Men's Basketball | 1/9/2010 7:34:50 PM

Box Score [Box score]

MONMOUTH, Ore. - No. 14 Western Washington committed just three turnovers to set the Great Northwest Athletic Conference record for fewest turnovers in a game as it handed the Western Oregon men's basketball team a 93-60 loss, Saturday, Jan 9.

The Vikings responded with the win after their 12-game winning streak was snapped Thursday night to move to 14-2 on the season and 1-1 in the GNAC. The loss was the second straight for the Wolves (7-6, 0-2 GNAC) to open their conference season.

WWU relinquished just three forced turnovers in the game, including one in the second half, to eclipse the previous conference-low of four set by Alaska Anchorage during the 2007-08 season.

The Vikings were also deadly from three-point range, shooting 15-of-28 (53.6-percent) and outscoring the Wolves by 30 points from behind the arc.

Derrick Webb and Morris Anderson led the way for WWU, scoring 21 and 20 points, respectively. Andrew Ready also added 15 points and eight rebounds, while Rory Blanche came off the bench to pour in 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting.

Mike McLaughlin registered his second straight double-double, and third of the season, with 10 points and a season-best 14 rebounds for the Wolves. Matt Schmidt also reached double-figures with 12 points on 5-of-12 shooting. Kolton Nelson came off the bench to provide a career-high 11 points and four rebounds.

Western Washington's offensive efficiency and defensive pressure earned it the conference road win. WWU shot 52.9-percent, while holding WOU to 37.5-percent from the floor. The Vikings also forced the Wolves into 18 turnovers, which they converted into 28 points.

WOU never led in the game after the 19:09 mark in the first half. The Vikings were able to break a 9-9 tie by putting together a 16-3 run to take a 25-12 lead and never looked back. The Wolves cut the Vikings lead to nine at the half and to eight at the 17:57 mark in the second period, but that is as close as they would get. The 33-point margin of victory was the largest deficit of the game for WOU.

Western Oregon did hold a 43-32 advantage on the boards, with 20 of those coming on the offensive glass.

The Wolves will look to rebound from the loss next week when No. 17 Seattle Pacific comes to town, Thursday, Jan. 14th. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.