FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team bounced back from Thursday's loss by holding off a tough Concordia University team to earn a 63-62 victory in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchup at the Alaska Airlines Court on Saturday. The victory improves Alaska's overall record to 9-9 and 7-5 in conference play, while Concordia drops to 4-16 on the season and 0-12 in league games.
Coaches Corner
"Tonight was kind of what I expected. It's not easy to play a team like that since they are in every game so far this season. Our guys did a great job of getting separation under four minutes and Concordia's three-pointers and our missed free throws really gave them a chance at the end. It would've been a great finish if we couldn't put it away in those last couple of minutes but I give our guys credit. They were resilient, they were behind and kept fighting. We had a couple good performances from LaDonavan, Mike and Joe." – head coach
Mick Durham said on Saturday.
Inside the Box Scores
- Two Alaska players tallied double-doubles on Saturday, led by sophomore forward Michael Kluting who tallied a team-high 15 points and 13 rebounds.
- Kluting shot 5-for-15 from the floor, 1-for-5 from the three-point line and 4-for-4 from the free throw line in 30 minutes on the court.
- It's the Palmer, Alaska native's seventh double-double of the season.
- Senior forward LaDonavan Wilder tallied his first career double-double on Saturday, registering 13 points and 11 rebounds.
- Junior forward Joe Lendway was the only other Alaska player to score double-digit figures, posting 11 points on the night.
- As a team, Alaska shot 40.0 percent from the floor (24-for-60), 23.1 percent from beyond the arc (6-for-26) and 75.0 percent from the free throw line (9-for-12).
- The Nooks also picked up 13 assists and two steals on the night.
Next Time Out
The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team hits the road next week, as they take on the Saint Martin's Saints in Lacey on Thursday, Feb. 1 at 6pm AKST before heading to Seattle Pacific University on Saturday, Feb. 3 at 3pm AKST.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team, follow @NanooksMBB on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks page on Facebook.
