LOS ANGELES (Mar. 15) – Senior guard Tyson Gilbert led another comeback for Alaska Anchorage with 15 points, but 20th-ranked Cal State San Bernardino used a defensive stand in the final seconds Friday for a 52-49 victory in the NCAA Div. II West Regional Men's Basketball Championships at University Gymnasium.

The 7th-seeded Seawolves (22-11) also got eight points and three assists from junior point guard Dillon Barrientos, along with six points, five rebounds, three assists and two blocks from senior forward Sawyer Storms, in a game that featured major foul trouble on both sides.

The 2nd-seeded Coyotes (24-7) were led by 16 points and 10 rebounds from guard Christopher Mitchell, earning advancement to Saturday's regional semifinal against California Collegiate Athletic Association rival Chico State.

"This is one of the most mentally strong groups I've been lucky enough to coach, and they showed their character again today," said UAA head coach Rusty Osborne, who completed his 19^th season at the helm. "When our shots weren't going early, and then we kept fighting and fighting and got back in it, our guys were looking at each other saying, 'This is who we are.' In the end, it came down to a possession here and there, and credit San Bernardino for making the plays. This team has overcome so much to get to where it got to this season, and I'll really miss coaching them."

After battling the Coyotes to the final minutes in a 70-64 loss Dec. 18 in Honolulu, the Seawolves got off to a slow start in the rematch, falling behind 19-8 with eight minutes left in the first half. Senior guard Dathan Satchell scored all nine of his points in the opening stanza to help UAA draw within 26-21 at the break, however, and the Seawolves continued to chip away early in the second half.

Gilbert – a First Team All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference performer –  scored UAA's first six points after halftime, and swished a three-pointer for a 34-34 tie. Storms capped a 9-0 run with two free throws to give the Seawolves their first lead since the early going, and Barrientos put them up 41-40 with a stepback three-pointer that beat the shot clock with 6:30 showing.

The Coyotes claimed the seventh and final lead change on their ensuing possession when Evan Guillory rebounded a miss and scored his only field goal of the game, although it would remain a one-possession contest the rest of the way.

Storms slammed home a backdoor pass from Jaron Williams to stay within 48-47, and Gilbert spun in the lane and rattled in a soft floater with 51 seconds left for a 50-49 score.

UAA got the defensive stop it needed with 24 seconds remaining, but – following a succession of timeouts – had trouble on the inbounds pass, which was tipped and stolen by CSUSB forward Robby Robinson. Robinson made both of his free throws with 4.8 seconds to play, and UAA advanced the ball to midcourt on a pass that was intercepted out of bounds by a Coyote defender.

The Seawolves had their next inbounds attempt knocked away and out of bounds in the corner by their bench with 1.4 ticks left, setting up a desperation three-point attempt by Hasaan Herrington that fell short at the buzzer.

Gilbert finished 6 of 13 from the floor and grabbed five rebounds as the Colorado native finished his collegiate career (two years each at Colorado State-Pueblo and UAA) with 1,303 points.

"Growing up, I never thought I'd be actually playing in an NCAA Tournament game, and I'm grateful to Coach Osborne and everyone at UAA who believed in me," said Gilbert, a Colorado State-Pueblo transfer who came to program in 2020, and was soon after diagnosed with a condition that required open-heart surgery. "I don't know if I'd even be alive today if it wasn't for UAA, so to be able to have this kind of season and leave a legacy like the one this team accomplished is extremely special."

Williams finished with five rebounds and a team-high seven rebounds in his final game as well, along with a block, a steal and the big assist on Storms's dunk.

NOTES: UAA's NCAA Tournament appearance was its 17th all-time and first since 2012 … UAA's 22 victories were also the most since the 2011-12 campaign … the Seawolves lose five seniors from this year's roster – Gilbert, Storms, Satchell, Williams and Caleb Larsen … Gilbert finished top 20 on UAA's career lists for steals (19th, 94), steals per game (11th, 1.57) and three-pointers made (t-18th, 133), while his 61 steals this year were also 9th-best on the single-season list … Storms finished 7th on UAA's career list for blocks per game (0.82), while his career assists average of 2.95 ranks 19th overall and No. 1 among non-guards.