Gators Begin Title Defense with 87-69 Win Against Bellevue

PASCO, Wash. - The Green River Gators began their title defense with an 87-69 victory over Bellevue in the final game of the Sweet 16 at the 2025 NWAC Men's Basketball Championship presented by Golf Universe on Saturday night at Columbia Basin College.

A matchup featuring the past two champions was back-and-forth for much of the contest before the Gators began to pull away late. After trailing by five at halftime, the Gators outscored Bellevue 52-29 in the second half. Jayden Wright was a huge part of the second half surge as 21 of his 29 points came in the final 20 minutes.

Wright finished the game with a game-high 29 points to go with 14 rebounds, four steals and three assists for the double-double. Chase Degraffenried had 24 points and seven rebounds, making four of six three point attempts. Degraffenried started the game with three-straight three pointers for the Gators.

Bellevue was able to take a halftime lead thanks in part to an 8-for-14 shooting performance from beyond the arc. However, the shots cooled off in the second half as they went just 1-for-12 from long range.

The Gators made great work of their free throw attempts, converting 25-for-29 for the game including 20 in the second half. Kesler Vaughan had 17 points and Logan Weidauer had 12 points.

For the Bulldogs, Darek Usitalo had 21 points and 10 rebounds. Cooper Brown added 15 points off the bench with all his points coming from the three ball with five made three pointers.

The Gators will continue their title defense on Sunday, taking on Southwestern Oregon at 4 p.m. in the final game of the week.