Seawolf men defend turf against Saints

ANCHORAGE – Brandon Walker and Casey Robinson combined for 35 points and Alaska Anchorage used perhaps its best defensive effort of the season to post a 62-45 victory over Saint Martin's in Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's basketball action Thursday at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex.

UAA (12-3, 3-1 GNAC) also got strong all-around efforts from fellow juniors Nick Pacitti and Kevin White as they outshot the Saints 46 percent to 24 percent and out-rebounded them 41-33.

Saint Martin's (11-5, 1-4), which suffered its fourth straight loss, was led by 12 points and five rebounds from junior forward Blake Poole, plus seven points and eight rebounds from reserve forward Jeremy Green. Poole, the GNAC's leading scorer and rebounder, was held well under his averages (20.5 ppg, 12.3 rpg) as he shot just 4 of 12 from the field and battled foul trouble in the second half.

The Seawolves took control from the outset, holding the Saints without a field goal for almost seven minutes midway through the first half while they built a 27-14 lead. The Saints cut it to 30-21 at halftime, but Robinson nailed a three-pointer right after the break to stretch the lead to double digits for good.

Robinson, a 6-6 junior forward, finished with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting (4-9 3FGs), topping the 15-point barrier for the third straight game. Walker, meanwhile, broke out of his recent scoring slump with 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting, along with six rebounds and three assists. The 6-3 junior guard logged a UAA season-high 38 minutes in the win.

White finished with eight points, five rebounds, four assists and just one turnover, and Pacitti tallied six points, four assists and a game-high nine rebounds. Pacitti, another 6-6 forward, has now snatched at least eight boards in each of the last eight games.

The Seawolves return to the WFSC on Saturday to host another GNAC contest against Western Oregon. That game is set for a 7:30 p.m. tip.

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Players Mentioned

#1 Kevin White: G; 6' 4"; Freshman

#44 Casey Robinson: F; 6' 6"; Junior

#22 Brandon Walker: G; 6' 3"; Sophomore

#34 Nick Pacitti: F; 6' 6"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#1 Kevin White
: 6' 4"; Freshman
: G

#44 Casey Robinson
: 6' 6"; Junior
: F

#22 Brandon Walker
: 6' 3"; Sophomore
: G

#34 Nick Pacitti
: 6' 6"; Junior
: F