NAMPA, Idaho – Northwest Nazarene men's basketball dominated Western Oregon from start to finish on Thursday night, taking 26-point halftime lead before running away with a 95-59 victory.
How It Happened
- The game was close for the first few minutes, with Western Oregon taking a 10-7 at the 16:01 mark of the first half.
- NNU then went on a 12-0 run capped by a James Nelson layup, going up 19-10 with 11:25 to play.
- The Nighthawks didn't stop there, dominating the Wolves the rest of the half to take a 26-point advantage, 51-25, at the break.
- The second half was much of the same, with the Nighthawks leading by as much as 39 before securing the 36-point win.
Nighthawks Notes
- NNU improves to 5-5 on the season and 3-2 in GNAC play.
- With 51 points in the first half, this was the first time that NNU has scored 50 or more in a half since Feb. 15, 2020 in a win over Alaska Fairbanks.
- The result was also NNU's largest margin of victory (36 points) since that same game, a 94-52 (42-point) win over UAF.
- In his first game since Nov. 17, James Nelson made the most of his return with a 21-point, 10-rebound double-double. He also had four assists, a steal, and didn't turn the ball over once.
- Double-double machine Gabriel Murphy added his seventh of the year, notching a season-best 17 points along with 10 boards and two blocks.
- Tru Allen was next with 15 points, while Julian Agosto added a career-best 12 points along with three assists.
- Christian Rose rounded out the double-figure scoring with 10, while Kobe Terashima added seven points, six assists, and three steals.
- Jaylen Fox also went 3-5 from deep for nine points in his second start of the year, while Mason Machado notched a career-best four points off the bench.
- NNU shot a season-high 52.1% from the field and 42.3% from deep, pouring in 11 triples.
- The Nighthawks also committed just 12 turnovers and recorded a season-best 19 assists.
- NNU also outpaced WOU in rebounding at 45-32, bench points at 37-5, fastbreak points at 14-4, points off turnovers at 31-12, and points in the paint at 50-32.
Next Up
The Nighthawks will be back home on Saturday night, hosting Western Washington following the conclusion of the women's game against Saint Martin's. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in the Johnson Sports Center.
