LACEY, Wash. – March Madness got the best of the Western Washington University men's basketball team Thursday falling to Montana State Billings 79-78 on a last second half-court buzzer beater by Jajuan Tot in the quarterfinal round of the GNAC Championships.

 

The No. 4 seed Vikings led by 14 points with 4:02 remaining in the game, but the No. 5 Yellowjackets stormed back ending the contest on a 20-5 run with Tot's game winner banking home at the buzzer.

 

WWU's Tijan Saine made a mid-range floater to put the Vikings up by two points with just 2.2 seconds left on the clock breaking a 76-76 tie. Without a timeout, Tot snagged an inbounds pass from Cooper Dewitt, dribbled once, and sank the half-court shot to send the Yellowjackets into celebration.

 

The Vikings entered the game having won 11 of their last 13 games to seal a playoff spot after starting the conference season 0-5. WWU's three losses over the last 14 games were by a combined five points. WWU entered the game ranked No. 8 in the West Region and have likely concluded the season with a 19-10 overall record after tying for 3rd in the GNAC standings at 11-7.

 

MSUB improved to 21-11 on the season and will look to continue its last season run entering the game ranked No. 10 in the West Region. The Yellowjackets enter Friday's semifinal vs. No. 1 seed Central Washington winners of 10 of their last 12 games.

 

Freshman Aidan Rice scored a career high 22 points on 8-for-19 shooting with five three-pointers. Sophomore First Team All-GNAC guard Tijan Saine added 21 points on 8-for-13 shooting and had four steals. Senior guard Will Wilson contributed 13 points, six rebounds and four assists.

 

MSUB was led by a game-high 24 points by Jalen Tot on 9-for-20 shooting. First team All-GNAC selection Kael Robinson added 20 points on 8-for-13 shooting and Brendon Johnson neared a double-double with 16 points and nine rebounds. The Yellowjackets received all 79 of their points from the starting five.

 

The Yellowjackets shot 49.2-percent (32-for-65) overall and 44.0-percent (11-for-25) and held a narrow 33-31 edge over the Vikings in rebounding. WWU also shot well at 50.0-percent (31-for-62) overall and 38.5-percent (10-for-26) from the arc. The game featured seven lead changes and eight tie scores.

 

 

Of the Vikings 10 losses this season, seven were by four-or-fewer points. WWU finished the season going 11-3 over the last 14 games, with the three defeats by a combined five points. 

 

MSUB took the early second-half lead on a three-pointer by Cooper Dewitt, but the Vikings answered with an 11-0 run with a trio of three-pointers, including two by Aidan Rice, to take a 48-38 lead at the 17:18 mark. WWU answered with a 17-0 run to take a 14-point lead at 73-59 with 4:37 remaining. The game of runs and momentum swings continued with MSUB out-scoring the Vikings 20-5 down the stretch with the half-court buzzer beater giving the Yellowjackets the one-point victory.

 

The Vikings took a 37-25 lead into the halftime break following a fast-paced first 20 minutes of action. WWU led for 17:40 of the first half, which featured four tie scores and a pair of lead changes. After taking a 9-2 lead to open the game, MSUB fought back going on a 9-2 run of its own to pull even at 11-11. The fast paced game stalled heading onto the half with nine combined points in the final minutes. Tijan Saine led WWU with 10 points on 3-for-5 shooting and Kael Robinson led MSUB with 10 points. Both teams shot well with WWU at 50.0-percent (15-for-30) and MSUB at 46.9-percent (15-for-32). 

 

WWU made a return to the postseason GNAC Tournament for the first time since the 2021-22 season, narrowly missing out on tournament bids each of the last two seasons. The Vikings won the tournament in 2019-20 just prior to the global pandemic for their second title (also won in 2016-17). WWU is 9-9 in 11 trips to the GNAC Championships.

 

 

Here are ways you can follow the 2025 GNAC Men's Basketball Championships:

 

·         Tournament Website

·         Tickets

·         Live webcast via GNAC.tv

·         Live Stats

·         Tournament History

 

Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and Montana State Billings:

 

 

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

 

 

Here is a game-by-game look at the 2024-25 season following the one-point loss to MSUB:

 

 

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 1,579 all-time victories.