my role is and sometimes it's not always on the court. I know when it's my time and when I need to support those playing on the court. Basketball isn't an individual sport, but a team sport."