Box Score

ELLENSBURG (Mar. 6) -- Junior Toussaint Tyler (Kent/Kentwood HS) scored six of his 11 points in overtime, helping lift the Central Washington University men's basketball team to a come-from-behind 78-70 victory over visiting Saint Martin's University in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action on Saturday night at Nicholson Pavilion.

With the win, the Wildcats kept their postseason hopes alive and finished the regular season at 16-10 overall and 10-6 in GNAC action. Saint Martin's ended its season with a 14-13 mark and 4-12 in conference play.

Tyler had one of his best shooting nights of the season, making 5 of 7 tries including his only three-point attempt. He opened the scoring in the extra period with consecutive running jumpers in the paint, and then capped the scoring with a fast-break layup with 20 seconds to go.

The game reached overtime after Saint Martin's Galen Squiers made a game-tying three-pointer with 11.9 seconds remaining and was fouled. However, he missed the ensuing free throw and after the Saints were given the rebound out of bounds, Squiers missed a potential game-winning layup as time expired.

Central spent the first 25 minutes of the game playing from behind. The Wildcats trailed by double digits for most of the first half, and faced a 14-point deficit with 2:06 left before halftime, but then scored the final nine points of the period on three-pointers by JC Cook (Canby, Ore.) and two by Ryan Snowden (Auburn) to make it a 38-33 halftime count.

The Wildcats finally took their first lead at the 15:13 mark of the second half on two free throws by senior Noble'D Shelton (Auburn), who made his first start of the season on Senior Night on Saturday. Central spent most of the rest of the regulation with the lead, and was in front by as many as seven with 6:42 to go, before trading points with Saint Martin's down the stretch. The Saints chipped away at the lead but did not take the lead again.

Senior Jon Clift (Spokane/Joel E. Ferris HS) led the Wildcats with 15 points, including several crucial baskets in the second half. Chris Sprinker (Tacoma/Curtis HS) had a double-double of 12 points and 14 rebounds, making 6 of 10 shot attempts, and front court teammate Roby Clyde (Connell/Pasco HS) was also a double-figure rebounder with 11 boards as the Wildcats finished with a 45-37 edge on the glass. Shelton matched his career-high with 11 points despite playing just 15 minutes.

Saint Martin's had a monster individual performance from GNAC MVP candidate Blake Poole, who finished with 31 points and 17 rebounds. Poole had 16 points and 12 rebounds in the first half, but accounted for nearly half (12) of the Saints' 25 made field goals. Squiers was the only other Saint Martin's player to reach double figures in scoring, totaling 12.

Central Washington will now await its postseason fate, which is expected to be announced after the conclusion of make-up games in Hawaii late Monday night. Should the Wildcats be selected for their third consecutive NCAA Division II tournament, they would begin play on Friday, Mar. 12, at the site of the region's highest seed.