Saint Martin’s remained undefeated in the Great Northern Athletic Conference (GNAC), picking up an important 78-66 victory over Washington rival Central Washington in Ellensburg on Thursday, Jan. 22. It was the Saint's 13th straight win.
It was a tight game, with the score tied at halftime before the Saints came up with a big second half to pull away from the Wildcats. Saint Martin’s was led by Diego Trejo-Delgado, who notched a career high of 31 points.
The Saints led 8-5 at the 15:19 mark in the first half and maintained a slim lead until Central Washington pulled ahead 24-19 with 6:39 left remaining before the break.
Undaunted, the Saints went on a 7-0 run to retake the lead 26-24, and a flurry of free throws by both teams left the score 33-33 at the half.
The Wildcats took a 35-33 lead to begin the second half, but Saint Martin’s responded with a 10-0 run, capped off by a 3-pointer by Trejo-Delgado less than three minutes into the period.
While Central Washington cut the lead to one point in the middle of the second half, the Saints went on a 9-2 run to take a 62-54 lead with 6:30 left in the game. Trejo-Delgado hit two free throws with 1:43 remaining in the game to put his team up by double-digits.
Trejo Delgago shot 12 for 25 from the field, including 3 for 5 from the 3-point line. He also had four assists, three blocks and a steal.
Anthony Simo posted a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds, while Dae’Kwon Watson recorded 13 points, four assists, four rebounds and two steals. Omer Ege Peksari also had seven assists.
The Saints controlled the glass, outrebounding Central Washington 45-31. Saint Martin’s improved to 16-2 overall while Central Washington fell to 9-10 and 3-5 in GNAC action.
Saint Martin’s will travel to Northwest Nazarene on Jan. 24. The game will tip off at 6:30 p.m.
