FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team shook-up the GNAC standings on day one of conference play, knocking-off previously undefeated, Western Oregon University 72-66. This win was only the second of the season for Alaska but propels them to the top spot in the GNAC after day one with a 2-7, 1-0 GNAC record.

The 'Nooks played a strong 17 minutes, before ending the first half on a shaky three minutes according to head coach Greg Sparling. Through the first seven minutes, the Nanooks and Wolves traded buckets, resulting in a 15-15 tie. After the tie, a three-pointer from Ousman Basir Gomez, Jr. gave the 'Nooks the 18-15 lead. They were able to extend the early lead out to 27-23 but the Wolves made a strong push before the half, ending the first on an 8-0 run, grabbing the lead back at 31-38.

The second half spelled trouble for the Nanooks as Western Oregon jumped all over the Alaska defense, creating opportunity after opportunity. Only 2:25 into the second half, the Wolves had moved in front by 14 at 33-47. Alaska eventually trailed by as many as 16, but the 'Nooks junior-transfer, Shadeed Shabazz found his touch and began to take over the game. Shabazz dropped 23 second-half points on the Wolves, ending the day shooting 12-18 from the field. He added four steals to his 27-point outburst in the Nanooks win.

Coach Sparling had this to say following his team's double-digit victory over Western Oregon, "We dug ourselves into a hole so we made some changes in the lineup and some guys stepped up. I thought Mawich [Kachjaani] had his best game. I thought Shadeed played under control and really sparked us. Jalon came in and calmed the team down, getting us good looks… It's a team effort, I'm proud of these guys, we've had an extremely challenging preseason with eight games on the road, going to three states but we got back home and the crowd was great. It's just a great day to be a 'Nook."

The Nanooks had help everywhere as Kachjaani ended the night with 21 points and 10 rebounds, giving him his first double-double of the season. Spencer Sweet put up seven points and grabbed four rebounds while also stealing two WOU passes and Fairbanks-native, Jalon McCullough went 1-1 from the field with the go-ahead three that gave the 'Nooks a 57-55 lead, completing the big comeback.

Alaska will stay at home for one more game in 2019, as they get ready to host the Concordia Cavaliers on Saturday, Dec. 7 at 3:15 p.m. AKT. The Cavs played in Anchorage on Dec. 5 and fell to the Seawolves 74-81, falling in their GNAC-opener. That game will follow the Alaska Nanooks women's basketball game against Concordia, as the 'Nooks will host another double-header.

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