SEATTLE (Interstat) — Saint Mary’s built a large first-half lead and survived a fierce Seattle rally to escape with a 72-70 men’s basketball victory Wednesday night at Key Arena.

The Gaels led 35-28 at halftime and by as many as 18 points in the first half before the Redhawks stormed back. Seattle outscored Saint Mary’s 42-37 after intermission but fell just short. Mikey Lewis led Saint Mary’s with 22 points, while Jun Seok Yeo paced Seattle with 20.

Saint Mary’s improved to 24-4. Seattle dropped to 16-12 before an announced crowd of 2,507. The Gaels capitalized on Seattle’s 15 turnovers, scoring 25 points off them, and held an 8-3 edge in offensive rebounds.