BILLINGS, Mont. – Junior guard Tobin Karlberg tied his career high with 23 points and delivered a historic effort on the defensive end with seven steals Thursday, helping the Alaska Anchorage men's basketball team end a four-week layoff with a 68-61 victory over Montana State Billings at Alterowitz Gymnasium.

The Seawolves (8-3, 3-1 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) also got 17 points on 5-of-8 shooting from senior forward Hunter Sweet and 14 points and four assists from senior point guard David Rowlands to fend off a late Billings comeback.

The Yellowjackets (7-9, 3-3 GNAC) were led by 16 points and five rebounds from guard Damen Thacker, but the hosts were outscored 27-12 from the three-point arc and 19-11 at the free-throw line.

"Tobin had a terrific night, but that was a true team victory in every sense," said UAA head coach Rusty Osborne, whose team played without all-league center Oggie Pantovic. "Our scorers stepped up and did their thing, and we didn't blink when Billings made its run in the second half. There are a lot of unsung contributors who didn't show up with big numbers in the box score tonight, and we'll take that 'lunch-pail' mentality with us into this very tough upcoming schedule."

Playing their first game since an 88-83 home win Dec. 30 over Seattle Pacific, the Seawolves took control early with a 10-0 run to make it 16-8, capped by a Sweet three-pointer. Rowlands scored nine of his points in the opening half to aid a 29-22 advantage at the break, and Karlberg opened the second half with seven points in a three-minute span, including a scoop-and-score layup that made it 34-22.

Another Sweet three-pointer and a short jumper by junior Darius Guinn gave UAA its largest lead at 44-27 with 14:31 left, but the Yellowjackets would answer with the next 11 points.

After Karlberg stopped the run with a straightaway trey at the 9:02 mark, the Yellowjackets responded again, drawing within 47-45 on a three-pointer from Wiggins with 6:41 left.

Thacker converted a fast-break layup to slice UAA's lead to 54-53 with 3:28 remaining, but the Seawolves would not relinquish their edge, with Rowlands scoring on a back-cut feed from A.J. Garrity 18 seconds later. Karlberg followed on the defensive end with his seventh steal, then drew a charge on Thacker with 2:25 left to protect the lead.

Holding a 58-53 lead with under 1:20 left and with the shot clock winding down, Rowlands found Garrity for a corner three-pointer that proved the clincher.

Karlberg shot 7 of 12 from the field, 4 of 8 on threes and 5 of 6 from the foul stripe to top the 20-point plateau for the fourth time this year and tie his scoring high from a Feb. 13, 2020 road win over Alaska Fairbanks. The local Grace Christian School star's seven steals tied UAA's single-game record against a fellow NCAA Div. II opponent and were the Seawolves' most ever in GNAC play, which began in 2001-02.

Sweet shot 5 of 8 from the field and made all five of his free throws, while Garrity scored all five of his points in the final 72 seconds.

UAA also got a huge boost from junior forward Keegan Crosby, who scored just one point but delivered 10 rebounds and career-highs of three assists and three steals – with no turnovers – in 30 minutes.

The Seawolves play the second of a three-game, five-day road swing Saturday when they visit Seattle Pacific for a 3:15 p.m. tip-off at Royal Brougham Pavilion. Surf to GoSeawolves.com for links to live video and stats.