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January 17, 2008 Lacey, WA – Solid defense was key as Saint Martin’s defeated Montana State Billings, 81-52, in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action Thursday night at the SMU Pavilion. The Saints held Billings to just 32.1 percent from the field and forced a total of 22 Yellowjacket turnovers. Five minutes into the game, with the score tied 10-10, Tyler Nixon hit a three to put the Saints in the lead where they would stay the rest of the way. Saint Martin’s would take a 19 point lead into the break. The Saints continued to pour it on in the second half starting the period with a 21-4 run to open up a 36 point advantage, their highest margin of the night. “We came out focused and ready to play tonight,” said Justin Alexander, who had six assists for the Saints. “We shared the ball well and got it inside.” Bill Richardson posted a game high 21 points and eight rebounds for the Saints while Brendan Campbell added 17 points on the night. “Our guys came out with nice focus tonight,” said head coach Keith Cooper. “When we got up they continued to play smart, intelligent basketball. They took good care of the ball and played good defensively, and they did those things for a full 40 minutes.” Billings was led by John Brooks who put up 16 points while Aaron Terry added 12. Every player made it into the game for Saint Martin’s, who improve to 8-6 on the season and 3-2 in conference. “We got some valuable playing time for some of our guys tonight,” said Campbell. The Saints get ready to battle Seattle University Saturday night at home in the SMU Pavilion with tip-off at 7pm.
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