BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University men's basketball team bounced back in a big way Saturday night, defeating Northwest Nazarene University 78-60 in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference game on WECU Court in Carver Gym.

The Vikings led nearly wire-to-wire in the 18-point victory, completing the first half of the conference season with a 4-5 record to sit in a four-way tie for fourth place in the standings. WWU is 11-8 overall and will host two more home games next week in Carver Gym to open the second half of the conference slate.

After NNU took the initial lead with the first basket of the game, it was all Vikings the rest of the way in the 40-minute game with a 21-5 run setting the tone for the lopsided victory. WWU controlled the boards with a 41-27 advantage in rebounds and shot 56.3-percent from the field (27-for-48) for the third-best shooting performance of the season.

The hot shooting and balanced offensive effort offset a season-high 28 turnovers, with four Vikings scoring in double-digits. Junior guard D'Angelo Minnis paced WWU with 20 points on 7-for-12 shooting (4-for-5 3FG) and redshirt freshman forward BJ Kolly tallied dominating 18-point, 11-rebound double-double on 8-for-10 shooting. Kolly also recorded five of the Vikings six blocked shots to extend his lead in the conference with 2.3 blocked shots per game.

"We're feeling great. One thing about our team is we love basketball, so we take losses extremely hard, so we've been trying to figure all this out," Minnis told the Cascadia Daily News. "This win tonight shows we're resilient, and it's good to be back on the map." 

Senior guard Lucas Holden was nearly perfect on the night in his 15-point performance, going 4-for-4 from the field, 2-for-2 from three-point range and 5-for-6 from the free throw line. He also led the Vikings with five assists and recorded all three of the WWU steals. Senior guard Daniel Hornbuckle celebrated his birthday a day early with 11 points and four assists.

NNU (7-10, 4-5 GNAC) was limited to 37.3-percent shooting in the game and were 2-for-10 from the free throw line. The Nighthawks recorded a season-high 17 steals and converted WWU's 28 turnovers into 21 points. Ryzin Bergersen led NNU with 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting (4-for-8 3FG) and Yaru Harvey added 10 points on 5-for-13 shooting. Harvey, Kobe Terashima and Tim TenKley each recorded four steals.

The Vikings (11-8, 4-5 GNAC) continue their four-game homestand next week hosting Saint Martin's on Thursday and Western Oregon on Saturday, with both games featuring a 7 pm tip-off on WECU Court in Carver Gym. The complete 2022-23 WWU men's basketball schedule – complete with links on how to purchase tickets for home games and links to follow the team on the road – can be viewed online at WWUVikings.com/22-23_MBB.

It was early in the game, but the Vikings pulled away from a 9-7 lead going on a 12-0 run from the 15:09 mark to 13:07 to build the lead to 21-7. BJ Kolly got the run started with back-to-back baskets and Daniel Hornbuckle and D'Angelo Minnis capped it with consecutive three-pointers. From that point forward the Vikings would lead by at least double-digits in the 78-60 victory.

Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and Northwest Nazarene:

Here is a look at the Vikings record breakdown for the 2022-23 season:

WWU improved to 35-12 all-time vs. NNU with a 16-4 advantage in the last 20 meetings…in 26 all-time meetings in Bellingham the Vikings are 22-4 against the Nighthawks…two teams meet again in the regular season in Nampa, Idaho on February 16.

Fans will get the chance to celebrate the 2012 National Championship season on Saturday, January 28 when the Vikings host Western Oregon. Several members of the national championship team will be back in Carver Gym. Mark your calendars to be part of this special event on January 28 and sign up for a special pregame event hosted by the WWU Alumni Association at wwuvikings.com/MBB_12Champs.

Here is an updated look at the GNAC standings, complete with Saturday's results from around the conference:

Here is a game-by-game look at the 2022-23 season following the 18-point home win over NNU:

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 2012 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 1,539 all-time victories. Head coach Tony Dominguez is in his 10th season and 11th year as the Vikings head coach (28th overall at WWU) and is listed in the top 20 amongst active NCAA Division II head coaches with a .663 winning percentage (193-98).