BURNABY, B.C. – The SFU Red Leafs men's basketball team lost 67-58 against the Western Oregon Wolves in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchup on Saturday night at the West Gym in Burnaby, B.C.
 
Sophomore forward Zach Stone (Ottawa) posted a double-double with 17 points and 10 boards for the Red Leafs (2-12, 0-3 GNAC), and senior guard David Penney (Guelph, Ont.) added 13 points, but it wasn't quite enough offence in a rollercoaster of a contest.
 
"Offensively, our confidence is struggling a little bit," assessed head coach Steve Hanson of his team's performance. "I think our poor shooting led to some lapses defensively. Our great rebounding in the first half, and against St. Martin's on Thursday, wasn't there. I think we were minus-11 on the boards in the second half, and that can't happen. To beat anyone in the GNAC, you have to be at least even if not plus in the rebounding battle, especially our team. A lack of execution, a lack of hitting shots, a lack of scoring inside. It's on me, we have to get better for next week."
 
SFU got out to a hot start in the early going – Stone started with a nifty assist on a Penney bucket to open the scoring, then followed it up by getting to the free-throw line twice. Stone knocked down all four attempts to put his team up 6-0 three minutes into the contest.
 
SFU led by as many as 10 points early, at 15-5, but a 13-4 WOU run, featuring two triples from junior guard Jason Gallant, saw the Wolves (4-8, 1-3 GNAC) pull it back to a 19-18 SFU lead.
 
Penney and freshman guard Irish Coquia (Vancouver) then got SFU a bit more breathing room as they combined to get SFU up 27-20 late, but again the Wolves clawed back. WOU spread the rock in the final stages of the first half, getting buckets from four different players as an 11-4 stretch saw the two sides knotted up 31-31 at the break.
 
The Wolves then took over in the opening minutes of the second half. Kris Cook hit two layups, a three ball, and notched an assist in the first four minutes of the frame, serving as the catalyst for a 12-3 run for Western Oregon.
 

Down 43-34, it was SFU's turn to respond. Stone opened up the comeback with a vicious dunk and triple on back-to-back possessions, and a Penney layup saw SFU draw to within a single bucket. After Mekhi Macintyre put the Wolves up 45-41, SFU proceeded to rip off a 13-5 run of their own, featuring threes from junior guard Eric Beckett (Ajax, Ont.), junior guard Elliot Dimaculangan (Mississauga, Ont.), and sophomore guard/forward Immanuel Oludele (Niagara Falls, Ont.), to go up 54-47 with 10 minutes remaining.
 
However, the Wolves closed remarkably well, outscoring SFU 20-4 over those last 10 minutes to secure the win. Cook led the Wolves with 18 points, while Cameron Benzel had 17, and Gallant notched 13.
 
SFU will be back on the road next week, as they head down to Seattle to take on the Seattle Pacific Falcons on Thursday, January 11. Then, they will fly east to face the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets on Saturday, January 13.

- with files from Aidan Doherty

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