LACEY, Wash. - The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team fell to 0-2 in GNAC play with an 87-74 loss to Saint Martin's. 

The Nanooks and Saints battled to a 30-30 halftime tie. Opening the game, SMU ran ahead 10-2 before Alaska crawled back within two at 13-11. A Quin Barnard three-pointer tied it at 17-17 giving the Nanooks life. He followed up with another three, giving the Nanooks a quick one-point lead at 22-21. Shadeed Shabazz and Barnard connected from deep again, giving the Nanooks their biggest lead of the half, at six. The Saints ran off a 6-0 run to end the half, tying things at 30-30 after the opening 20 minutes. 

It was a whole new ballgame heading into the second half as it became a winner-take-all half. The Saints, unfortunately, found their stride from the floor, shooting 58.33% from the floor and 46.15% from deep. The Nanooks owned the first half of the second, but at the 10:05 mark of the second, the Saints ran away with it. After Alaska pulled within three, SMU quickly pulled ahead by double-digits, including 16 at one point, to take the 13 point win over the Nanooks. 

Shadeed Shabazz led all scorers with 30 points, three steals and two rebounds. He shot 8-8 from the free-throw line and 10-23 from the field. Willie Thomas had himself another solid night, scoring 13 points on 4-8 shooting, grabbing six rebounds and one steal. Quin Barnard and Koby Huerta added double-digit scoring nights. Coleman Sparling grabbed 18 rebounds, including 10 offensive boards. 

The Nanooks will have a few weekends off before their next game on Dec. 18 against Portland Bible at the Patty Center, their home-opener. 

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