Men's Basketball | 12/11/2010 5:29:50 PM

Box Score [Box score]

MONMOUTH, Ore. - The Western Oregon men's basketball team used a dominant performance on the boards to record a 79-55 win over Simpson on Saturday, Dec. 11.

The win was the third straight for the Wolves, who pushed their record to 6-4 on the season (1-1 Great Northwest Athletic Conference). The loss extended the Red Hawks (0-8) losing streak to eight games.

Kolton Nelson led WOU with 13 points and 13 boards for his second career double-double. His size also helped the Wolves outscore the Red Hawks 52-20 in the paint. Tarance Glynn and Blair Wheadon added 16 points apiece, as both hit seven shots from the field. Jamaal Veal also notched nine rebounds for the Wolves, who dominated the Red Hawks on the glass 53-18.

Everyone that entered the game for Western Oregon had at least one rebound and the Wolves had just as many offensive boards as Simpson had total rebounds (18). The 53 rebounds are also the most for the Wolves since they pulled down 56 against Saint Martin's on Jan. 31, 2009.

The Wolves struggled from the field in the first half, as they connected on just 37 percent of its shots, including 11 percent (1-of-9) from three-point range. They also committed 12 turnovers, compared to just four for Simpson. WOU, however, was able to take a four-point lead into halftime (27-23) thanks to its defense, which held SU to a 25.8 shooting percentage, and outrebounded them 32-13.

"(Simpson) worked hard and did some things that caused us some problems," said Western Oregon head coach Craig Stanger. "But honestly we didn't come ready to play. At the end of Finals Week our focus wasn't there and it showed."

The second half was a different story as the Wolves scored 16 of the first 22 points after the break to open a 43-29 lead. They would shot 68.8 percent in the period and push their lead to 26 points, before ending with a 24-point margin of victory.

"We did a nice job distributing the basketball in the second half and that is just a credit to playing better team basketball," noted Stanger.

The three straight wins for the Wolves are the most since they started off the 2009-10 season with a 3-0 record.

The Western Oregon basketball team will now travel to Hawaii for a pair of games against teams from the PacWest Conference. WOU will open at Hawaii Hilo on Wednesday, Dec. 15, and then take on BYU-Hawaii on Friday, Dec. 17. Both games will tip-off at 9:30 p.m. (PST).

"We are looking forward to the opportunity to play Hilo again and BYU Hawaii is going to be a real; challenge for us," continued Stanger. "It will show us a little on whether we have improved or not."