BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Central Washington University men's basketball team held off Seattle Pacific for a 58-53 victory Thursday night at Carver Gym in the quarterfinals of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Tournament.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
- Final: Central Washington (58), Seattle Pacific (53)
- Location: WECU Court at Carver Gym (Bellingham, Wash.)
QUOTING CWU HEAD MEN'S BASKETBALL COACH BRANDON RINTA:
"That was a pretty good defensive battle for the two most efficient teams in the league. There were some mini runs by both teams, but it was hard to score for everyone. Jordan, Calvin, and Chae stepped up with some big baskets."
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The Wildcats opened the game with a 4-2 run, but SPU found a rhythm quickly after, scoring nine straight points to take an 11-4 lead with 13:55 left.
- Chae Haynes hit a layup to break the run but a 6-2 run from the Falcons made it a 17-8 lead. The Wildcats then got four points, followed by a Trace Evans tipin to make it 19-12. Then, Central's offense found a stride and went on a nine-point streak with Jordan Clark, Jalen Childs, Calvin Sisk, and Haynes all finding buckets to overtake SPU to lead 21-19.
- Theo McMillan hit a layup to tie it at 21-21, but a Childs three and a Haynes layup made it a five-point game with 4:51 remaining in the half. Seattle Pacific continued to fight to cut into the lead, but the 'Cats found stronger scoring opportunities with three-pointers from Clark and Jamari Harris as the Crimson and Black took a 34-28 lead into the break.
- The Wildcats continued the momentum into the second half, going on an 8-2 run to make it a 12-point lead through the first four minutes. Then, both teams went cold for over the next two minutes until Grant Coleman hit a three-pointer to cut the lead to single digits.
- The Falcons continued to find shots from range with Coleman and Connor Drinkwine scoring as SPU cut the lead down to four-points at 44-40 with 8:35 remaining. The next three minutes proved to be the Jordan Clark show, though, as he opened with a three-pointer, followed by a pair of free throws and capped off with another shot from beyond the arc to give CWU a 52-40 lead with 5:29 left.
- The Falcons started to chip at the lead with Brant Heppner hitting eight points alongside McMillan as SPU cut the lead to 54-50 with 2:34 remaining. However, Xavier Kamalu-Vargas answers back with a layup to make it a six-point lead. Julian Mora would get a jumpshot to fall to make it four points again, and then Coleman hit a free throw to make it 53-56. The Falcons then fouled Clark, and he would convert both free throws to put the score out of reach as the Wildcats won the game 58-53 to move on to the semifinals.
STATS FROM THE GAME:
- Jordan Clark led Central with 18 points, knocking down four three-pointers while adding four rebounds, three assists and a steal.
- Calvin Sisk provided 14 points on 7-8 shooting along with five rebounds.
- Chae Haynes added 10 points and eight rebounds.
- Jalen Childs chipped in seven points, going 3-4 from the floor with two blocks.
- Eli Williams added four points, three rebounds and two assists.
- Jamari Harris tallied three points, five rebounds and two assists.
- Bradley Swillie contributed across the stat sheet with five rebounds and four assists.
- Xavier Kamalu-Vargas added two points, and three rebounds.
- Garrett Marrs grabbed two rebounds.
- CWU finished the game shooting 40.4 percent from the floor, 30 percent from three, and 60 percent from the free-throw line.
- Trace Evans and Brant Heppner led the Falcons with 11 points each. Evans recorded four rebounds including three offensive boards along with a steal, while Heppner logged six rebounds. Grant Cole followed with 10 points, four rebounds and a steal.
- SPU shot 33.3 percent from the floor, 33.3 percent from three, and 44.4 percent at the free-throw line.
- Seattle Pacific won the rebound battle 43-38.
UP NEXT:
- The Wildcats take on the No. 1 Seeded Saint Martin's tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. from the WECU Court in Carver Gym in Bellingham, Wash.
