The Simon Fraser University men let victory slip away in a Great Northwest conference basketball game in Bellingham, Washington.
The Clan led for most of the game before surrendering an 86-75 decision to the Western Washington Vikings on Saturday.
"It was a tough loss. We played really well for most of the game," said Clan assistant coach Chris Cline in an SFU press release. "They came out strong in the second half, and some defensive lapses late in the game cost us."
Jordan Sergent led the Clan with 19 points, including a perfect six for six from the free-throw line.
Justin Brown and Connor Lewis chipped in with 16 points apiece. Brown added seven rebounds and five assists, while Lewis had four helpers and two steals.
John Bantock also shot in double figures, draining three from beyond the arc to finish with 13 points.
With five minutes left in the opening half, SFU had re-established its 12-point lead.
But that lead was slowly eroded in the latter stages by the No. 18 NCAA Division II school.
NO LUCK AT HOME
The SFU women's basketball team had difficulty stopping Western Washington at home.
The Clan dropped a 70-61 encounter with the Vikings in the West Gym on Saturday.
Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe posted her 15th doubledouble of the season in the loss, scoring 18 points and hauling in 10 boards.
Despite the stat, Western Washington outrebounded SFU 43-32 in the matchup.
"We worked on boxing out all week in practice. We just didn't execute well enough," said Raincock-Ekunwe.
WWU went on a 17-2 run midway through the first half and closed out the half with a 32-20 lead.
The Vikings built the lead to 16 points in the second half before the Chelsea Reist capped a 25-8 SFU run to put the home team in front by a single point.
The Clan led by as many as six points later in the half but could not hold the lead.
Western Washington outscored SFU 26-11 in the final 10 minutes to drop the Clan to 6-4 in conference play.
The Clan women host Saint Martin's University on Thursday, before entertaining Western Oregon on Saturday at the West Gym. Both games are 7 p.m. starts.
tberridge@burnabynow. com
