ANCHORAGE (Mar. 2) – Junior point guard Dillon Barrientos scored 19 points and senior forward Sawyer Storms propelled a huge late surge Saturday to give the Alaska Anchorage men's basketball team an 84-78 victory over Montana State Billings in the regular-season finale at the Alaska Airlines Center.

The Seawolves (20-8, 10-8 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) also got 17 points from senior guard Tyson Gilbert and 15 points and three assists from senior forward Jaron Williams as they finished on a 25-8 run over the final seven minutes.

With the victory, UAA tied for fifth in the final league standings and secured the No. 6 seed for the GNAC Tournament next week in Ellensburg, Wash. The Seawolves will play No. 3 seed Saint Martin's at 4:15 p.m. AST Thursday in the quarterfinals.

The Yellowjackets (20-8, 14-4) – who had already clinched the outright regular-season title – were led by 30 points on 10-of-11 shooting from senior forward Zharon Richmond and 23 points from junior guard Jalen Tot, but were hurt by 20 turnovers.

"I can't say enough about the intestinal fortitude of this group," said UAA head coach Rusty Osborne, whose squad rallied from double-digit second-half deficits to earn three of its final five victories. "They really believe they are never out of a ballgame, and never seem to get shaken. It's appropriate that this win should come on senior night, because our group of five seniors has been the driving force behind that mental toughness. We're excited to continue our season next week and hope we can earn some wins in Ellensburg."

Entering Saturday uncertain whether a loss would knock them out of GNAC Tourney contention, the Seawolves found themselves in a 19-3 hole thanks to Richmond's sharpshooting start. The 6-7 forward had 13 points in the first four minutes and made his first nine shots of the night, although he was held to just eight points after halftime.

UAA overcame its slow start immediately after the first timeout, with Dathan Satchell and Barrientos hitting jumpers to kickstart momentum. Gilbert launched a three to give the Seawolves a 22-21 lead at the 11:38 mark, and the teams traded punches until a 44-44 halftime deadlock.

The Yellowjackets took the lead right after the break, stretching to 70-59 when Tot made two of three free throws with 7:33 remaining. UAA held the visitors scoreless for the next four minutes, however, while Storms collected a layup and a three-pointer during a 10-0 run.

Trailing 73-71, Williams swiped one of his two steals at the 3-minute mark, and Gilbert swished a wing three-pointer for the final lead change of the night. Gilbert picked up another swipe and Storms scored four straight points in a two-second span for a 78-73 lead, and Barrientos delivered a dagger with a floater in the lane to make it 80-75 with 1:16 remaining.

The reigning GNAC Player of the Week, Barrientos came one point shy of his career high and set a personal best for a GNAC game, shooting 5 of 7 from the field (3-5 3FG) and 6 of 6 on free throws. He also had three assists, tying Storms and Williams for team-high honors.

Meanwhile, Storms overcame early foul trouble to account for all of his points and eight of his nine rebounds in the second half.

Satchell gave UAA five double-figure scorers with 13 points (4-8 FG, 3-6 3FG), along with two assists and two steals, while Gilbert was 4 of 9 from long range.

The victory gave UAA its 17th 20-win season since the program moved to NCAA Div. II status in 1977-78.

The winner of Thursday's UAA/Saint Martin's tilt will face No. 2 seed Northwest Nazarene in Friday's semifinal round. Find links to live video and stats for the entire tournament at gnacsports.com.