ELLENSBURG, Wash. (Dec. 31) -- The men's basketball team got 42 bench points as Central Washington University upset No. 3 Western Oregon University 81-77 Thursday night in Nicholson Pavilion.
 
The trio of Naim Ladd, Drake Rademacher, and Desmond Ross combined to score all of the Wildcats bench points with Ladd adding a team-high 17 points on 6 of 9 shooting, including a perfect 3 for 3 from long range.  Rademacher added 15 points, missing just one shot, and Ross added 10.  The scoring output by each set a new career-high.
 
"We went on a bit of a lull in the game and our reserves came off the bench and gave us a much needed spark," CWU Head Coach Greg Sparling said about his teams bench play. "Naim can really change the game, and when you add that to what the rest of our bench was able to do, it made for a special night."
 
The Wolves came into the contest ranked third in the nation and now stand with a 9-2 record, 2-1 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.  The Wildcats (6-2, 1-2 GNAC) hand Western Oregon its first NCAA Division II loss of the season, the Wolves lost to the University of Oregon earlier this week.
 
"Coming out of the gates I thought our guys did a great job of following the game plan, especially on the defensive end," Sparling said. "We faced up their bigs and besides the outstanding night Nichols had, we did what we planned on doing tonight."
 
Central Washington outshot the Wolves 48.1-percent to 45.5-percent and sand 20 of its 24 free throws throughout the contest.  The Wildcats also had a 36-27 advantage rebounding the ball with Joseph Stroud leading the way with seven.  Stroud also added 11 points, four assists and two blocks.
 
"They (WOU) have some really talented scorers on their team and we did a great job boxing out and not allowing them to get extra shots off," Sparling added. "Between Avgi and Nichols they can really get it going and I was proud of the effort we put forth tonight."
 
Central Washington led by as many as six points in the first half before WOU went on an 11-2 run to take a 29-26 lead over CWU with 7:42 left in the half.  The Wildcats regained the lead on a Ross trey with 5:43 to go, and the teams traded leads before the Wolves entered halftime with a slight 40-39 edge.
 
Western Oregon went on a 14-6 run to start the second half and built a nine-point cushion at the 14:47 mark.  Ladd helped tie the game up, scoring on three-consecutive possessions, and a layup by Rademacher gave the Wildcats their first lead of the second half with 10:05 left in regulation.
 
With just over two minutes left a three pointer by the Wolves' Julian Nichols allowed the visitors to take a 74-73 lead. 
 
That was the last time the Wildcats allowed their opponent to better them on the scoreboard as CWU sank its final seven attempts from the charity stripe ending with the final 81-77 victory.
 
The Wolves were led by Nichols who finished with a game-high 29 points, making 5 of 8 three pointers on the night.
 
"Tonight we took a step forward," Sparling added.  "It was nice to be back at home, but we need to get better.  We are not where we need to be, no one in the GNAC is, so we need to keep focused on becoming the best team we can possibly be."
 
Up next the Wildcats take on Concordia University (Ore.) this Saturday at 7:30 p.m.