Once it started rolling, it could not be stopped.
The UAA men's basketball team caught fire midway through the first half Thursday and dominated Western Oregon in a 82-56 Great Northwest Athletic Conference victory, making second-year assistant coach Cameron Turner a winner in his first game as a college head coach.
With UAA head coach Rusty Osborne serving a league-imposed, one-game suspension for unsportsmanlike conduct, Turner filled in at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex to help the team end a two-game losing streak.
"I think coming off two losses, the guys, we really needed to put our best foot forward," UAA center Liam Gibcus said. "We got to a point today that we needed to get to. Coach Turner did a fantastic job stepping in and it was perfect, really."
Kyle Fossman led the Seawolves (9-4, 2-3 GNAC) with 21 points, hitting 5 of 7 shots from beyond the arc and 8 of 12 overall.
"Any shot he takes, I just feel like it's gonna go in," Turner said.
UAA wasn't shy from long range, making 14 of 32 treys, but also showed a healthy inside game. Gibcus anchored the play in the paint with a game-high 12 rebounds to go with nine points, and UAA held a 45-18 rebounding edge, pulling down 20 offensive boards.
"Gibcus' 10 offensive rebounds, that's beastly," Turner said.
Teancum Stafford chipped in 11 points on 5 of 8 shooting while adding a career-high five assists, and Abebe Demissie contributed 10 points for the Seawolves.
Rodney Webster led Western Oregon (7-5, 2-2) with 13 points, and Jordan Wiley hit for 11 points, burying three first-half 3-pointers.
Just before the midway point of the first half, UAA trailed Western Oregon by a point, but the Seawolves broke from a timeout with a collective spring in their step. Shots started falling and the defense picked up to spark a 15-0 run that put UAA up 31-17. The Seawolves rode the momentum to a 46-26 halftime lead.
"Our team's coming together and everybody's buying in," Fossman said. "We had a lot of energy. Everybody on the team had a lot of energy and it showed."
Led by Fossman's hot hand, UAA's lead continued to swell. Fossman scored all 11 of his second-half points in the first eight minutes after the break, and the Seawolves built their biggest lead at 72-38 just past the midway point of the half.
With seven minutes remaining, UAA was still up 31 and was already using possessions to run time off the clock by weaving the ball from guard to guard at the top of the key.
Osborne, who was not allowed in the building for Thursday's game, will be back on the sideline for Saturday's home game against Saint Martin's.
Turner enjoyed his brief experience at the helm and said there was a little more pressure than usual, knowing any team failures would fall on his shoulders.
"It's kind of been a life-long dream to be a head coach," Turner said. "I know it's not like my debut, I'm just filling in for our team, but in the heat of the moment you're just in there doing the best we can to make our team better, so it was fun."
Reach Jeremy Peters at jpeters@adn.com or 257-4335.
WESTERN OREGON (56) — Avgi 2-4 1-3 5; Alexander 1-4 0-0 2; Webster 5-9 1-2 13; Funk 2-3 2-2 8; Wiley 4-8 0-1 11; Carter 2-4 0-0 4; Johnson 0-2 1-2 1; Troxel 0-0 0-1 0; Schriber 1-4 0-0 3; Nelson 1-2 0-0 2; Gehring 3-8 1-2 7; Totals 21-48 6-13 56.
UAA (82) — Leckband 2-3 0-0 6; Gibcus 4-9 1-2 9; Lauwers 2-8 3-4 9; Stafford 5-8 0-0 11; Fossman 8-12 0-0 21; Heard 1-2 0-0 2; MacKelvie 3-7 2-2 9; Erickson 1-2 0-0 2; Little 1-4 0-0 3; Demissie 4-8 0-0 10; Spickerman 0-0 0-0 0; Weitzel 0-1 0-2 0; Totals: 31-64 6-10 82.
Western Oregon 26 30 — 56
UAA 46 36 — 82
3-point field goals — WOU 8-16 (Alexander 0-1; Webster 2-2; Funk 2-3; Wiley 3-4; Carter 0-1; Johnson 0-2; Schriber 1-2; Nelson 0-1). UAA 14-32 (Leckband 2-3; Lauwers 2-8; Stafford 1-3; Fossman 5-7; MacKelvie 1-3; Erickson 0-1; Little 1-3; Demissie 2-4. Rebounds — WOU 18 (Avgi 3, Wiley 3); UAA 45 (Gibcus 12). Total fouls — WOU 14; UAA 18. Assists — WOU 15 (Funk 6); UAA 23 (Little 5, Stafford, 5); Turnovers — WOU 16 (Alexander 3, Wiley, 3); UAA 16 (Demissie 7). Blocks — WOU 2 (Wiley, Johnson); UAA 2 (Spickerman, Stafford). Steals — WOU 4 (Webster 3); UAA 11 (Lauwers 3, MacKelvie 3). Officials — Denlittle, Messerly, Paz. Attendance — 489.
By JEREMY PETERS