ANCHORAGE, Alaska – After an overturned call, put Western Washington at the free throw line with 4.9 seconds, the Vikings hit one free throw to take a 68-67 lead. BJ Standley found a cutting Luke Chavez who reached the top of the arc, and hit the game-winning shot to put Saint Martin's in the GNAC Championship for the first time in school history.
 
The Saints (24-6) had led for most of the game, including a 15-point lead in the first half; however, an offensive drought and consistent Western Washington (21-8) pressure, the game was tied at 67-67 in the final minute. With the game and possibily the season on the line, head coach Alex Pribble turned to his first team All-Conference selection and Newcomer of the Year in Chavez, paying off with a trip to the GNAC Championships.
 
Western Washington took the early with a 7-3 lead, but the Saints cut the score to one on baskets by Matt Dahlen and Rhett Baerlocher. The Saints claimed their first lead of the game at 10-9 on a Luke Chavez jumper with 15:34 left in the first half.
 
The Saints lead stretched to six following their 13-2 run over a three minute stretch. However, the lead quickly diminished after a 7-0 run by the Vikings. On the following possession, ball movement around the arc found Chavez wide open on the top of the arc, knocking down a 3-pointer.
 
Saint Martin's slowly stretched their lead out to eight over the next seven minutes, in large part to the Saints' defense. SMU held Western Washington to without a field goal for over seven minutes. With 6:20 left in the half, BJ Standley knocked down a 3-pointer to give SMU a 32-21 lead. The Saints run touched 18-3 and put SMU up by as many as 15.
 
In the closing minutes, Western Washington began chipping away at the lead, using a 7-0 run and holding Saint Martin's to without a point for the final 4:20 minutes of the half. The Saints held on to a 39-31 lead heading into the locker room.
 
Chavez jumpstarted the Saints' offense with a crossover 3-pointer, leading to a 7-2 run to open the half. Western Washington responded with a 7-0 run to pull the score within single-digits again. Both sides traded baskets over the next few minutes, before Western Washington trimmed the lead down to five with 11:30 left in the game.
 
The Saints offense continued to struggle to find any rhythm as Western Washington kept the pressure on by hitting baskets and getting the game to one possession with 8:40 left. Tavian Henderson looked to spark the offense with a dunk on a feed from Chavez.
 
Henderson and Chavez each connected on baskets in the paint to keep Saint Martin's on top. Before the final media timeout, Boyce was fouled on a 3-pointer, he proceeded to hit all three to give SMU a 65-59 lead with 3:40 left.
 
After a Kitchen basket in the paint, Western Washington scored five straight points to keep the game at one possession, 67-64 with only one minute remaining. The Vikings tied the game with 34 seconds left with a corner 3-pointer,
 
After a missed attempt by the Saints, the Vikings drove the length of the court and attacked the basket. An offensive foul was called on the Vikings with 4.2 seconds left; however, after a lengthy review, the call was overturned and changed to a blocking foul on SMU. Meaning the Vikings went to the line with 4.9 seconds left.
 
Trey Drechsel went to the line and missed the first but hit the second, putting WWU on top for the first time since the 12:20 mark in the first half. With 4.9 seconds left, head coach Alex Pribble drew up a full court play that had Standley floating a ball over two defenders to Chavez at the halfcourt line. Chavez caught the ball and drove to the top of the paint, pulling up and hitting the game-winning 15-footer with 2.1 seconds left on the clock. A last chance shot by WWU missed and the Saints clinched their first ever trip the the GNAC Championships with a 69-68 victory.
 
Chavez led the Saints in scoring with 20 points, connecting on 8-for-16 from the field and 3-of-6 beyond the arc. Standley and Boyce were the only other two Saints to reach double-digits, combining for 21 points and six assists. Dahlen finished the game with six points, 10 rebounds and three assists.
 
The Saints will face the number one seed Western Oregon at 5:15 AST or 6:15 PST on ESPN 3. Live stats of the game will also be available on GNAC.tv