BURNABY, B.C. – The Central Washington University men's basketball team (5-5, 0-1 GNAC) opened conference play Thursday night, falling to Simon Fraser (4-5, 1-0 GNAC) on the road.
 
Quoting Head Coach Brandon Rinta
"It's going to be hard for us to win conference games defending like we did today. We did some good things offensively in the first half, but couldn't make a shot in the second half."
 
Notable Stats

• Jordan Clark and Chae Haynes both led the team, offensively, scoring 20 points each.
• Haynes led the team in shooting—going 8-16 for .500 from the field, led under the glass with seven total rebounds, and blocks with two swats.
• Jalen Childs passed the ball well—recording five assists, while Jamari Harris led in steals with two takeaways.
• The Wildcats shot .422 from the field on 62 attempts, while SFU shot .548 on only 62 attempts, as the Red Leafs were able to capitalize on their chances from the field.
• Simon Fraser performed well in the paint, scoring 50 points in contrast to CWU's 38.

 
First Half

• Central opened the game with a strong three-pointer from Garrett Marrs.
• Simon Fraser responded with eight unanswered points to make take an 8-3 lead.
• The Wildcats found their answers and went on a 6-1 run to tie it back up at 9-9 with 15:31 left in the half.
• The Red Leafs hit a 7-2 run, but CWU came right back with five points to re-tie it up at 16-16.
• SFU got a layup to fall, but the 'Cats answered with four points to take a 20-18 lead.
• The Leafs then hit four points of their own, which was answered by Central with two three-pointers from Clark to get a 26-22 lead with 9:37 remaining.
• Simon Fraser then turned on the offense—scoring eight points in just over a minute to take a 30-26 lead.
• The Wildcats responded with a 5-2 run to cut the lead to one, but SFU answered with nine unanswered points to make it a 10-point lead with 4:15 remaining.
• CWU closed out the first half with a 13-5 run to cut the lead to 44-47 into halftime.

 
Second Half

• Simon Fraser opened the second half with five quick points to build a 52-44 lead.
• Central responded with a 6-2 run to cut the lead to four points.
• SFU hit a 5-2 run to rebuild its lead to 61-52 with 13:54 remaining.
• The Wildcats continued to fight and cut the lead down, but the Leafs held pressure and got a pair of huge three-pointers from Daniel Augusto Smith to give SFU a 73-58 lead.
• The Crimson and Black hit a 7-3 run to cut the lead down to 65-76.
• Both teams began trading points as the Red Leafs held a steady lead as time dwindled down—scoring the final four points to defeat the Wildcats 89-73.

 
Up Next
The Wildcats will venture south to Bellingham, Wash., to take on their rival in the Western Washington Vikings on Saturday, Dec. 6. Tip-off from Carver Gym is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.