LACEY, Wash. – The Saint Martin's men's basketball team was unable to recover from its slowest start of the season on Saturday, and ultimately fell to Northwest Nazarene 71-53.

Northwest Nazarene (10-1) took the momentum and held it from the start of the game. Saint Martin's (1-8) went cold offensively and were unable to cut the first-half deficit, shooting 17 percent from the field in the first half, compared to NNU's 50 percent. The Nighthawks used this lead to carry them throughout the rest of the game.

Saint Martin's struggled to find any offensive rhythm in the first half, with Northwest Nazarene jumping out to a quick 15-4 lead in the first four minutes. Back-to-back plays by Marky Adams brought the Saints back within single digits; however, NNU responded with twelve straight points to secure a 25-point lead and end the half 44-19.

Out of the break, the Nighthawks kept their foot on the break and went on a quick 7-0 run in the first three minutes. Demonte Malloy answered back with his third three-pointer of the game, and then both teams proceeded to trade baskets. NNU built its largest lead of the game at the 14-minute mark with 36 points. Saint Martin's put together runs of 9-2 and 13-2, yet there was too far of a gap to close and the Saints fell 71-53.
 
Malloy led the way with 19 points, while adding six rebounds, while Tyke Thompson nearly recorded a double-double, ending with nine points and eight rebounds. Seth Coddington recorded eight points along with three assists, while Goy Wang finished with seven. 

Saint Martin's as a team shot 17-for-61 (27.9 percent) from the floor, 7-for-25 (28 percent) beyond the arc, and 12-for-13 (92.3 percent) at the line. SMU grabbed 37 rebounds, seven assists on 12 turnovers, along with two blocks and four steals.
 
The Saints turn around and head to Ellensburg, WA to face off against Central Washington on Friday, February 26. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. with live stats and video available at smusaints.com.