Monday, January 9, 2023

PORTLAND, Ore. – Alaska snapped a 16-year skid against in-state rival Alaska Anchorage by taking a 61-56 victory on Saturday at home in Fairbanks to earn GNAC Team of the Week honors.

The Nanooks came out of the gates strong, ending the first period leading 19-15 after shooting 50% from the field and going 3 for 4 from three-point range. They held the Seawolves to just 28.6% from the field in the first frame, setting the tone for a strong defensive performance.

After going into halftime tied at 32-32, Alaska sealed the win with a fourth-quarter where the Nanooks held UAA to just five points. Alaska Anchorage scored just two field goals and went scoreless in seven minutes between those tallies. Alaska paired its strong defense with one of its best offensive periods of the game, sinking 5 of 10 from the field and 2 of 3 from three-point range. Through the game, the Nanooks held the Seawolves to 28.2% from the field and just 3 for 30 from three-point range.

Sophomore guard Destiny Reimers led all players in scoring, knocking down 25 points to go along with five rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. Reimers was joined in the double-digits by sophomore guard Sam Tolliver who recorded 11 points along with three rebounds and a steal.

Defense has been a strength for the Nanooks all season. They rank third in the GNAC allowing opponents a three-point percentage of just .287. They also rank four in the conference allowing an average of .376 from the field.

The win marks the first conference victory of the season for Alaska and the first GNAC win for first-year head coach Amy Donovan.

“I couldn’t be more proud of our team,” Donovan said. “We’ve talked with them since day one about the work it takes to change the direction of a program and they’ve bought in from that moment. Last week our ability to string together consecutive stops was huge for us. We also had a lot of players step up with huge offensive performances when we were short-handed, including Destiny’s huge offensive game. We’re honored and excited to be the Team of the Week and can’t wait to get back out on the court this Thursday.”

Alaska will cap off a three-game home stand this week as it hosts Northwest Nazarene on Thursday and Central Washington on Saturday.