Men's Basketball | 1/2/2014 9:10:00 PM

Box Score

MONMOUTH, Ore. – For the second time in this young season, the Western Oregon University men's basketball team beat a top-15 opponent, after upsetting No. 11 Seattle Pacific University, 74-70, Thursday.

The Wolves (9-4, 2-1 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) won their fifth straight contest, a conference high, behind 50 percent shooting from the field. Marwan Sarhan and Rodney Webster both scored 17 points to lead WOU. Sarhan had 15 of his points and seven of his game-high eight rebounds in the first half. The junior entered the contest with the third longest streak of made field goals in conference history with 15. He made his first shot and finished 7-of-9. Sarhan is currently fifth in the GNAC shooting 63.7 percent from the field.

Webster made seven of his 14 attempts from the field and had a game-high three steals. Devon Alexander led Western Oregon with four assists. Jordan Wiley missed his lone attempt from the field, but made all seven of his free throws.

"Any win in conference is a good win," WOU Head Coach Brady Bergeson said. "I'm proud with how our guys competed. I thought defensively in the second half we turned a corner, and made things a lot harder for them. They started making some errors and I think that's what kind of tipped the scale tonight."

Western Oregon took care of the ball very well. It matched a season-low with only seven turnovers, after committing only three in the first half. The teams combined for only five turnovers in the opening period, but SPU finished with 12. The Wolves made six of their seven steals in the second half, turning the Seattle Pacific second half turnovers into 11 points. Though the rebounds were even at 31, WOU had a 30-20 edge in the paint. The Western Oregon bench outscored its counterpart, 30-7, including 20-0 in the second half.

The tightly contested game featured 17 lead changes and seven ties. A three-pointer by David Downs five minutes into the contest gave SPU a 13-7 early advantage. The Falcons built their lead to seven multiple times midway through the first half. Trailing 29-22, Western Oregon made a 10-1 run to take the lead with 3:03 remaining in the opening period. SPU regained the advantage and led 39-36 at halftime.

With the lead changing several times, the margin was never greater than one possession for the first 10 minutes of the second half. A three-pointer from Jordan Schriber with 9:10 remaining in the contest gave the Wolves the lead for good. WOU held the lead over Seattle Pacific in the final nine minutes, building the margin to seven points with 1:36 left to play.

The Wolves improved to 8-0 this season when shooting 50 percent from the field, and 7-0 when they have a better field goal percentage than their opponent. Seattle Pacific finished 47.9 percent from the field. SPU made nine of its 18 three-point shots, but just 15-of-26 from the free throw line. Western Oregon was 5-for-15 from behind-the-arc and 15-of-21 from the free throw line.

Downs scored a game-high 28 points for the Falcons (11-3, 2-1 GNAC). Five of his eight made field goals came from three-point range. The senior also dished out a game-high five assists. Mitch Penner led SPU with seven rebounds. Riley Stockton had a pair of blocks.

The Wolves snapped a three-game winning streak by Seattle Pacific in the series. The last WOU victory in the series prior to Thursday was in 2011 in Monmouth. The series continues to be exciting for fans, as nine of the last 10 meetings have been decided by single digits.

Western Oregon has won seven of its last eight games. Its lone loss was a one-point last second loss at then-ranked No. 2 Western Washington. The Wolves also lost by four points to undefeated and seventh-ranked Dixie State prior to this eight game streak.

"We're just getting better," Bergeson said. "We we're not firing on all cylinders in the first eight to 10 games of the season and we've been plugging away at it steadily now. Our guys are showing they have a lot inside the still may be untapped. Guys are starting to accept roles and buy into the system, and it's turning out better and better."

The Wolves welcome Montana State Billings (6-5, 2-1) in another Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchup. MSUB has won five of its last seven games, including a 66-50 victory at Saint Martin's Thursday. The Yellowjackets are holding opponents to just 68.4 points per game. Kalob Hatcher is 10th in NCAA Div. II with 6.4 assists per game. Jonathan Mesghna leads one of four Yellowjackes averaging double-digits with 14.7 points per outing.

"(MSU Billings) has firepower," Bergeson said. "They have an aggressive defense. It's going to be a fun game. I think both teams really get after it with some heavy pressure. They're hard to guard because they can really spread you. They're another team that's really come on of late. They are going to be a very good opponent and we're going to have to be ready to go."

The Yellowjackets have won four straight in the series. MSUB has won 10 of the 16 meetings in a series that is 15 years old. The Wolves have won five of the seven all-time meetings in Monmouth, but just one of eight in Billings. The 17th meeting between the programs tips off Saturday at 2 p.m. Live video and stats will be on WOUWolves.com, with live video on WOU TV. All local YMCA members are invited to the game for free.

WOU – SPU POST GAME NOTES
* Western Oregon and Seattle Pacific met for the 52nd time.
* The series dates back to a WOU 67-58 win in 1949.
* Prior to Thursday, the Falcons had won three straight in the series, including last season's two meetings, both by six points.
* Nine of the last 10 meetings have been decided by single digits.
* Seattle Pacific is a combined 11-1 at home and on neutral courts, but is now 0-2 in true road games.
* Western Oregon owns the longest winning streak in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference at five.
* The Wolves last won five straight games early last season when it won six in a row.
* Western Oregon has won six of its last seven, with the lone loss coming by one point at then-ranked No. 5 Western Washington.
* After scoring four points in his debut, Marwan Sarhan has reached double digit scoring in each of the past 12 games.
* Marwan Sarhan had his 15 made field goal streak end at 16, the third longest in GNAC history.
* The Wolves are now 7-0 this season when they have a better field goal percentage than their opponent this season, and 8-0 when they shoot 50 percent of better.
* Western Oregon is 8-0 when it is not trailing with 10 minutes left in regulation this season.
* Six of WOU's 13 games have been decided by five points or less. Western Oregon has won six.
* Western Oregon is now 15-7 in games decided by five points or less under Brady Bergeson.
* Brady Bergeson is now 30-30 as head coach for the Wolves.

#11 Seattle Pacific vs Western Oregon
01/02/14 7 p.m. at Monmouth, OR
At Monmouth, OR
WESTERN OREGON 74, #11 SEATTLE PACIFIC 70
#11 SEATTLE PACIFIC (11-3, 2-1 GNAC)
Downs,David 8-18 7-9 28; Hutsen,Cory 6-8 1-6 13; Borton,Matt 3-5 0-0 8;
Stockton,Riley 3-5 1-1 8; Carroll,Brendan 2-3 2-4 7; Penner,Mitch 1-4 4-6 6;
Ehlers,Jake 0-2 0-0 0; Rasmussen,Joe 0-1 0-0 0; Todd,Ryan 0-1 0-0 0;
Parker,Will 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 23-48 15-26 70.
WESTERN OREGON (9-4, 2-1 GNAC)
Sarhan,Marwan 8-12 0-2 17; Webster,Rodney 7-14 3-4 17; Avgi,Andy 4-5 0-0 8;
Wiley,Jordan 0-1 7-7 7; Hastings,Adam 2-5 3-6 7; Alexander,Devon 1-4 2-2 5;
Schriber,Jordan 2-3 0-0 5; Thomas,Lewis 2-5 0-0 5; Sabic,Mirza 1-5 0-0 3;
DupreeTurner,Dezmond 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-54 15-21 74.
#11 Seattle Pacific...........   39   31  -   70
Western Oregon................   36   38  -   74
3-point goals--#11 Seattle Pacific 9-18 (Downs,David 5-9; Borton,Matt 2-3;
Stockton,Riley 1-3; Carroll,Brendan 1-2; Penner,Mitch 0-1), Western Oregon
5-15 (Schriber,Jordan 1-2; Alexander,Devon 1-3; Sabic,Mirza 1-4;
Thomas,Lewis 1-2; Sarhan,Marwan 1-1; Wiley,Jordan 0-1; Webster,Rodney 0-2).
Fouled out--#11 Seattle Pacific-None, Western Oregon-None. Rebounds--#11
Seattle Pacific 31 (Penner,Mitch 7), Western Oregon 31 (Sarhan,Marwan 8).
Assists--#11 Seattle Pacific 10 (Downs,David 5), Western Oregon 12
(Alexander,Devon 4). Total fouls--#11 Seattle Pacific 18, Western Oregon 23.
Technical fouls--#11 Seattle Pacific-None, Western Oregon-None. A-313
Seattle Pacific ranked No. 11
Western Oregon wins fifth straight