LACEY, WA — Saint Martin's Men's Basketball (19-8, 8-6 GNAC) hosted the Western Washington Vikings this past weekend, looking to avenge their loss in Bellingham from earlier in the season.

The game started at a slower pace, with Western Washington taking an early lead. Saint Martin's would need a spark, and Diego Trejo-Delgado delivered—rejecting a shot at the rim before finishing on the other end to fire up his team. Jaden Nielsen-Skinner found his groove as well, slicing through the defense and dishing out incredible passes. The Saints would trail until Myles Samuels pulled up for a smooth jumper, followed by a deep three from Marcel Stevens, forcing the Vikings into a timeout. Despite the momentum shift with the Saints' offensive surge, Western Washington maintained control, keeping the Saints at arm's length for the remainder of the half. At the break, the Vikings led 39-32.

The second half opened with both teams trading buckets, but Trejo-Delgado continued his defensive dominance, swatting away shot after shot to keep the Saints in it. As the Vikings began to pull away, Samuels delivered a much-needed spark—picking off a pass and finishing at the rim to cut the deficit to five. Moments later, he drove through contact for an and-one, making it a two-point game at 56-54. But just as the Saints closed in, the Vikings found their stroke from beyond the arc. Western Washington caught fire, shooting an impressive 52% from three, and despite the Saints' best efforts, the Vikings held onto a double-digit lead for the remainder of the contest, defeating the Saints 91-81. Standouts Nielsen-Skinner and Dyson Lighthall would each contribute 12 points, with Skinny also recording seven assists while Lighthall got to work on defense with six blocks. Samuels would lead the team with 13 points.

SMU Men's Basketball will be back in action on Thursday, February 20th, in Nampa, Idaho to face the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks. You can get tickets here.