Sports - Local Colleges

POSTED: Friday, Nov. 28, 2008

WESTERN MEN'S BASKETBALL: Vikings improve to 5-0 with win over Cameron

BELLINGHAM - Steve Alford is usually a shooter.

But when the Western Washington University senior forward's shots weren't falling against Cameron University of Oklahoma on Friday, Nov. 28, he repositioned himself to take care of the offensive rebounds.

His effort down low helped lift the Vikings to a 79-71 nonconference win over the Aggies at Western Washington.

"I had to try and rebound and get a couple easy baskets to help the team win," Alford said. "And they didn't box out really so it was easy to come in for rebounds."

Alford was fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 8.8 points per game entering Friday's contest. But the 6-foot-5's clutch put-backs late in the second half is just what Vikings coach Brad Jackson wants to see from his senior.

"He's very long and he has great timing and those (put-backs) were big," Jackson said. "He is a shooter but at the same time there's a lot of things a player can do, and I think that's something he's honed in over the course of last year. Tonight it was very important to the outcome of the game."

Alford finished with 15 points and led the Vikings with eight rebounds - four offensive. The senior helped the Vikings recover from a lost 19-point lead to extend their record to 5-0 and hand Cameron (2-1) its first loss.

Alford scored the final two points of the game on a tip-in with 26 seconds left when teammate Morris Anderson missed a free throw. Western senior Calin Schell then blocked an Aggies' shot with 19 seconds left. Schell had three of the Vikings' 10 blocked shots.

Western senior guard Ira Graham led all scorers with 21 points while Anderson finished with 14. Cameron Severson also scored in double figures with 10 points, which included a key 3-pointer with 2:33 left to extend a narrow lead to 73-66.

The Vikings carried a 38-23 lead into the second half but it didn't take long for a 9-0 Cameron run to cut the lead down to 10. The Aggies got within three points, 66-63, with less than five minutes remaining before Western fought against the rally.

"Team chemistry fell apart for a second," Anderson said. "The 3's got them into it and that's when we fell apart...We knew we needed this game and we're trying to stay undefeated."

This was the first time in the Vikings' young season they had the lead and lost it. Western quickly jumped out to a 9-0 start fueled by five points from Anderson, but then Cameron went on a 12-0 run to lead 12-11. But it didn't last long. A lay-in from Schell reclaimed the lead.

"The biggest thing for us right now is understanding game situations," Jackson said. "When you get a team on the ropes like we have been, it's important that you continue to keep the pressure on them. I felt like that was a middle period in that game where we started to lack a little bit of intensity, especially with our rebounding."

Western's defense held Cameron's leading scorer Kallan Glasgow (18.0 points per game) to 15 points - six in the first half. But the Aggies had an answer in Dylan Gilliam who finished with 19 points on 3 of 4 shooting from the 3-point arc.

Defense is what Alford wants to see the Vikings improve on as the season progresses.

"It was kind of quiet in here," he said. "We just need to talk a little more and work together on defense."

Improving to 5-0 means more to Alford than just being undefeated. The senior said the team is trying to break into the national rankings and each win can only get them closer.

The Vikings have a quick turnaround as they host Northwestern University on Saturday, Nov. 29, at 7 p.m., for another nonconference matchup.

REACH SOMER BREEZE AT SOMER.BREEZE@BELLINGHAMHERALD.COM OR 715-2285.