LACEY, Wash. – The Western Washington University men's basketball team led for most of the its Great Northwest Athletic Conference showdown with first-place and nationally-ranked Saint Martin's, but the No. 12 Saints scored the game's final nine points in a 57-53 come-from-behind victory over the Vikings on Thursday evening in Marcus Pavilion.

WWU held a 53-48 lead with 2:15 remaining in the contest, but the Saints rallied with the 9-0 run and clinched the victory at the free throw line. The game was tied 53-53 following a 3-pointer by EJ Boyce with 35 seconds remaining and preseason conference player of the year Luke Chavez put the Saints up 55-53 with a pair of free throws after a tough foul call on WWU's Tyler Payne with 7 seconds left on the clock. 

It was a bit of a reversal of fortune for the Vikings, who defeated the Saints 75-68 on Jan. 5 in Bellingham, scoring the final 10 points of the game as part of a 16-2 run to secure the 7-point victory.

The Vikings dropped to 11-10 overall and opened the second half of GNAC play falling to 5-6 in conference games. Saint Martin's improved to 17-2 overall and remained atop the league standings at 10-1 in GNAC play.

Sophomore forward Luke Lovelady led the Vikings with a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double. Lovelady was 6-for-8 from the floor and 5-for-6 from the free throw line. Freshman Jalen Green added 14 points on 5-for-9 shooting and grabbed 6 rebounds. Junior guard Leif Anderson added 7 points and set career-highs with 7 rebounds and 5 steals.

WWU held a decisive 39-27 advantage in rebounds and dominated the offensive boards battled 11-5. The Vikings shot 35.3% for the game (18-for-51), going 5-for-19 from 3-poing range, while Saint Martin's was at 40.0% percent (22-for-55) and 4-for-25 from 3-point range. 

Luke Chavez scored all 12 of his team-high points in the second half, going 6-for-6 at the free throw line over the final two minutes of the contest. Chavez was held to 3-for-15 shooting and was 0-for-10 from 3-point range. Tavian Henderson and EJ Boyce each had 10 points for the Saints.

The Vikings held a 53-48 lead over the Saints following a layup by Jalen Green at the 2:15 mark, but that would prove to be the last points WWU would score in the game. Saint Martin's sunk a pair of free throws with 1:56 remaining to pull to within one possession, and hit a game-tying 3-pointer with 35-seconds on the clock. After a WWU timeout, the Vikings were attempting to get the ball into the hands of leading scorer Trevor Jasinsky, but a pass from Leif Anderson caromed off Jasinsky's hands out of bounds for the turnover. With 11 seconds on the clock, Tyler Payne was whistled for an off-the-ball foul, and Luke Chavez hit a pair of free throws to put the Saints up 55-53. Looking for the game-tying or go-ahead basket, Payne committed a turnover on an errant pass to all but seal the game for the Saints.

The Vikings took a three-point lead at 28-25 in a low-scoring first half. Despite being out-shot by the Saints 48.0% (12-for-25) to 32.1% (9-for-28), the Vikings used a 19-11 advantage in rebounding (8-1 in offensive boards) to gain the first-half lead. The Vikings defense also limited the Saints to 1-for-10 shooting from beyond the arc. Luke Lovelady led the Vikings with 8 points and 5 rebounds, with Jalen Green contributing 6 points. WWU 7-for-8 from the free throw line, while the Saints did not go to the charity stripe. Tavian Henderson led the Saints with 8 points.

WWU leading scorer Trevor Jasinsky was limited to a season-low 5 points on 1-for-10 shooting (1-for-6 3FG)…Jasinsky entered the game 2^nd in the GNAC averaging 19.6 points per game and had scored in double-digits in 19 of the first 20 games…the double-double for Luke Lovelady was his third of the season…Leif Anderson scored 7 points and had a career-high 7 rebounds…the +12 rebound margin was the second-biggest for the Vikings in GNAC play this season (+15 at Concordia)…12 of WWU's 18 fouls were called in the second half…19 turnovers tied for a season high (also 1/17 vs. MSU Billings)…the game featured 13 lead changes and 5 tie scores…WWU led for 29:04, but its biggest lead was only 6 points early in the second half…the game was tied for 5:39…the Vikings limited SMU to a season-low 57 points.

WWU and Saint Martin's split the season series, with each team winning on its home court…WWU continues to lead the all-time series 134-64 and is 5-3 over the last 8 meetings…was just WWU's second loss in its last 10 games at Marcus Pavilion.

The Vikings return to the court on Saturday facing Seattle Pacific at Royal Brougham Pavilion in a 4 pm game. WWU is one game through a stretch of eight games that feature six away from Bellingham. The Vikings next home games will be next week, hosting Central Washington (Feb. 7) and Northwest Nazarene (Feb. 9).

Here is a look at the updated GNAC standings through Thursday's games, with WWU in 7^th place at 5-6 in league play.

WWU will serve as the host for the 2019 GNAC Championships, with the top six teams in both the men's and women's conference standings at the end of the season qualifying for the tournament that will be held March 7-9 on WECU Court in Carver Gym. 

Fans can follow the men's basketball team online at WWUVikings.com/MBB, and via social media on Twitter (@WWUHoops) and Facebook (@WWUmensbball).

One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, WWU has recorded a 20-win season in eight of the last 10 seasons. WWU is a six-time Great Northwest Athletic Conference champion and has appeared in the NCAA II Elite 8 three times. The Vikings won the 2011-12 NCAA Division II National Championship and advanced the following season to the NCAA II Final Four. Western has posted back-to-back 20-win seasons, including a 25-6 record in 2016-17 where it won the GNAC regular season and conference championships title, and advanced to the NCAA Division II Championships as the No. 3 seed in the West Region. The program recently completed its 116^th season posting a 21-8 record in 2017-18, and have combined for 1,490 victories and a .591 winning percentage in program history. 

-- @WWUHoops --