BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University men's basketball team dropped its GNAC contest vs. Alaska Fairbanks Thursday evening 88-73 inside Carver Gym.

After opening the season as one of the top shooting teams in the nation, the Vikings had another tough night from the field shooting 36.7-percent going 22-for-60. WWU's three lowest shooting percentage games of the season have come over the last three games.

While WWU wasn't hitting from the field, the Nanooks went 34-for-64 (53.1%) and were 9-for-20 from three point range.

The Vikings dropped to 0-3 in GNAC play and 8-5 overall on the season. UAF improved to 2-1 in conference play and 6-6 overall.

Senior guard Will Wilson led the Vikings with 15 points and six rebounds, going 6-for-12 from the field. Redshirt freshman guard Grant Kepley and sophomore guard Tijan Saine each contributed 13 points. WWU was nearly perfect from the free throw line going 22-for-23 with Kepley perfect 8-for-8 from the charity stripe.

The Nanooks received 87 of their 88 points from the starting five with three players recording 20-point games. Guard Paul Johnson scored a game-high 23 points on 9-for-13 shooting (3-for-6 3 FG), Isaiah Saams-Hoy poured in 22 points on 8-for-13 shooting and Elyon Zevenbergen recorded a 22-point, 16-rebound double-double on 10-for-13 shooting.

In addition to the hot shooting performance, the Nanooks held a 42-28 advantage in rebounding with 10 offensive boards.

WWU trailed 39-36 at the half and used a 7-0 run midway through the second half to pull even at 52-52. UAF answered with a 7-0 run of its own and grew its lead to as many as 18 points down the stretch en route to the victory. After freshman Aidan Rice tied the game with a three-point play at the 9:50 mark the Nanooks out-scored the Vikings 36-21.

The Vikings (8-5, 0-3 GNAC) close out the weekly slate on Saturday hosting Alaska Anchorage in GNAC play with tip-off set for 7 pm on WECU Court in Carver Gym. Tickets are available for pre-purchase at wwuvikings.com/Tickets. The complete season schedule, complete with links on how to watch the games, can be viewed online at wwuvikings.com/MBB.

The 2011-12 WWU men's basketball national championship team will be officially inducted into the WWU Athletics Hall of Fame on Saturday with a special halftime presentation. Members of the team have been invited back to campus for an event and will honored at halftime. The men's basketball team is the second event of the year honoring the Vikings 13 national championship teams that will be inducted into the Hall of Fame during The Year of the Viking where all 13 national championship teams will earn their special spot on the wall of Carver Gym near the Hall of Fame Room.

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

Here is a look at the Vikings record breakdown for the 2024-25 season:

WWU leads the all-time series 39-19 while going 9-5 over the lats 14 meetings…updated record of 21-7 vs. UAF in home games…two teams meet again February 1 in Fairbanks.

Here is a look at the 2024-25 GNAC Men's Basketball standings and overall records through Thursday's action. Updated standings and conference statistics can be viewed online at GNACSports.com. The top six teams in the conference standings at the end of the regular season will qualify for the GNAC Championships held March 6-8 in Lacey:

Here is a game-by-game look at the 2024-25 season following the loss to Alaska Fairbanks:

One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, WWU has recorded a 20-win season in eight of the last 13 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 six years (and seven of 11) and won the 2020 GNAC Championships Tournament. WWU is amongst the top 20 winningest Division II programs with its 1,568 all-time victories.