FAIRBANKS – The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team got their first GNAC win of the season with a dramatic OT win over Central Washington on their home-court. 
 
Five Nanooks scored in double-digits helping Alaska snag a 97-95 OT win over Central Washington. Of those five, Shadeed Shabazz and Quin Barnard scored a team-high 23 points. Shabazz, with his fourth point of the night, became the 15^th player in Alaska Nanooks history to hit the 1,000-point mark in their career. 
 
In the first half, the Nanooks rode a two-point lead into the locker room. They got an early lead at 6-2 behind a layup from Willie Thomas III, a Coleman Sparling layup and an Abdullahi Mohamed layup. CWU responded with a quick three, but a Thomas III followed up with a dunk giving them a three-point lead. They quickly blew their lead out to a dozen at 19-7 following Quin Barnard's first three-pointer of the game. CWU looked down for a moment, but they mounted a comeback just before the half ended. After an 11-point lead, the Wildcats answered, tying the game at 26-26 but Alaska managed to cut their run short and taking a two-point lead into the locker room. 
 
To start the second half, the 'Nooks lead stayed the same, bouncing from a one-point advantage up to nine with 16:01 remaining. Quickly, it turned around as Central pushed ahead using a run to erase a nine-point deficit and took a five-point lead. They ran ahead to a seven-point lead before the Nanooks returned with their own run. The two traded leads for the remaining eight minutes. With 22 seconds remaining and Alaska down two, Shabazz was fouled on the drive and went to the line for two. He knocked both down and sent Alaska and Central Washington to overtime. In the OT period, CWU struck first. They went up two, but Barnard quickly answered with another three. 
 
Shabazz followed with his own jumper making it a three-point lead for Alaska. After CWU grabbed the lead back, Alaska answered again, this time with two free throws from Barnard, a jumper and free throw from Shabazz followed by a pair of free throws from Sparling. With a 90-85 lead, the Nanooks were put in a tough situation. Willie Thomas III fouled out leaving the Nanooks with six available players. Following his foul, Mohamed fouled out, forcing the Nanooks to empty their bench and play with the five they had remaining. 
 
Quin Barnard, Koby Huerta, Shadeed Shabazz, Coleman Sparling and Tybenn Sturm had to finish the final 1:30 off with no extra support coming off the bench. That sparked Alaska to their win. Through all of the foul trouble, head coach Greg Sparling had this to say, "The guys stepped up, made plays, got some big rebounds and stepped up and made free throws in the end."
 
With 18 seconds left and a two-point lead, CWU's David Thompson hit a floater in the paint, tying the game with 14 seconds. Quickly, the ball was in Shabazz's hands and he was waiting for his moment. With 4.6 seconds remaining and the ball near midcourt, Shabazz went right to left on the crossover, drove the lane and through contact finished with 1.2 seconds remaining, sending the Patty Center into a frenzy. 
 
After a stoppage of play, CWU finally inbounds the ball with one last heave, but the shot was off and the Nanooks were in the win column. Shabazz put up 23 on 8-21 FG, 7-9 FT, 12 rebounds, six assists and three steals. Barnard ended with 23 points on 7-12 3PT and 7-13 FG. Huerta ended with 17, Thomas III posted 15 and Mohamed finished with a dozen. 
 
The Nanooks are back in action on Tuesday, Jan. 18 at Simon Fraser in a postponement makeup. 
 
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.