LACEY, Wash. – Behind a team-effort where seven Saints scored eight or more points, Saint Martin's handled Simon Fraser 82-66, on their home court in GNAC action.
 
Led by Jordan Kitchen, who came off the bench for 17 points, five rebounds and two blocks and steals, as the Saints (9-2, 2-1) used an early lead to overpower Simon Fraser (7-4, 1-2).
 
SMU rattled off 12 straight points to take the early 12-2 lead and never looked back. Simon Fraser cut the score to within one possession at 12-10 with 14:02 remaining in the first half. Layups by Jared Mathews and Jordan Kitchen, capped-off by a 3-pointer by EJ Boyce stretched the Saints' lead back to 21-10.
 
Over the course of the first half, the Clan trimmed the lead to single digits on multiple occasions; however, the Saints responded each time and after another 3-pointer by EJ Boyce, SMU carried the 44-29 lead into halftime.
 
Simon Fraser struck first in the second half, opening up on a 11-4 run to cut into the Saints' lead and pull to within 49-41 with 15:04 remaining. Baskets in the paint by Kitchen and Mathews, along with a deep ball by BJ Standley fought off the Clan's comeback attempt and extended the lead to 59-47 with 10:55 left.
 
A 17-5 run by Saint Martin's over the next five minutes put the game out of reach as SMU opened up their largest lead of the game at 76-55 with 5:06 remaining. The Saints connected at the free throw to seal the impressive 82-66 victory over GNAC opponent Simon Fraser.
 
Kitchen led all scorers with 17 points on 5-for-8 shooting, along with five rebounds and two blocks and steals. Standley provided 13 points and six assists off the bench to help account for the Saints' 40 bench points. Boyce scored 12 points with three assists and rebounds while Henderson added 10 points and six rebounds. Luke Chavez, Mathews and Rhett Baerlocher combined for 25 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists.
 
As a whole, Saint Martin's shot 30-for-56 (53.6 percent) from the floor, 6-for-21 (28.6 percent) beyond the arc, and 16-for-22 (72.7 percent) at the free throw line. The Saints collected 35 rebounds, 18 assists on 15 turnovers, with four blocks and 10 steals.
 
Saint Martin's will host Western Washington in a rematch from last year's GNAC Semifinals where the Vikings bested the Saints, en route to their conference championship. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. and live stats and video can be found on smusaints.com. An internet radio broadcast on the Bryant and Clark Sports Connection can also be found on smusaints.com.