FAIRBANKS – The Nanooks men's basketball team trailed for the majority of their game vs. the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks on Thursday evening, eventually falling by a final score of 78-64. Alaska drops to 10-11, 5-7 GNAC with the loss.

How it Happened
The Nanooks tied the game twice in the opening three minutes, with a Mike Miller layup and a Tyriq Luke three bringing the Nanooks level at 2-2 and 5-5. They eventually took the lead thanks to a Miller free throw, which put them up 6-5, but would relinquish it on the ensuing possession when NNU's Garrett Hawkes hit a layup. That kickstarted a 9-0 run for the visitors, putting the Nanooks in an eight-point hole. Luke cut the run with two makes from the free throw line, and Davis Crilly hit a layup on their next possession, but five-straight Nighthawks points put them up by double-digits with 12:16 left in the half. The Nanooks would use a 6-0 run later in the period to cut the deficit to single digits, as Luke Fotheringham and Crilly each hit a pair of free throws and Miller followed with a layup to make it a 33-24 contest with 4:30 to go before the break. A Fotheringham put-back brought it back to single digits over a minute later, and Miller knocked down a jumper with 35 seconds left, making it a 39-30 NNU lead heading into the locker room.

The 'Nooks got three baskets in their opening five possessions of the second, with Fotheringham, Crilly and Miller all chipping in, but a 7-0 run from the Nighthawks saw them pull ahead 55-37. The Nanooks countered with a 9-0 run of their own to make it a nine-point game, with Luke and Miller making layups and Jalai O'Keith sinking one from downtown. Alaska would eventually cut the deficit to seven after a Miller jumper made it 63-56 with 7:11 remaining. However, NNU followed by knocking down a three, and despite an O'Keith triple once again bringing the deficit down to single digits at nine points, that was the closest the Nanooks would get for the remainder of the contest.

Inside the Numbers

• Mike Miller led the 'Nooks with 20 points on the evening, going 7-15 from the field. He grabbed seven rebounds, blocked a shot and dished a team-high three assists.
• Davis Crilly followed with 17 points, knocking down 7-12 shots. He tied for the team lead with eight rebounds and tallied two assists, a block and a steal.
• Luke Fotheringham was the final Nanook to finish in double-figures, posting 12 points on 4-14 shooting. He added six rebounds and an assist.
• The Nanooks shot 23-69 (33.3%) from the field, 5-25 (20%) from three and 13-16 (81.3%) from the free throw line.
• The 'Nooks forced 13 Nighthawk turnovers while committing eight. Alaska scored 10 points off its takeaways, while NNU got nine points off turnovers.
• The Nanooks outrebounded the Nighthawks 41-36, with 15 rebounds coming on the offensive end. They got 17 points off those offensive boards, while NNU scored seven points on four offensive rebounds.
• Alaska was outscored in the paint 40-32.

What's to Come
The Nanooks are in Fairbanks for one more game this week, taking on Central Washington on Saturday, Feb. 7, at 3:15 p.m. in the Alaska Airlines Gymnasium.

Follow the 'Nooks
IG - @NanooksMBB
X - @NanooksMBB
FB - Alaska Nanooks Men's Basketball