FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team fell in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action on Thursday night, as the Central Washington Wildcats edged the Nanooks 79-76 at the Alaska Airlines Court. The Nanooks drop to 9-12 on the season and 7-8 in conference play, while the Wildcats improve to 14-8 overall and 9-6 in league matchups.

"I've got mixed emotions about tonight, not to take anything away from Central, they played great and they are third in this league for a reason but I don't think it was them, it was us," head coach Mick Durham said on Thursday. "We made some very critical mistakes. Obviously, our effort was good enough to come back and build a lead by halftime but we just made too many mistakes. We definitely beat ourselves tonight."

The Nanooks and the Wildcats were close in just about every statistical category on Thursday, with the Nanooks leading in total rebounds (38), assists (15), three-point field goals made (12), and offensive rebounds (8), while CWU led in field goals made (28), free throws made (16), defensive rebounds (33), steals (9) and blocks )6).

The Nooks outscored the Wildcats in the first half 43-36 but it was Central Washington who capitalized on those crucial three points in the second half, as they outscored Alaska 43-33.

As a team, the Nanooks shot 41.9 percent from the floor (26-for-62), 38.7 percent from beyond the arc (12-for-31) and 63.2 percent from the free throw line (12-for-19). Conversely, Central shot 50 percent from the field (28-for-56), 43.8 percent from three-point range (7-for-16) and 69.6 percent from the free throw line (16-for-23).

The Nanooks were led offensively by junior forward Alex Baham, who shot 6-for-9 from the floor, 4-for-5 from beyond the arc and 1-for-3 from the free throw line to tally 17 points. Baham also chipped in five rebounds, two steals and one assist in a team-best 34 minutes on the court.

Sophomore forward Michael Kluting collected his ninth double-double of the season against Central Washington, registering 14 rebounds and 11 points. Kluting picked up two offensive and 12 defensive boards while shooting 3-for-10 from the floor, 2-for-5 from three-point range and 3-for-4 from the free throw line. The Palmer, Alaska native also added two assists in 28 minutes on the floor.

Besides Kluting, junior guard Tre Eisenhut and junior guard Amenofis Mitchell also put up 11 points for the Nanooks on Thursday. Mitchell shot 100 percent on the night, going 4-for-4 from the floor, including 3-for-3 from three-point range.

Junior guard Davis Kimble was the only other Alaska player to score double-digit figures on Thursday, posting 10 points and a game-best six assists.

The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team will look to bounce back on Saturday (Feb. 10), as they host the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks in a GNAC battle at the Alaska Airlines Court. Tip-off is scheduled for 3pm AKST.

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