MONMOUTH, Ore. – Dalven Brushier stamped his name in the school record books on Thursday night, helping the #24 Western Oregon men's basketball team to a historic 108-73 drilling of the Saint Martin's Saints at NPE Gym.
 
Western Oregon (9-2, 3-2 GNAC) led for all but two minutes of the game, quickly establishing a lead and forcing 12 first-half turnovers on their way to their fourth straight victory. Saint Martin's (4-10, 2-3 GNAC) was able to shoot 41.4 percent from the field in the opening half, but took nine fewer shots than the Wolves as a result of their sloppy possessions.
 
Brushier got the pot stirring with 15 points in the first 20 minutes of play, setting the table for what would be a big night.
 
"The rhythm was there in this one," said Brushier after his career night. "My teammates were finding me and everything was really effortless on both sides of the ball. We were aggressive in our offensive attack and that paid dividends quickly."
 
The senior from Colorado Springs finished with 37 points and six assists in the game, shooting 13-for-19 from the field and 9-for-15 from 3-point range. His 37 points ties him for the sixth-most by a WOU player in the school's NCAA era. It was additionally the most scored by a Wolf since 2006. Moreover, his nine made 3-pointers was a school NCAA record, breaking the previous mark held by Robert Day and Demetrius Trammell.
 
The Wolves led by 23 at the half, putting the game out of reach before the break. Western shot 55.4 percent from the field in the game, taking 41 total shots from deep. It was only the third time during their NCAA era that a WOU team has taken more than 40 3-pointers in a game.
 
"Going in, I thought we had three really good practices leading up to this so I thought we would play well," said Western Oregon head coach Wes Pifer. "I was proud of how we guarded those guys. Our pressure package was special tonight and that really showed in the turnovers. We worked on that all week and being able to force that many was great."
 
Western forced 27 turnovers in total, committing 12 of their own. The 27 forced turnovers ties the school record for most given up by an NCAA opponent and is the new high for turnovers by a GNAC opponent.
 
"We were hungry tonight," added Brushier. "It all started with the defense as a collective group and we continued to challenge ourselves to apply that pressure."
 
Five players finished in double figures in scoring for the Wolves, getting 16 points from Cameron Cranston and 14 out of Darius Lubom. Lubom finished just shy of a double-double with eight assists and three rebounds to compliment his 6-for-8 shooting. From the bench, both Tyreek Price and Emanuel Gant were able to score 11.
 
SMU was led by the 14 points of Alex Schumacher who added on six rebounds to his performance. Schumacher played all but two minutes of the game, being one of two Saints to play at least 36 minutes.
 
WOU was able to score 37 points off of turnovers, also getting 37 out of their bench. All 11 players that recorded minutes in the game for Western were able to score.
 
"Dalven played out of his mind," added Pifer after the win. "It's always good to see him hit shots and when he does, it takes us to a different level. Despite that, it was still a team effort."
 
Next up, the Wolves will host the Seattle Pacific Falcons on Saturday, Jan. 11. SPU enters Saturday as the last unbeaten in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play at 5-0. The game is scheduled to tip at 4:15 p.m. PST inside NPE Gym and will immediately follow the conclusion of the Western Oregon women's basketball team hosting the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets.