BILLINGS, Mont. (Nov. 30) – Senior guard Tyson Gilbert scored 12 points but the 23rd-ranked Alaska Anchorage men's basketball team could not find an offensive rhythm Thursday night at Alterowitz Gymnasium, suffering its first loss of the season, 66-59, to Montana State Billings.

The Seawolves (8-1, 0-1 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) also got 10 points and eight rebounds from senior forward Sawyer Storms as they shot a season-low 37.3 percent (22 of 59) and missed all nine of their second-half three-pointers.

The Yellowjackets (4-3, 1-0) were led by 15 points and six rebounds from guard Daniel Moody as they won the rebounding battle 39-31 and shot 53 percent in the first half.

"We did not defend in the first half like we are capable of," said UAA head coach Rusty Osborne. "We did defend well in the second half, but we were very poor offensively. Some of it was execution, some of its was them, and a lot of it was missing open shots and layups that we usually make. We will regroup and get ready for Saturday night."

UAA erased an early 12-5 deficit and forged a 17-14 lead when senior Jaron Williams scored on a putback at the 13-minute mark. The first half would feature seven lead changes and six ties – the last at 34-34 on a free throw from Dillon Barrientos. Billings took control for the final 4:30 to grab a 41-37 edge at the break, before both teams went cold early in the second half.

Freshman forward Sloan Lentfer completed a traditional three-point play to pull the visitors within 45-44 with 14:15 remaining, but the Yellowjackets scored the next six points to retake control, and led by at least five points the rest of the way.

The Seawolves got eight points on 4-of-6 shooting, two assists and no turnovers from Williams, while fellow East High alum Hasaan Herrington had eight points, two assists and a steal.

UAA completes its league-opening road swing Saturday with a 3:15 p.m. AST tip at Seattle Pacific. Find live video and stats links at GoSeawolves.com.