LACEY, Wash. – Saint Martin's extended their historic winning streak to seven games with another commanding victory, this time at the hands of Alaska Anchorage, 79-67, inside Marcus Pavilion.
 
The Saints (17-5, 10-4) improved to 8-2 on their home court after shooting a blazing 56 percent from the field and 52 percent beyond the arc. Matt Dahlen nearly set a career-high in points with 17, while EJ Boyce drained five 3-pointers for 15 points and Rhett Baerlocher finished with 13 points.
 
Tempo was an important factor heading into the game, with Alaska Anchorage (10-12, 6-8) wanting to slow and deliberate, while Saint Martin's wanted to strike quick and often. The Saints won the battle, dropping the first seven points of the game in just 2:11 minutes. The Seawolves closed the lead to five with 15:51 remaining; however, it would be the closest UAA got all night to tying the game.
 
Three straight 3-pointers, one by Baerlocher and two by Boyce helped to quickly extend the lead out to 12. BJ Standley joined in on the party, knocking down his own 3-pointer, before Boyce connected once again beyond the arc. The Saints hit five 3-pointers out of their six made baskets over the course of five minutes to stay in front of the Seawolves with 9:27 left.
 
Alaska Anchorage began to slowly chip away at the score, getting to 30-24 with 3:23 remaining, before the Saints responded with a jumper by Luke Chavez, who ended with eight points. A layup by Tavian Henderson and free throws by Jared Mathews put SMU up 37-29 going into halftime.
 
The Saints wasted no time in the second half to extend their lead, starting with a Chavez layup, followed by a Boyce 3-pointer. The Saints opened the half on a 10-1 run to gain a 47-30 lead with 17:56 remaining. Baskets by Dahlen and 3-pointers by Boyce and Baerlocher gave SMU their first 20-point lead of the game with 12:49 left.
 
Saint Martin's lead stretched to as many as 23 in the second half before the Seawolves closed out the game on a 12-3 run, including eight straight points from the free throw line. However, it proved too little/too late as Saint Martin's walked away with the 79-67 GNAC victory.
 
Dahlen, Boyce and Baerlocher were the three Saints who reached the double-digit mark in points, combining for 45 points. Jordan Kitchen had a complete game, finishing with five points, and a team-leading nine rebounds and four blocks. Chavez and Standley combined for 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists in the back field.
 
As a unit, Saint Martin's shot 27-for-48 (56.3 percent) from the floor, 11-for-21 (52.4 percent) beyond the arc, and 14-for-23 (60.9 percent) at the free throw line. The Saints collected 31 rebounds, 16 assists on 10 turnovers, along with six blocks and six steals.
 
The Saints will head to Oregon next week for a match-up with Concordia on Thursday, Feb 8 at 7:00 p.m. Live stats and video of the game will be available with links on smusaints.com.