Wildcats clinch trip to GNAC tourney

MONMOUTH, Ore. — They’re going to the dance.

Not the big dance — yet. But the Central Washington Wildcats did secure the sixth and final berth in the GNAC Tournament in convincing fashion Saturday with a 74-54 rout of Western Oregon on the Wolves’ floor.

The victory ensured that Central (8-10 GNAC, 14-12 overall), the defending tournament champion, will participate in the conference event at Saint Martin’s University in Lacey and will open at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday against third-seeded Seattle Pacific (21-6).

CWU, which has made the NCAA Division II playoffs over the past four seasons, also earned its seventh consecutive winning campaign.

“The guys answered the bell,” coach Greg Sparling said. “Lacy (starting point guard Haddock) played, and that was huge. Roby Clyde cranked up the defense at halftime, Jordan Coby hit some huge shots in the first half and in the second half it seemed like everybody — Toussaint (Tyler), Jody Johnson, Kevin Davis and all the way down the line — made shots and made plays.”

Haddock, Central’s leading scorer at 15.8 points per game, had missed Thursday night’s 99-84 loss at Saint Martin’s in which CWU missed a chance to clinch the tourney bid.

But he played through a knee injury Saturday, scoring 21 points as the Wildcats dealt fourth-seeded Western Oregon (11-7, 18-9) its worst home loss of the season.

Coby had 17 points, Davis and Johnson scored 16 apiece and Tyler added 15 for CWU, which blew the game open by shooting 59 percent (19 for 32) during the second half and outrebounding the Wolves 46-30 for the game.

At Saint Martin’s, the Wildcats made only 2 of 14 3-pointers and were 18 of 35 from the foul line. This time they cashed 9 of 16 from long distance, with Haddock and Coby going a combined 5 for 8, and made 21 of 31 free throws.

“This was a great win and a big win,” Sparling said. “The guys played hard and made a lot of hustle plays, but the big thing is they just went out and had fun. They did a great job against a very good team on its floor on senior night.”

Kyle Long scored 19 points and Blair Wheadon had 18 for the Wolves, who beat Central 77-75 in Ellensburg on Dec. 1.

“We’re playing with a lot of confidence right now, and that starts with our point guard,” Sparling said. “We’ve had our ups and downs all year long, but we’re starting to take off at the right time.”

CENTRAL WASHINGTON — Jody Johnson 5-13 5-8 16, Toussaint Tyler 4-8 4-4 15, Clyde 3-5 0-4 6, Lacy Haddock 7-12 5-7 21, Jordan Coby 6-9 2-2 17, Gross 0-2 0-0 0, Starr 0-1 0-0 0, Lieser 0-0 0-0 0, Magee 1-3 1-2 3, Kevin Davis 6-7 4-4 16, Nelson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 32-60 21-31 94.

WESTERN OREGON — Kyle Long 7-16 5-5 19, Gehring 1-2 0-0 2, Kolton Nelson 5-8 0-0 12, Blair Wheadon 5-14 6-8 18, Freelander 2-10 1-2 5, Brian McGill 3-4 4-6 10, Mahuma 0-0 0-0 0, Troxel 0-4 0-2 0, Veal 0-2 0-1 0, White 3-4 2-2 8. Totals 26-64 18-26 74.

Halftime — CWU 37-31. 3-point goals — CWU 9-16 (Johnson 1-1, Tyler 3-5, Haddock 2-4, Coby 3-4, Gross 0-1, Magee 0-1); WOU 4-18 (Long 0-3, Nelson 2-3, Wheadon 2-7, Freelander 0-3, McGill 0-1, Troxel 0-1). Fouled out — None. Rebounds — CWU 46 (Johnson 14, Clyde 10); WOU 30 (White 7). Assists — CWU 20 (Tyler 5); WOU 13 (Freelander 6). Turnovers — CWU 17, WOU 13. Total fouls — CWU 21, WOU 23.