NAMPA, ID — Saint Martin's Men's Basketball (19-9, 8-7 GNAC) faced the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks to close out Thursday night conference action in Idaho.

The first half would be a defensive battle, with both teams scrapping to find points early. Diego Trejo-Delgado would immediately get to work on the boards, leading the team with eight during the contest. Immanuel Oludele and Jayshawn Moore would follow closely behind in the possession game, grabbing six and five rebounds respectively. Both offenses would pick up as the game progressed, with early contributions from the starting rotation. Marcel Stevens would find the basket multiple times in the first half and go on to contribute 13 points, two rebounds, and two assists throughout the game while Dyson Lighthall would follow closely behind with 10 points of his own and add three boards to his totals. As the game continued, Myles Samuels got the hot hand, leading the team with 22 points on 10-13 (76.9%) shooting from the field in one of his most efficient games yet, helping the Saints go blow-for-blow with the Nighthawks as the half wound down. NNU would lead SMU after a scrappy first half, 27-25.

The second half would see both offenses pick up their paces. Samuels would continue to be the driving force behind the offense with point guard Jaden Nielsen-Skinner helping set up plays while other Saints and players off the bench would make contributions. The Saints would reclaim the lead once in the second half thanks to a Skinny three-pointer, but the lead would only last for one possession. Saint Martin's would continue to battle back, tying the game multiple times down the stretch, but would ultimately fall in the final moments as the Nighthawks separated themselves with game-clinching free throws, winning the contest 68-63. The Saints would go 7-16 (43.8%) from the free-throw line while the Nighthawks would go 21-28 (75%).

SMU Men's Basketball will be back in action on Saturday, February 22nd as they take on Central Washington in Ellensburg to close out the day's doubleheader. You can get tickets here.