ANCHORAGE – The Western Washington University men's basketball team battled the University of Alaska Anchorage in a game that featured 12 lead changes, but the Vikings fell short of the road victory falling 71-69 Saturday evening in the Alaska Airlines Center.

WWU dropped to 14-12 overall and slipped into 7th place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings at 6-9 in league play. UAA improved to 17-8 overall and remains in 5th place in the GNAC at 7-7.

The Vikings were led by a season-high 22 points on 10-for-12 shooting by junior forward Nic Welp and an 18-point, 10-rebound double-double by junior guard Will Wilson. Guards Kai Johnson and Tijan Saine each scored 10 points as the Vikings starters accounted for 67 of the 69 points in the game. Johnson has scored in double-digits in all 26 games this season. 

The Vikings led by as many as seven points midway through the first half at 16-9, but UAA answered going on an 11-2 run to take a 20-18 lead. The Seawolves scored the final eight points of the first half to grab a 35-30 lead at the break. Welp scored 13 of his 22 points in the first half.

WWU trailed early in the second half by seven points, but stormed back with a 13-4 run to take a 45-43 with 14:39 remaining in the game. The Seawolves answered scoring nine consecutive points to take a 52-45 and led the remainder of the way despite missing four free throws down the stretch. 

The Vikings had a three-point rim out by Will Wilson and an offensive interference call waved off a tip-in that would have cut the deficit to one point with 21-seconds remaining.

Sawyer Storms led UAA matching his season high with 17 points on 6-for-10 shooting and Jaron Williams finished 14 points, eight rebounds and six assists.

The Vikings (14-12, 6-9 GNAC) return home next week for the final two games in Carver Gym this season, hosting Northwest Nazarene on Thursday and Central Washington on Saturday, with both games featuring a 7 pm tip-off on WECU Court. Saturday will be Senior Night with Darius Gary, Isaac Morrow and Jonathan Ned celebrated prior to the start of the game. The complete season schedule, complete with links on how to watch the games, can be viewed online at wwuvikings.com/MBB.

Junior forward Nic Welp was selected as the WECU Player of the Game scoring a season-high 22 points on 10-for-12 shooting (2-for-3 3FG). Welp also grabbed nine rebounds to just miss his seventh double-double of the season. 

M🏀| WECU Player of the Game

With 22 points on 10-12 shooting and 9 rebounds, Nic Welp is your WECU Player of the Game. pic.twitter.com/sfpeNI9yMl
— WWU Athletics (@WWUAthletics) February 18, 2024
  

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

WWU and UAA split the season series with each team winning on their home court. The Vikings won 92-83 on January 18 in Carver Gym and dropped Saturday's contest 71-69 in Anchorage. WWU has still won seven of the last 10 in the series and nine of the last 13, while leading the all-time series 28-20.

Here is a look at the Vikings record breakdown for the 2023-24 season:

Here is an updated look at the 2023-24 GNAC Men's Basketball standings following play on Saturday, with the Vikings slipping into the 7th-place spot in the table. Updated standings and conference statistics can be viewed online at GNACSports.com.

Here is a game-by-game look at the 2023-24 season following narrow two-point loss at UAA:

One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, WWU has recorded a 20-win season in eight of the last 12 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 five years (and seven of 10) and won the 2020 GNAC Championships Tournament. WWU is amongst the top 15 winningest Division II programs with its 1,557 all-time victories.