Jan. 29, 2009

Box Score

BELLINGHAM, Wash. - Guard Morris Anderson (Jr., Federal Way) scored 22 points on 8-of-11 field-goal shooting as Western Washington University defeated Saint Martin's University, 83-76, in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's basketball game Thursday on Haggen Court at Sam Carver Gymnasium.

Western improved to 12-3 overall and 4-1 in the GNAC with its second straight triumph and sixth win in its last seven outings. The Vikings are 8-1 at home this season.

Saint Martin's fell to 14-6 overall and 2-4 in the GNAC despite a game-high 28 points from guard Jake Linton. Linton, who ranks seventh nationally and leads the league in scoring, had 16 of those points in the final 6:25.

The Vikings held a 38-31 lead at halftime and led the entire second half, but the margin was just one before back-to-back 3-pointers by David Brittinen (Sr., Hoquiam) and Anderson gave Western a 52-45 lead with 14:11 left. A 7-0 run midway through the second period pushed the advantage to 14, 65-51, with 8:34 to play.

The margin didn't get under double digits again until the final three minutes. The Saints pulled within six, 75-69, with 1:16 to play, but layins by Brittinen and Steve Alford (Sr., Bakersfield, CA/South) essentially put the game out of reach.

Brittinen had 14 points on 5-of-7 floor accuracy and seven rebounds off the bench in his first game since having an appendectomy on Jan. 20. Michael Duty (Jr., Seattle/O'Dea) had 13 points, and Alford added 10.

The lead changed hands 12 times in a wild first half in which Saint Martin's shot 54.5 percent (12-of-22) from the field. The Saints shot just 38.5 percent (15-of-39) after halftime. Bill Richardson had 20 points for Saint Martin's and Blake Poole had 15 points and a game-high 14 rebounds.

Linton became the GNAC's all-time leader in 3-point baskets in the game, going 5-of-9 to give him 268 in his career, two more than the old mark. He narrowly missed another record, missing a second-half free throw to end a string of consecutive makes at 45, five short of his own GNAC mark.

Western next entertains Northwest Nazarene on Saturday (7 p.m.) in a GNAC counter.

Morris Anderson leads Vikings to win

BEN FLETCHER - THE BELLINGHAM HERALD

BELLINGHAM - Morris Anderson scored 22 points and the Western Washington Vikings held on to beat a scrappy Saint Martin's team 83-76 in GNAC men's basketball action on Thursday, Jan. 29.

The win didn't come easy, with the Saints' Jake Linton catching fire with 22 second-half points to rally his team a couple times, but never quite far enough. Linton finished with 28 points.

"Not every game is going to be great and free-flowing, " Western coach Brad Jackson said. "But sometimes they're going to be knock-down, drag-outs. This one was ... I think our guys hung on and really battled."

After leading 38-31 at half, the Vikings found themselves up 46-45 just five minutes into the second period.

But, as they did throughout the night, Western had an answer to the Saints' push. Back-to-back three-pointers, first by David Brittinen and then by Anderson, made the score 52-45 just like that.

Western's lead grew to as much as 15 the rest of the way, until Linton almost single-handedly shunned a potential blow-out, hitting three of his game-high five three-pointers and out-quicking Viking defenders to take slashes at the lead, even pulling the Saints to within 81-76 on an assist to Blake Poole before fouling out with five seconds left.

Bill Richardson joined Linton's second-half surge, scoring 14 of his 20 points after the break.

"I just go, " Linton said of his performance. "I just think we came out slow. They kind of came out and did whatever they wanted."

Anderson scored 11 points in the first half to lead the Vikings on a night they weren't particularly sharp on offense, Jackson said. Leading scorer Ira Graham netting just nine points, roughly eight points below his average, on 4-for-11 shooting.

"I think Morris is just such a good player, " Jackson said. "He really carried us tonight."

Western's Michael Duty scored 13 points and Calin Schell narrowly missed a double double with nine points and 11 rebounds.

The Vikings had something to prove after losing to the Saints three times in a row, Saint Martin's coach Keith Cooper said.

"You've got to give a lot of credit to Western, " Cooper said. "They're a good basketball team. They put us away late."