Lake Larsen | Sports Editor
After a disappointing at home loss to the 23rd ranked Saint Martin’s Saints on Jan. 17, the Wolves suited up for their next in-conference opponent Seattle Pacific on Jan. 19. The men’s team took the court after the finish of the women’s game for alumni night. While the Falcons weren’t nationally ranked, the Wolves were still up against a tough opponent.
Western got off to a slightly rocky start with a pair of missed shots and a Seattle Pacific layup, but bounced back quickly with a three-pointer to hop in front of the Falcons. The lead was only held for a few moments by the Wolves as the Falcons sank another shot to pull ahead.
With the Wolves missing back to back threes, Western started to see the offense of Seattle Pacific take advantage. A four-point Falcon lead was quickly brought back to just a one shot game by the Wolves before Western quickly sank another shot to tie. Both teams duked it out shot for shot with each other as the lead never expanded beyond four points.
After a six minute run of being without the lead, a layup finally brought the Wolves back on top. But that lead would only last for a few moments before being snatched back by the Falcons. The game started to take on the theme of a heavyweight bout with both teams trading blows. As one side took the lead, the next possession would end with the opposing team on top. After a grueling 20 minute half, the Wolves left for the locker room down by four.
Right out of the gates of the second half the Wolves again brought the lead back to only a single point with a deep three. But a Falcon’s three would bring their lead back to four. Following the back and forth nature of the games, the Wolves fought back to a tie with a pair of free throws and a layup.
After another over five minute stint trailing, a Western three-pointer put the Wolves back on top. This would be the Wolves first lead since the 2:30 mark in the first half. But this time, the Wolves weren’t ready to give it up.
Deadly outside shooting from the Wolves helped extend their lead to five, the largest margin of the game. Just like the first half however, the Falcons knocked the score back to even. Only 10 minutes remained and the score kept switching between being a slight Western lead to a deadlocked tie.
Finally, with only seven minutes left to play, the Wolves took a lead that stuck. A barrage of Western shots helped push the lead to six before a final last second push from Seattle Pacific shrank the score back to a single point lead. With only a second to play, a pair of free throws put the Wolves just out of reach.
In a game that had nearly 20 lead changes, the Wolves finished the night on top 73-71. The gripping action of the night showed Western has a lot of fight left late in the season. After the win over Seattle Pacific, the Wolves climb to third in the GNAC standings, sitting just below Saint Martin’s and Northwest Nazarene. Western travels to play Central Washington University for their next match on Jan. 24.
Contact the author at howlsports@wou.edu
