BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University men’s basketball team suffered its first conference loss of the season, falling 94-82 to Saint Martin’s Thursday evening in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action on WECU Court at Carver Gym.
The nationally-ranked Vikings (No. 23-NABC, No. 16-D2SIDA) had their 10-game winning streak snapped, falling to 15-4 on the season and 10-1 in GNAC play. Western slipped into a first place tie with Western Oregon, who defeated Alaska Fairbanks Thursday night to improve to 10-1 in GNAC play. The loss also snapped a 13-game home GNAC winning streak for Western, a mark that was tied for 5th-longest in league history.
Saint Martin’s extended its winning streak to four consecutive games with its first win in Bellingham since 2008, improving to 14-5 overall and gained sole possession of 3rd place in the GNAC with a 7-4 record.
Despite shooting 52.5% (31-for-59) for the game, the Vikings couldn’t overcome the hot hand of the Saints who shot an even better 55.4% from the field (36-for-65) and held a 36-24 edge in rebounding. WWU entered the game as the No. 2 team in NCAA Division II with a +12.1 rebound margin and was out-rebounded for just the third time this season.
Junior guard Trey Drechsel (Woodinville, WA/Cedar Park Christian) again led the Vikings scoring 22 points on 8-for-14 shooting, and also added 5 rebounds and 4 assists. It was Drechsel’s seventh 20-point game of the season and third in the last four games.
Sophomore forward Daulton Hommes (Lynden, WA/Lynden Christian) added 13 points on 5-for-8 shooting, senior guard Brad Wallace (Lacey, WA/River Ridge/North Idaho) chipped in 12 points and 3 steals, and junior guard Siaan Rojas (Concord, CA/Santa Rosa JC) had 11 points (4-for-6 FG, 3-for-3 3FG) to round out WWU’s double-digit scorers.
SMU had five players reach double figures in scoring, led by a game-high 23 points from junior guard Luke Chavez. Matt Dahlen added 18 points (5-9 FG), 8 rebounds and 6 assists, and junior forward Jared Mathews came off the bench to score 13 points on 6-for-9 shooting.
The Vikings faced their biggest halftime deficit of the season trailing the Saints by 14 points at the break, 49-35. SMU held a 21-12 advantage in rebounds over the Vikings, and led for most of the half, shooting 52.5% (21-for-40) from the floor. After holding the early lead, WWU would cut the deficit to three points several times, but the Saints finished the half on a 16-5 run pulling away from a 33-30 game.
Sophomore guard Trevor Jasinsky (Camas, WA) led Western with 9 points in the first half, connecting on a trio of 3-pointers, while Drechsel had 8 points on 3-for-6 shooting. Overall the Vikings were 13-for-27 from the field (48.1%) and 4-for-9 from 3-point range. Dahlen and Mathews each had 10 points to tie for high scorer in the first half.
The Saints grew their lead to 21 points opening the second half with three consecutive three-pointers, and maintained a double-digit lead the remainder of the game. SMU shot 60.0% from the field in the second half (15-for-25), led by 17 points from Chaves. Drechsel scored 14 of his team-high 22 points in the second half.
The Vikings (15-4, 10-1) return to action on Saturday hosting Seattle Pacific University at 3 pm in Carver Gym. The game will be televised regionally on ROOT SPORTS with Brad Adam and Francis Williams calling the action from WECU Court.
Game Notes: The Vikings had their 10-game winning streak snapped, tied for the 8th-longest winning streak in program history…also had a 13-game home GNAC winning streak snapped (tied for 5th-longest in GNAC history) and had a string of 18 consecutive wins vs. GNAC opponents snapped (includes postseason games)…Trey Drechsel has scored in double-digits in 9 of 11 GNAC games and is averaging a team-high 18.5 points per game in league play…WWU was limited to a season-low 2 blocked shots (entered game 4th in NCAA II with 6.7 blocks/game)…rebound margin of -12 marked the biggest deficit in boards since last season vs. Tarleton State (-12, 39-27)…the 21-point deficit (17:22 left in second half) and 14-point halftime deficit were both season highs for the Vikings.
About WWU Basketball:
One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, recording a 20-win season in seven of the last nine 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 1,473 victories and a .591 winning percentage.
— @WWUHoops —
