FAIRBANKS, Alaska (Nov. 11) – Senior guard
Tyson Gilbert had 16 points and Alaska Anchorage used an impressive defensive effort to score a 65-50 men's basketball victory over Hawaii Pacific in the GNAC/PacWest Challenge at the Patty Center on Saturday.
The Seawolves (4-0) also got nine points on 3-of-5 shooting and four rebounds from center
Lyman Simmons in his first career start, and eight points on 4-of-7 shooting from fellow freshman post player
Sloan Lentfer.
The Sharks (0-2) were led by 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting and seven rebounds from center Matthew Van Komen, but the rest of his teammates made just eight of their 37 attempts from the floor, getting outshot .449 to .279 overall and .556 (10 of 18) to .118 (2 of 17) from three-point range.
"That was a great team effort and really terrific defense," said UAA head coach
Rusty Osborne, whose team was missing starting post
Bishop Tosi after he suffered a hand injury late in the Seawolves' 77-72 win over Chaminade on Friday. "All three freshman grew up today and proved they belong at this level, and Tyson was awesome again."
After battling to the final seconds with the Silverswords the night before, UAA took control from the opening tip against their Honolulu crosstown rivals, nabbing a 14-3 lead in the first five minutes on four combined three-pointers from Gilbert and
Sawyer Storms.
The Seawolves led by double figures for the final 28 minutes as they built a 41-26 halftime advantage and pushed their lead as high as 23 points twice in the second half.
Storms finished with eight points (2-2 3FG, 2-2 FT), four rebounds and two assists, while Gilbert shot 5 of 9 overall, 3 of 3 on threes, 3 of 4 on free throws, and led UAA with six rebounds.
Junior guard
Dillon Barrientos had five points, rebounds and three assists, and sophomore guard
Hasaan Herrington tallied four points, three rebounds and a game-high four assists. True freshman point guard
Trey Evans also contributed three points and made his first two career blocks.
The Seawolves return to the Alaska Airlines Center for their next four games, starting with a pair against UC Merced on Friday (6 p.m.) and Saturday (2 p.m.). Surf to GoSeawolves.com for links to tickets, live video, live stats and more.
