ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Seattle Pacific University men's basketball team took on Central Washington in the first men's game inside the newly renovated Nicholson Pavilion Thursday night. The Falcons battled early but faded late as the Wildcats ended SPU's winning streak at seven games, 69-62.
"CWU did a nice job disrupting our rhythm tonight," head coach Grant Leep said. "It took us too long to find ourselves, and by the point we did, the deficit was too much to overcome. That happens in the game of basketball. We still have room to grow. We've rediscovered our identity since the break."
The Falcons opened the game by getting to the basket. They used a 12-6 run that lasted the first 5:11 of the game. SPU scored 10 of their 12 points in the paint, as the run was capped by a two-handed slam from Shaw Anderson.
Casson Rouse started to cook early in the first half. He entered the game and splashed home a 3-pointer that gave the Falcons a 15-10 lead. After a layup from Trace Evans, Rouse cut to the basket and laid it in off an assist from Evans. The bucket gave the Falcons a 19-13 lead with 10:43 to play in the first half.
The Wildcats pulled to within three points of the Falcons with 6:34 to play in the first half. The Wildcats halted their brief 6-0 run with a 3-pointer from Syon Blackmon, assisted again by Evans. The bucket put the SPU up 28-22 with 6:16 left in the opening half.
The Wildcats had a burst of offense that lasted 2:46. CWU went on a 12-2 run to take a 34-32 lead with 2:07 to go in the half. The two teams swapped the lead over the final two minutes before the Wildcats owned a 36-34 advantage at halftime.
The Wildcats rode the momentum from the end of the first half into the start of the second. Isaiah Banks nailed back-to-back 3-pointers to cap a 15-4 run for the Wildcats. The run lasted 6:04 and gave the home team a 51-38 lead.
It was a 10-point game when momentum swung back in favor of the Falcons. Kelton Samore finished a tough layup through contact and went on to convert the free throw opportunity. Paulsen poked the ball away, pulled up from 3-point range, and drained it. Suddenly, the Falcons trailed by just four.
Evans hit a pair of free throws that brought the Falcons to within one point with 7:17 left in the game. The Wildcats went on an 8-2 run that gave them a 65-58 lead at the final media timeout.
Maui Sze brought the Wildcats back into the game by attacking the basket. He was fouled on a layup attempt that led to two made free throws. After a stop from the Falcons, Sze went to the rack again, this time banking home a layup that put the score at 65-62 with 1:31 to play. Unfortunately, the Wildcats held on late to take the game.
Anderson led the Falcons with 17 points while grabbing seven rebounds. Samore had a strong night with 10 points and seven boards as well. Sze matched Samore with 10 points.
The Falcons struggled offensively, especially in the second half. They shot 41.3 percent from the field for the game, while going 10-for-30 in the second half. They made just two 3-pointers in each half.
"I love the fight I saw from our guys tonight," Leep said. We had to work to cut their lead and had the ball down three with a chance. We missed some opportunities we've been taking advantage of all year. I'm looking forward to getting back to work with our guys and seeing how we respond from this one tonight."
The Falcons continued their road trip east on Saturday when they take on Northwest Nazarene in Nampa, ID at 6:30 p.m. PST.