FAIRBANKS, Alaska – Led by senior guard Nahjee Matlock's monster 36-point night, the Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team sent waves through the Great Northwest Athletic Conference as they knocked off the then-No. 1 ranked team in the league Western Washington 94-88 in a conference matchup in front of over 330 fans at the Alaska Airlines Court on Saturday evening.

The Nooks improve to 11-12 overall and 6-8 in conference play, while the Vikings fall to 17-5 overall and 11-3 in league contests. At the time of article, the loss ties WWU and Alaska-Anchorage for first place in the GNAC standings, while Alaska remains tied for seventh place with Saint Martin's.

"We just kept our heads today and kept hanging on, I mean we were almost blown out three different times," head coach Mick Durham said following Saturday's game. "Obviously, in the end, our seniors held us in there. Big night for Nahjee. We haven't had a game this year where one guy is just going off point-wise. I thought him, Zach Pederson's big three and Davis' free throws were good game-changers for us. Lot of possessions we played the right way and got a good stop at the end. This is obviously our biggest win of the season and it's great to do it here at home."

Matlock shot 11-for-18 from the floor, including knocking down 5-of-7 shots from three-point territory. The Las Vegas, Nevada native also converted on 9-of-10 free throws to post the Nanooks' best performance from one individual in a single-game for 36 points. Furthermore, Matlock registered a game-high five assists, three rebounds and one steal.

Senior guard Zach Pederson shot 6-of-12 from the field and 3-of-4 from the free throw line to tally 16 points on the night, while senior guard Brandon Davis posted the Nanooks' only double-double of the game with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Senior forward Bangaly Kaba and junior forward LaDonavan Wilder each registered 10 points against the Vikings, while Wilder picked up two blocks on the day.

"We didn't sub much and we had four guys with four fouls there at the end so our bench guys just gave us enough, but WWU didn't sub much either. I thought both teams were dragging at the end and we just had enough energy to kind of make the difference," Durham continued.

Overall, the Nooks shot 50 percent (34-of-68) from the field, 36.4 percent from behind the arc (8-of-22) and 81.8 percent from the free throw line (18-of-22). Alaska tallied 38 points in the paint, 27 points off of turnovers and nine points from their bench. In a game that saw four lead changes, Alaska's largest lead came late in the fourth quarter at seven points. Additionally, Alaska picked up33 rebounds, 13 assists and 10 steals against the Vikings.

Western Washington was led by Taylor Stafford, who went 8-of-20 from the floor, 4-of-8 from three-point territory an d 11-of-12 from the free throw line to post a 31-point day himself. WWU's Daulton Hommes recorded 18 points against the Nanooks, while Alaska held WWU's sharp shooter Jeffrey Parker to just 12 points on the day.

The Vikings shot 41.8 percent from the floor (23-of-55), 43.5 percent from behind the arc (10-of-23) and 86.5 percent from the free throw line (32-of-37), while also collecting 40 rebounds, 11 assists and six steals.

The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team continues their homestead this week, hosting the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves on Tuesday, Feb. 7 before facing off against the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets on Thursday, Feb. 9. Tip-off for both GNAC contests is slated for 7pm AKST.

For more information on the Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team, follow @NanooksMBB on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks page on Facebook.