Jan. 24, 2013
Box Score
BELLINGHAM, Wash. - Guard John Allen (Sr., Brier/Mountlake Terrace) scored all of his game-high 21 points in the second half as nationally ranked and undefeated Western Washington University tied a 41-year old school record with its 23rd consecutive victory, defeating University of Alaska Anchorage, 75-62, in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's basketball contest Thursday at Sam Carver Gymnasium on the WWU campus.
The defending NCAA Division II national champion Vikings, who are ranked No.2 in this week's National Association of Basketball Coaches Top 25, improved to 17-0 with the triumph and remain atop the GNAC at 8-0.
Top-ranked Metro State, Colo., is the only other unbeaten team in Division II. Alaska Anchorage, which had a three-game winning streak snapped, fell to 11-5 overall and 4-4 in the GNAC. Center Liam Gibcus had team-highs of 13 points and seven rebounds for the Seawolves.
UAA held a 42-39 lead with 13 minutes left, but the Vikings ran off 13 straight points to take a 52-42 advantage with 8:27 to play. The charge proved decisive as the margin was never less than eight after that.
Forward Austin Bragg (Jr.., Longview/Mark Morris) had 15 points on 6-of-7 field-goal shooting for WWU, forward Paul Jones (Sr., Kent/Kent-Meridian) had 12 points and seven rebounds, and guard Cameron Severson (Sr., Petersburg, AK) added 10 points off the bench.
UAA held a 32-25 lead at halftime after closing the period on a 15-2 run. Allen was 8-of-11 from the field in the second half as the Vikings shot 57.7 percent (24-of-53) in the period after hitting just 33.3 percent (9-of-27) in the first half.
WWU's previous 23-game winning streak ran from Feb. 20, 1971 to Feb. 15, 1972, a run that included 21 consecutive victories to open the 1971-72 season. That team ended up reaching the NAIA national quarterfinals. The streak is also the longest in the 12-year history of the GNAC.
The Vikings are 8-0 at Carver Gym this season and have won 18 consecutive home games, two short of the school record set from 1970 to 1972.
WWU now leads the series, 13-11, winning the last five meetings.
The Vikings continue their four-game home stand Saturday, Jan. 26 (7 p.m.), entertaining Alaska Fairbanks in a GNAC counter.
