SEATTLE, Wash. – Western Washington University senior forward Trevor Jasinsky scored 24 points on 8-for-14 shooting to lead the No. 2 seed Vikings to a 76-69 victory over No. 6 Alaska Fairbanks on Friday in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Semifinals in Brougham Pavilion.

Jasinsky keyed a 42-point second half as the Vikings pulled away from a one-point 34-33 halftime lead to record the 12-point victory. WWU led 62-59 with just over five minutes remaining, but went on a 14-0 run to put the game out of reach to advance to the GNAC Championship Game for the fifth time in the 10-year history of the event..

WWU will play No. 5 seed Alaska Anchorage on Saturday at 5 pm in the GNAC Tournament Championship Game in Brougham Pavilion on the Seattle Pacific University campus. UAA defeated No. 1 seed and tournament host Seattle Pacific in the second semifinal game 86-85. The championship game will stream live on GNAC.tv.

The Vikings improved to 19-10 on the season and strengthened their resume with the NCAA Division II Championships looming next week. Alaska Fairbanks had its season end with a 12-18 record.

In addition to Jasinsky's big scoring game that included 5-for-9 shooting from 3-point range, the unanimous First Team All-GNAC selection added a team-tying best 5 rebounds and contributed a pair of assists and blocked shots. His 24-point performance moved him over the 1,500-point mark for his career, becoming only the 8^th player in WWU history and 21^st in GNAC history

Redshirt freshman guard D'Angelo Minnis added 14 points and senior forward Cameron Retherford scored 11 with 5 rebounds and 3 steals. Western Washington shot 50 percent from the field (25-for-50. WWU outrebounded Alaska 33-23, including a 21-8 advantage in the second half.

GNAC Player of the Year junior guard Shadeed Shabazz led the Nanooks (12-18) with 29 points, 15 in the second half, making 11 of 24 from the field. He was the only UAF player to score in double figures as the Nanooks finished shooting 43.4 percent from the field (25-for-53) and 46.2 percent from 3-point range (6-for-13).

After a stretch that saw both teams score just two points over five minutes, the Vikings started their late surge to secure the win. Junior forward Luke Lovelady extended the lead to 58-48 with his layup at the 7:57 mark before a Nanooks' surge fueled by Shabazz brought UAF back to within three points at 62-59 with 5:16 to go. Western Washington put the game out of reach with a 14-0 run over the next five minutes, which included 9-for-12 from the free throw line.

The Vikings got off to a hot start scoring the first seven points of the game and held an early 10-2 lead three minutes into the contest. The Nanooks climbed back into the game and closed the deficit to one point 34-33 at the half following a last second 3-pointer by Alex Sommerfield.

Trevor Jasinsky led all players with 14 points on 4-for-7 shooting and went 3-for-4 from 3-point range. Shadeed Shabazz led UAF with 12 points on 4-for-9 shooting. Overall WWU shot 48.0% (12-for-25) and were 4-for-11 from 3-point range. UAF shot 46.2% (12-for-26) and were 4-for-7 from beyond the arc.

Thursday, March 5 (Quarterfinals):

No. 6 Alaska Fairbanks 91, No. 3 Western Oregon 88

No. 5 Alaska Anchorage 85, No. 4 Northwest Nazarene 76

Friday, March 6 (Semifinals):

No. 2 Western Washington 76, No. 6 Alaska Fairbanks 64

No. 5 Alaska Anchorage 86, No. 1 Seattle Pacific 85

Saturday, March 7 (Championship Game):

No. 2 Western Washington vs. No. 5 Alaska Anchorage, 5 pm

The Vikings won the rubber-match against Alaska Fairbanks, with each team recording a road win during the regular season. WWU now leads the all-time series 36-15, including winning six of the last seven games. The Vikings improved to 3-1 all-time vs. the Nanooks in the GNAC Championships.

Senior Trevor Jasinsky continues to climb the WWU all-time scoring list, moving up to No. 8 in program history with 1,503 career points. He is only the 8^th player in WWU and 21^st in GNAC history to reach the 1,500-point mark in a career. Jasinsky has averaged 12.6 points per game in his 119 career games, appearing in every possible game in his four-year Western career. He also moved up to 6^th in WWU history with 585 rebounds. He joins Jeffrey Parker (1867 pts, 545 reb), Mike Palm (1649 pts, 874 reb), Grant Dykstra (1844 pts, 576 reb) and Harold Doyal (1571 pts, 657 reb) as the players that rank in the top 10 in both points and rebounds in WWU history.

Fans can follow the men's basketball team online at WWUVikings.com/MBB, and via social media on Twitter (@WWUHoops) and Facebook (@WWUmensbball). You can also get game updates by following the @WWUAthletics Twitter.

One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, WWU has recorded a 20-win season in eight of the last 11 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 20-win seasons in two of the last three years, including a 25-6 record in 2016-17 where it won the GNAC regular season and conference championships title. WWU is the 12th winningest Division II program with its 1,513 victories.