PORTLAND, Ore. – Sophomore forward Daulton Hommes and junior guard Trey Drechsel combined to score 46 points leading the Western Washington University Vikings to 92-81 victory over Concordia Saturday night in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action on LCEF Court.
The Vikings concluded the regular season with a 21-7 overall record and finished 2nd in the GNAC with a 16-4 league record. WWU will be the No. 2 seed to earn a first-round bye in the GNAC Championships that open next Thursday in Anchorage, Alaska. Concordia concluded its season 5-23 and 1-19 in GNAC play.
WWU used a late first-half run to build a 20-point halftime lead, pulling away from a 20-20 tie with a run of 11-0 to lead 31-20 and finished the half on a 32-12 binge. The Cavaliers pulled to within 8 points late in the second half, but the Vikings sealed their 21st victory of the season going 4-for-6 from the line down the stretch.
Hommes (Lynden, WA/Lynden Christian) led Western with 24 points on 8-for-17 shooting, including 4-for-6 from 3-point range. Drechsel (Woodinville, WA/Cedar Park Christian) recorded a 22-point, 11-rebound double-double by going by going 7-for-13 from the field and 7-for-9 from the free throw line.
WWU had five players reach double-figures in scoring, with sixth-man Siaan Rojas (RS Jr., Concord, CA/Santa Rosa JC) pouring in 16 points, sophomore guard Trevor Jasinsky (Camas, WA) with 14 points and junior center Logan Schilder (Bellingham, WA/Whatcom CC) with 10 points.
Concordia forward Christopher Edward led all players with a game-high 31 points, going 11-for-19 from the field. Bryan Michaels added 23 points, including 15 in the second half.
The Vikings held a firm lead for the first 7 minutes of the game, but Concordia went on an 8-0 run to take a 13-11 lead with 11:55 remaining in the half. The game was tied 20-20 with 8:08 remaining, when the Vikings gained some separation going on an 11-0 run, with Hommes contributing 5 points during the stretch. WWU ended the half on a 32-12 run to take the 20-point lead into halftime.
Drechsel led the way with 16 points on 6-for-8 shooting, and also tallied 6 rebounds in the first 20 minutes. Hommes added 12 points on 4-for-8 shooting (2-for-2 3FG) and Rojas contributed 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting. Overall Western was 19-for-36 from the field in the first half (52.8%), including 6-for-17 from beyond the arc.
Edward led CU with 12 points on 4-for-11 shooting, as the Cavaliers were held to 32.4% from the floor in the opening half, including 1-for-11 from 3-point range.
The Vikings built their lead to as many as 25 points early in the second half at 62-37, but Concordia whittled the lead down to 8 points with 1:28 left in the game. Hommes scored 12 of his team-high 24 points in the second half on 4-for-9 shooting.
WWU (21-7, 16-4 GNAC) now turns its attention to its 10th consecutive trip to the postseason where it will be the No. 2 seed in the 2018 GNAC Championships played next week, March 1-3, at the Alaska Airlines Center in Anchorage, Alaska. The Vikings and league champion Western Oregon will receive first-round byes, with the semifinal games played on Friday at noon at 2:15 pm AKT. All games during the championship can be followed with an HD webcast and live stats at GNAC.tv. The Championship games for the men’s and women’s title will stream live on ESPN3.
Game Notes: WWU will be the No. 2 seed in the GNAC Championships with its first game on Friday in the semifinals in Anchorage, Alaska at noon AKT (1 pm PT) against the winner of the No. 4 Seattle Pacific vs. No. 5 Alaska Anchorage game…WWU ended the regular season winning 6 of its last 7 games…Daulton Hommes has scored in double-digits in 27 of 28 games this season and leads the team/2nd in the GNAC averaging 18.0 points per game…Hommes is 3 points shy of 900 for his career (averaging 15.2 points/game while starting all 59 games of WWU career)…Trey Drechsel is averaging 14.9 points (10th in GNAC), 7.0 rebounds (7th in GNAC), 3.9 assists (5th in GNAC) and 1.3 steals per game (9th in GNAC)…Logan Schilder recorded a pair of blocked shots to give him 97 for his career, 9th-best in WWU history and 19th-best in GNAC history.
About WWU Basketball:
One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, recording a 20-win season in eight of the last 10 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 is coming off a 2016-17 season where the program went 25-6, winning the GNAC regular season and conference championships title, and advanced to the NCAA Division II Championships as the No. 3 seed in the West Region. The program enters its 116th season, having combined for 1,479 victories and a .591 winning percentage.
Final GNAC Standings:
| GNAC STANDINGS | CONF | PCT | OVERALL | PCT | HOME | AWAY | NEUTRAL | STREAK |
| Western Oregon *+ | 19-1 | .950 | 27-1 | .964 | 15-0 | 12-1 | 0-0 | Won 20 |
| Western Washington *# | 16-4 | .800 | 21-7 | .750 | 11-5 | 8-2 | 2-0 | Won 1 |
| Saint Martin’s * | 15-5 | .750 | 22-6 | .786 | 12-2 | 8-3 | 2-1 | Won 4 |
| Seattle Pacific * | 11-9 | .550 | 16-11 | .593 | 7-5 | 8-5 | 1-1 | Lost 1 |
| Alaska Anchorage * | 11-9 | .550 | 15-13 | .536 | 9-8 | 6-5 | 0-0 | Won 3 |
| Central Washington * | 10-10 | .500 | 15-12 | .556 | 9-4 | 4-6 | 2-2 | Lost 3 |
| Northwest Nazarene | 9-11 | .450 | 13-13 | .500 | 9-5 | 4-8 | 0-0 | Won 1 |
| Alaska | 9-11 | .450 | 11-15 | .423 | 5-7 | 4-6 | 2-2 | Won 1 |
| Montana State Billings | 5-15 | .250 | 13-18 | .419 | 8-8 | 3-10 | 2-0 | Lost 4 |
| Simon Fraser | 4-16 | .200 | 10-18 | .357 | 8-6 | 0-11 | 2-1 | Lost 3 |
| Concordia | 1-19 | .050 | 5-23 | .179 | 3-11 | 0-12 | 2-0 | Lost 1 |
| *clinched berth in GNAC Championships; +clinched regular season championship; # clinched No. 2 seed | ||||||||
GNAC Championships Schedule (March 1-3 in Anchorage, Alaska):
Thursday, March 1
Game 1: Noon Men’s Quarterfinals #3 Saint Martin’s vs. #6 Central Washington
Game 2: 2:15 p.m. Men’s Quarterfinals #4 Seattle Pacific vs. #5 Alaska Anchorage
Friday, March 2
Game 5: Noon Men’s Semifinals 3/6 winner vs. #2 Western Washington
Game 6: 2:15 p.m. Men’s Semifinals 4/5 winner vs. #1 Western Oregon
Saturday, March 3
Game 9: 5:15 p.m. Men’s Championship Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6
— @WWUHoops —
