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Hot start helps 'Wolves bounce Billings, 81-61

Men's Basketball UAA Media Relations

Hot start helps 'Wolves bounce Billings, 81-61

ANCHORAGE – Juniors Spencer Svejcar and Suki Wiggs powered an early run Tuesday as the Alaska Anchorage men's basketball team earned its eighth consecutive win, 81-61 over Montana State Billings at the Alaska Airlines Center.

The Seawolves (14-4, 7-0 GNAC) scored the game's first 14 points and led by double figures for all but four and a half minutes, getting 21 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two steals from Wiggs. Svejcar scored 15 of his 19 points in the first half and finished 5 of 8 from three-point range, along with five rebounds and three assists.

The Yellowjackets (6-9, 3-4) got 17 points and three steals from reserve guard Marc Matthews as they lost for the third straight time both overall and against UAA.

After forging a 31-14 advantage after 13 minutes, the Seawolves saw their lead trimmed to 41-32 on Matthews's layup at the 1:44 mark. But senior forward Christian Leckband hit a short turnaround jumper 30 seconds later, and Svejcar drained a three-pointer as the clock expired for a 46-32 halftime score.

The Seawolves continued their push in the second half, taking a 60-38 lead on Leckband's three-pointer before the first media timeout. The Yellowjackets sliced their deficit to 70-56 against UAA's reserves with 6:20 remaining, but Wiggs converted a free throw and Diante Mitchell made a layup for two of his nine points to regain control.

Leckband finished with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting (2-4 3FGs) and a pair of blocks, and junior forward Corey Hammell added seven points, 10 rebounds and three assists. UAA outshot MSUB .473 (26 of 55) to .390 (23 of 59) from the field and earned 17 more trips to the foul stripe, converting 19 of 25 (.760).

The victory extends UAA's Great Northwest Athletic Conference lead to 1.5 games over idle Alaska Fairbanks and Western Oregon. The Seawolves face UAF (11-3, 5-1) on Saturday (7 p.m.) in Fairbanks, following the Nanooks' game against MSU Billings on Thursday.

NOTES: UAA's current 8-game win streak is its longest since winning 10 straight early in the 2011-12 campaign; that club went 23-7 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Second Round … the Seawolves' seven straight GNAC wins are their second-longest streak in the 15-year history of the league and trail only the 11-0 start by the 2007-08 Final Four squad for best start and longest streak … Wiggs – the GNAC's leading scorer at 23.8 ppg prior to Tuesday – ran his school-record streak to 18 consecutive games with at least 20 points … with 687 career points, Leckband is now just five shy of UAA's career top 40 … Brian McGill moved into 25th place on UAA's career scoring list, with his seven points Tuesday pushing his total to 915 … Hammell grabbed double-digit rebounds for the 10th time this season.

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Players Mentioned

Christian Leckband

#1 Christian Leckband

F
6' 5"
Freshman
Brian McGill

#RS Brian McGill

G
6' 2"
Sophomore
Corey Hammell

#25 Corey Hammell

F
6' 6"
Junior
Diante Mitchell

#11 Diante Mitchell

G
6' 1"
Junior
Spencer Svejcar

#20 Spencer Svejcar

G
6' 4"
Junior
Sekou

#2 Sekou 'Suki' Wiggs

G
6' 4"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Christian Leckband

#1 Christian Leckband

6' 5"
Freshman
F
Brian McGill

#RS Brian McGill

6' 2"
Sophomore
G
Corey Hammell

#25 Corey Hammell

6' 6"
Junior
F
Diante Mitchell

#11 Diante Mitchell

6' 1"
Junior
G
Spencer Svejcar

#20 Spencer Svejcar

6' 4"
Junior
G
Sekou

#2 Sekou 'Suki' Wiggs

6' 4"
Junior
G