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Gill helps UAA men past SFU, 99-81

Men's Basketball UAA Media Relations

Gill helps UAA men past SFU, 99-81

ANCHORAGE – Mario Gill scored a career-high 23 points and Casey Robinson added 19 points and six rebounds Saturday to help Alaska Anchorage overcome a challenge from Simon Fraser for a 99-81 men's basketball victory at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex.

The Seawolves (18-7, 10-4 GNAC), ranked No. 4 in the NCAA Div. II West Region, got double-figure scoring from all five of their starters, plus big bench contributions from reserves Travis Thompson and Liam Gibcus.

The Clan (3-17, 2-12) was led by 30 points and four assists from Justin Brown, while fellow junior guard Ricky Berry tallied 22 points for the first-year Great Northwest Athletic Conference members.

UAA led 50-43 at halftime when Robinson drained a three-pointer at the first-half buzzer, but the visitors from Burnaby, British Columbia, came out hot in the second half and took a 54-52 lead on Berry's three-pointer at the 16:35 mark.

Junior center Taylor Rohde would put the Seawolves back on top for good, however, with a pair of free throws that made it 57-56 with 15 minutes left.

Despite their last-place standing, the Clan kept hanging tough and pulled within 72-69 on two free throws from Brown with 6:23 remaining. But Gibcus answered for UAA on the next possession with a 15-foot jumper and Gill continued the deciding run with a steal and a breakaway layup.

Gill scored all 17 of his second-half points in the final 5:43 to help the Seawolves ice the win. The 6-2 junior from Portland, Ore., made all 11 of his free throws and finished with four assists, three steals and no turnovers in 23 minutes.

Meanwhile, Rohde had 13 points, eight rebounds and a pair of blocks as the junior center extended his double-digit scoring streak to 19 games. Senior point guard Drew Robinson tallied 11 points and a game-high six assists, and senior wing Brandon Walker finished with 10 points.

The Seawolves posted a 21-11 advantage in bench scoring as Thompson had nine points on 3-of-5 shooting. Gibcus, a 6-10 sophomore center, produced his best game of the season with eight points on perfect shooting (2-2 FG, 4-4 FT), plus three rebounds and a block.

The game was slowed by 56 personal and three technical fouls, resulting in 68 total free throws.

Combined with Seattle Pacific's 81-70 loss at Northwest Nazarene earlier Saturday, the Seawolves' victory moved them into a second-place tie with Western Washington in the GNAC standings.

UAA is on the road for its next three games, beginning Thursday at Saint Martin's (6:30 p.m. AST), before finishing the regular season at home on Jan. 23 against Alaska Fairbanks.


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Players Mentioned

Casey Robinson

Casey Robinson

THR
Junior
Casey Robinson

#44 Casey Robinson

F
6' 6"
Junior
Brandon Walker

#22 Brandon Walker

G
6' 3"
Sophomore
Liam Gibcus

#32 Liam Gibcus

F/C
6' 10"
Freshman
Drew Robinson

#11 Drew Robinson

G
6' 1"
Junior
Mario Gill

#2 Mario Gill

G
6' 2"
Junior
Taylor Rohde

#34 Taylor Rohde

F/C
6' 9"
Junior
Travis Thompson

#11 Travis Thompson

G
6' 1"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Casey Robinson

Casey Robinson

Junior
THR
Casey Robinson

#44 Casey Robinson

6' 6"
Junior
F
Brandon Walker

#22 Brandon Walker

6' 3"
Sophomore
G
Liam Gibcus

#32 Liam Gibcus

6' 10"
Freshman
F/C
Drew Robinson

#11 Drew Robinson

6' 1"
Junior
G
Mario Gill

#2 Mario Gill

6' 2"
Junior
G
Taylor Rohde

#34 Taylor Rohde

6' 9"
Junior
F/C
Travis Thompson

#11 Travis Thompson

6' 1"
Freshman
G