LACEY, Wash. – The Western Washington University men's basketball team had its season come to a close with a 70-59 defeat against Western Oregon University Wednesday in the first round of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships in Marcus Pavilion.
The No. 8 seed Vikings finished the season with a 14-14 overall record. No. 9 Western Oregon improves to 9-17 overall while defeating WWU for the third time this season.
The Vikings were held to a season-low .364 shooting percentage, going 24-for-66 from the field, and were 2-for-21 from three-point range. WWU's defense limited WOU to a .375 shooting percentage (21-for-56) and tied a season single-game high with 12 steals, but a second-half surge extended the Wolves season.
WOU held a slim 27-26 halftime lead, but scored 43 points in the second half. The game was tied 34-34 at the 13:25 mark, but the Wolves scored nine consecutive points and went on a 23-10 run to take a 13-point lead with six minutes remaining.
Lucas Holden and
D'Angelo Minnis each scored 13 points for WWU,
Jalen Green recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 rebounds and
Kai Johnson contributed 10 points, six rebounds and a pair of steals.
John Morrill-Keeler had a 10-point, 14-rebound double-double and Tyreek Price scored a game-high 14 points on 5-for-7 shooting to lead Western Oregon. The Wolves advance to play No. 1 seed and tournament co-host Saint Martin's Thursday night with top-off scheduled for 7:30 pm in Marcus Pavilion. As a team WOU converted on 24-of-27 free throw attempts (.889) to help seal the game down the stretch.
THE MOMENT THAT MATTERED
The game was tied 34-34 at the 13:25 mark in the second half, but Western Oregon made a game-defining 23-10 run which included a stretch of scoring nine consecutive points to break the tie.
FIRST HALF RECAP
The Vikings found themselves down early with a nine-point deficit at 14-5 with 14:21 remaining, but found a spark out of a timeout going on a 13-4 run to pull even at 18-18 at the 9:29 mark. The final nine minutes of the half saw the offense stall with 15 combined points, and WOU took a 27-26 lead going into the break. WWU build a 26-22 lead by holding the Wolves without a field goal for nearly eight minutes, but WOU scored the final five points of the half grab the one-point advantage.
Lucas Holden led the Vikings with nine points on 4-for-6 shooting, while WOU countered with eight points each from Quint Myers and John Morrill-Keeler.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and WOU from Wednesday's game:
| STATISTIC |
WWU |
WOU |
| Points |
59 |
70 |
| Field Goal Pct. |
.364 (24-66) |
.375 (21-56) |
| 3 Point FG Pct. |
.095 (2-21) |
.235 (4-17) |
| Free Throw Pct. |
.429 (9-21) |
.889 (24-27) |
| Rebounds |
43 |
41 |
| Offensive Rebounds |
14 |
8 |
| Defensive Rebounds |
29 |
33 |
| Assists |
15 |
11 |
| Turnovers |
18 |
17 |
| Steals |
12 |
13 |
| Blocked Shots |
3 |
4 |
| Time Led |
7:50 |
29:19 |
| Points off Turnovers |
19 |
18 |
| Points in the Paint |
44 |
26 |
| Bench Points |
17 |
22 |
| Fouls |
21 |
20 |
GNAC CHAMPIONSHIPS
Here is an updated look at the schedule for the 2022 GNAC Men's Basketball Championships:
| GNAC MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS SCHEDULE |
| Wednesday, March 2 – First Round |
No. 9 Western Oregon 70, No. 8 Western Washington 59 (at Lacey)
No. 10 Alaska Fairbanks 91, No. 7 Simon Fraser 83 (at Seattle) |
| Thursday, March 3 - Quarterfinals |
No. 4 Montana State Billings vs. No. 5 Central Washington (at Lacey), 5:15 pm
No. 2 Northwest Nazarene vs. Alaska Fairbanks (at Seattle), 5:15 pm
No. 1 Saint Martin's vs. Western Oregon (at Lacey), 7:30 pm
No. 3 Alaska Anchorage vs. No. 6 Seattle Pacific (at Seattle), 7:30 pm |
| Friday, March 4 – Semifinals |
Semifinal Game 1, 5:15 pm
Semifinal Game 2, 7:30 pm |
| Saturday, March 5 – Final |
| Championship Game, 7:30 pm |
ABOUT WWU BASKETBALL
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 three of the last four years (and seven of nine) and won the 2020 GNAC Championships Tournament. WWU is the 12th winningest Division II program with its 1,528 all-time victories.
