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Men lose heartbreaker in GNAC quarters

Men's Basketball UAA Media Relations

Men lose heartbreaker in GNAC quarters

LACEY, Wash. – Six Alaska Anchorage players scored in double figures but Central Washington used a huge second-half comeback and got a buzzer-beating three-pointer from Mark McLaughlin to knock off Alaska Anchorage 79-78 on Thursday in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament quarterfinals at Marcus Pavilion.

Regionally 8th-ranked and UAA (18-9) – seeded third in the tournament – was led by 18 points from senior center Liam Gibcus, while junior guard Kyle Fossman had 11 points, seven assists and no turnovers in 38 minutes.

But McLaughlin took over in the second half for Central (15-12), scoring 26 of his 32 points after the break to rally his team from a 44-26 halftime deficit.

UAA trailed only once in the first half, at 10-9, before going on an 11-2 run to take control. After a quick Central rally to start the second half, the Seawolves seemed to reassert themselves and pushed their lead back to 68-52 on a Gibcus layup with 8:37 remaining.

That would be UAA's last field goal for nearly seven minutes, however, and McLaughlin began scoring on seemingly every trip down the court. A three-pointer by McLaughlin finally tied it 73-73 at the 2-minute mark, and both teams went scoreless on their ensuing possessions.

Gibcus scored on a pick-and-roll feed from Fossman with 46 seconds to go, and freshman point guard Jalen Little made one of two free throws after grabbing a defensive rebound, putting UAA ahead 76-73.

Central's Kevin Davis drove through the lane and bounced a jumper off the rim and in on Central's next possession, drawing a foul in the process. The Wildcat center made his free throw to knot it with 12 seconds remaining, but his team did not stop Little on his drive down the court, and the rookie laid it in with 3.7 seconds showing.

After Fossman knocked a long inbounds pass out of bounds, the Wildcats called timeout and set up a play with 2.5 seconds on the clock. Davis inbounded along the sideline to McLaughlin, who took a dribble and swished his third and final trey at the buzzer, giving his team its only lead of the second half.

Sophomore guard Teancum Stafford, junior guard Colton Lauwers and senior forward Abebe Demissie joined Fossman with 11 points, while Little collected 10 points and four assists in the loss, which may end hopes for UAA's third straight NCAA Tournament berth.

Central, the No. 6 seed, moves on to Friday's early semifinal where it will meet No. 2 seed and nationally 3rd-ranked Seattle Pacific.


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Players Mentioned

Liam Gibcus

#32 Liam Gibcus

F/C
6' 10"
Freshman
Kyle Fossman

#24 Kyle Fossman

G
6' 0"
Freshman
Abebe Demissie

#24 Abebe Demissie

F
6' 6"
Junior
Colton Lauwers

#23 Colton Lauwers

G
6' 3"
Sophomore
Jalen Little

#20 Jalen Little

G
5' 10"
Freshman
Teancum Stafford

#30 Teancum Stafford

G
6' 5"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Liam Gibcus

#32 Liam Gibcus

6' 10"
Freshman
F/C
Kyle Fossman

#24 Kyle Fossman

6' 0"
Freshman
G
Abebe Demissie

#24 Abebe Demissie

6' 6"
Junior
F
Colton Lauwers

#23 Colton Lauwers

6' 3"
Sophomore
G
Jalen Little

#20 Jalen Little

5' 10"
Freshman
G
Teancum Stafford

#30 Teancum Stafford

6' 5"
Sophomore
G