Men's Basketball | 2/4/2012 3:38:00 PM

Box Score [Box score]

MONMOUTH, Ore. – Western Oregon's senior guard trio of Jordan Freelander, Blair Wheadon and Kyle Long combined to score 52 points to help the team snap a three-game losing skid with an 86-48 win over Simon Fraser on Saturday.

The Wolves (15-7, 8-5 GNAC) snapped their losing streak by shooting 12-of-19 from behind the arc and outscoring Simon Fraser (7-13, 2-10 GNAC) 38-6 on points in the paint.

"Teams key on our guards and as we move along in the conference, interior play is going to be even more important to us," said men's basketball head coach Brady Bergeson.

Kyle Long and Blair Wheadon each made seven baskets and scored 19 points to lead the Wolves. Wheadon went 5-of-7 from behind the arc and dished out 10 assists for the double-double. Long matched a career-high with nine rebounds to help WOU outrebound SFU 44-31. Jordan Freelander added 14 points and three steals.

“Long can really score and he's crafty with his pivots,” said Bergeson. “He's found a little niche in the offense. [Freelander] keeps finding ways to fit into the offense. He's kind of the third guy who picks up on the perimeter and he's been more aggressive lately.”

Wheadon also had three steals in the game giving him 205 steals for his career. These three steals move him just five away from tying Grant Dykstra, who set the Great Northwest Athletic Conference steals record with 210, while playing for Western Washington from 2002-06.

Brian McGill contributed six points and eight rebounds coming off the bench to help Western Oregon outscore Simon Fraser 17-1 in bench points.

WOU ended the first half on an 8-0 run, which included a 3-pointer by Freelander at the buzzer. The Wolves would score the first eight points of the second half to increase their lead by 19 (40-21) as they capped off a 16-0 with a 3-pointer from Long. The 38 point final margin of victory was the Wolves' largest lead of the game. WOU shot 80 percent (20-of-25) in the second half and made its last 11 three-pointers. 

“Our approach tonight was the same and our mantra has always been; keep your eyes down and focus on one day and one player at a time,” Bergeson explained. “As long as our players understand that we can play with anyone.”

Connor Lewis led the Clan with 19 points and Justin Brown added 11 points.

Western Oregon will head back on the road to face Saint Martin's on Saturday, Feb. 11th for a 7:00 p.m. tipoff.