Tuesday, February 14, 2017

ROOTING FOR AN IN-STATE RIVALRY: The GNAC’s third and final ROOT SPORTS telecast will feature the great, intense in-state rivaly between Central Washington and Western Washington. The Wildcats will host the Vikings on Thursday at 8 p.m. (Pacific).

The contest will feature two teams that both have a lot to play for. While Western Washington clinched its spot in the upcoming GNAC Championships last week, the Vikings are still duking it out with Alaska Anchorage for the conference’s regular season title. Western Washington leads the GNAC in most offensive statistical categories and ranks 14th in Division II in scoring at 89.2 points per game.

Central Washington, meanwhile, needs to turn a corner to have a shot at making the tournament. After starting the season 12-3, the Wildcats have dropped seven straight games and find themselves one game back of a GNAC Championships berth at 7-9.

The contest will feature two of the top scorers in the conference. Senior Taylor Stafford of WWU is the reigning GNAC Men’s Basketball Player of the Week after he led the Vikings in scoring in both of last weekend’s wins. He is averaging 21.9 points per game, third in the GNAC and 23rd in Division II. Senior Dom Hunter of CWU is second in the GNAC and 12th in Division II with 23 points per game after transferring to Ellensburg from Western Washington.

ONLINE AND ON YOUR SCREEN: All GNAC men’s and women’s conference games can be watched for free through the conference’s Stretch Internet portal at GNAC.tv. In addition, games can also be watched for free through the GNAC’s channel on Roku.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAMS: The following GNAC players have been selected to all-tournament teams during the 2016-17 season:
Veteran’s Day Pioneer Challenge (Nov. 11-12, Hayward, Calif.): Jeffrey Parker, WWU (Most Valuable Player), Taylor Stafford, WWU.
Sodexo Tip-Off Classic (Nov. 11-12, Seattle): Coleman Wooten, SPU (Most Valuable Player), Joe Rasmussen, SPU.
Oak Harbor Freight Lines Classic (Nov. 18-19 at Seattle): Dom Hunter, CWU; Coleman Wooten, SPU.
Ron Logsdon Basketball Classic (Nov. 18-19 at Rohnert Park, Calif.): Tyler Copp, SMU.
Seawolf Jamboree (Nov. 18-19 at Anchorage): Brandon Davis, UAF; Connor Devine, UAA; Corey Hammell, UAA, Suki Wiggs, UAA (Most Outstanding Player).
Chuck Randall Classic (Nov. 26-27 at Bellingham, Wash.): Jeffrey Parker, WWU (Most Valuable Player); Daulton Hommes, WWU; Brandon Davis, UAF; Nahjee Matlock, UAF.
GCI Great Alaska Shootout (Nov. 23-26 at Anchorage): Diante Mitchell, UAA.

THIS WEEK'S GNAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Taylor Stafford
Western Washington
G • 6-1 • Sr. • Chicago, Ill.

Stafford averaged 23.5 points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals per game as the Vikings won both games and clinched a spot in the GNAC Championships. He led all scorers with 26 points on 9 of 19 from the field and 4 of 6 from three-point range in Thursday’s 73-63 win over Western Oregon, adding four rebounds, four assists and four steals. Stafford added a 21-point performance against Concordia on Saturday, connecting on 8 of 13 from the field to go along with six rebounds, four assists and four steals.

Also Nominated: Coleman Wooten (Seattle Pacific), Cole Preston (Saint Martin’s), Kedar Wright (Simon Fraser), Jace Anderson (Montana State Billings), Spencer Svejcar (Alaska Anchorage), Maurice Jones (Northwest Nazarene), Latrell Wilson (Concordia).

AROUND THE GNAC
ALASKA
• Alaska picked up another split on its home floor last week. The Nanooks took a 68-61 loss to in-state rival Alaska Anchorage on Tuesday before knocking off Montana State Billings on Thursday, 83-74.

• Senior guard Brandon Davis was the Nanooks’ leading scorer in both games. He scored 19 on 8 of 14 from the field with three steals in the loss to UAA. He then added 22 points on 8 of 11 from the field and 5 of 5 from thre free throw line against MSUB. Davis is Alaska’s leading scorer, averaging 14.2 points per game, and is second in the GNAC and 29th in Division II in steals with 2.08 per game.

• Senior guard Nahjee Matlock scored 18 points in both games, and added 7 of 11 from the free throw line, five rebounds and six assists against Montana State Billings. Matlock is second in the GNAC in assists with 4.84 per game and leads the league with a 2.33 assist/turnover ratio.

• Alaska enters the week averaging 75.5 points and 34.7 rebounds per game. The Nanooks lead the GNAC and is 14th in Division II with a 4.08 turnover margin and is 16th in Division II with 10.9 turnovers per game. Alaska is also third in the GNAC in steals at 7.24 per game.

• The Nanooks take their final regular season road trip this week, playing at Western Oregon on Thursday and at Concordia on Saturday.

ALASKA ANCHORAGE
• The Seawolves won both games last week to extend its win streak to eight games. Alaska Anchorage beat in-state rival Alaska on Tuesday, 68-61, and returned home to beat Montana State Billings on Saturday, 74-58, to clinch a GNAC Championships berth.

• Senior guard Spencer Svejcar led the Seawolves in the win over Alaska, notching a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds on 9 of 15 from the field and 4 of 7 from three-point range. He then added 17 pointd and nine rebounds against Montana State Billings. Svejcar leads the GNAC and is 15th in Division II with a .903 free throw percentage (65-72).

•  Senior guard Suki Wiggs led Alaska Anchorage against Montana State Billings with 28 points to go along with nine rebounds. Wiggs continues to lead the GNAC and is fifth in Division II in scoring at 24.3 points per game. He is also fourth in Division II in free throw attempts (196), sixth in free throws made (146), 11th in field goal attempts (417) and 14th in field goals made (191).

• Alaska Anchorage enters the week averaging 78.9 points per game and is second in the GNAC in rebounding at 40.1 per game. The Seawolves are second in Division II with a 12.0 turnover margin and seventh in scoring defense, allowing 64.1 points per game. The Seawolves also lead the GNAC in scoring margin (+14.8) , rebounding defense (28.2 allowed per game) and offensive rebounds (14.25 per game).

• Alaska Anchorage takes its final road trip of the regular season, playing at Concordia on Thursday and at Western Oregon on Saturday.

CENTRAL WASHINGTON
• Central Washington dropped its sixth and seventh straight games last week, falling 80-79 at Saint Martin’s on Thursday and 79-61 at Seattle Pacific on Saturday.

• Junior guard Jawan Stepney led the Wildcats in scoring in both games. He scored 17 points on 7 of 12 from the field against Saint Martin’s and then scored 16 with three three-pointers against Seattle Pacific.

• Senior guard Dom Hunter also scored 17 points against Saint martin’s on Thursday, which included three three-pointers. Despite quieting down in the scoring department over the last few games, Hunter continues to rank second in the GNAC and 12th in Division II in scoring with 23 points per game.

• Junior center Fuquan Niles leads the GNAC in field goal shooting at 66.2 percent (86-130), but does have enough shots to qualify for the NCAA statistics. Niles does also lead the GNAC and is ranked sixth in Division II in blocked shots at 6.1 per game.

• Central Washington is second in the GNAC in scoring, averaging 84.6 points per game, and is averaging 36.6 rebounds per game. The Wildcats are tied for first in the GNAC in blocked shots with four per game.

• Central Washington plays its final two home games of the regular season this weekend. The Wildcats will host cross-state rival Western Washington on Thursday in a game to air on ROOT SPORTS before playing host to Simon Fraser on Saturday.

CONCORDIA
• Concordia picked up a split in its final road trip of the season. The Cavaliers used a last second four-point play by Latrell Wilson to take a 74-73 win from Simon Fraser on Thursday and dropped an 87-64 decision to Western Washington on Saturday.

• Wilson scored 18 points in the game, connecting on 5 of 10 from the field, 3 of 4 from three-point range and 5 of 6 from the free throw line. He then scored 14 points in the loss at Western Washington.

• Senior forward Drew Martin led the Cavaliers against Western Washington with a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds, connecting on 7 of 15 from the field. Martin is seventh in the GNAC in scoring at 17.5 points per game and eighth in rebounding at 7.4 per game.

• Junior guard Taylor Harris was the leading scorer for Concordia against Simon Fraser, scoring 19 points on 6 of 10 from the field and 4 of 5 from the three-point arc.

• Concordia is averaging 78.7 points and 37.9 rebounds per game. The Cavaliers are third in the GNAC in blocked shots (3.96 per game) and fourth in field goal percentage (.460).

• Concordia will finish the season with a four-game home stand. The Cavaliers host Alaska Anchorage on Thursday and Alaska on Saturday.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
• Montana State Billings dropped both games on last week’s Alaska road trip. The Yellowjackets dropped an 83-74 decision to the Yellowjackets on Thursday and a 74-58 game to Alaska Anchorage on Saturday.

• Senior guard Marc Matthews had a pair of consistent, solid scoring performances on the trip. He shared the team high with 19 points on 7 of 13 from the field and six rebounds against Alaska and had 17 points on 6 of 12 from the field against Alaska Anchorage. Matthews enters the week averaging 15.5 points per game. He is also second in the GNAC with 3.08 three-pointers made per game.

• Sophomore forward Preston Beverly scored 19 points against Alaska, which included four three-pointers, and also had nine rebounds. Beverly is fourth in the GNAC in scoring at 19.2 points per game and fifth in rebounding at 8.3 rebounds per game.

• Montana State Billings enters the week averaging 81 points and 36.8 rebounds per game. The Yellowjackets are second in the GNAC in free throw percentage (.751), three-point percentage (.380) and three-pointers made (9.92 per game). They are ranked 23rd in Division II in three-pointers per game and 29th in total three-pointers made (238).

• Montana State Billings plays its final regular season home games this weekend, hosting Seattle Pacific on Thursday and Saint Martin’s on Saturday.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
• Northwest Nazarene dropped both games in the Puget Sound region last weekend. The Crusaders fell to Seattle Pacific on Thursday, 83-68, and dropped a 90-81 game at Saint Martin’s on Saturday.

• Senior guard Bouna N’Diaye had 17 points in both games. He led NNU with 17, including 9 of 11 from the free throw line, at Seattle Pacific and connected on 7 of 19 from the field at Saint Martin’s. N’Diaye leads the Crusaders and is eighth in the GNAC in scoring at 16.7 points per game. He is 22nd in Division with an average of 36:38 per game.

• Junior forward Maurice Jones had double-doubles in both games. He finished with 12 points ans 14 rebounds against Seattle Pacific and 26 points with 11 rebounds against Saint Martin’s. The double-doubles were his 12th and 13th of the season, ranking him seventh in Division II.

• Northwest Nazarene enters the week averaging 75.2 points and 37.8 rebounds per game. The Crusaders are second in the GNAC in field goal defense (.423) and third in field goal percentage (.464).

• Northwest Nazarene hosts its final two regular season home games this week in a quest to secure a GNAC Championships berth. The Crusaders host Simon Fraser on Thursday and Western Washington on Saturday.

SAINT MARTIN’S
• Saint Martin’s is on a three-game win streak after a pair of home wins. The Saints collected an 80-79 win over Central Washington on Thursday and a 90-81 win over Northwest Nazarene on Saturday.

• Senior guard Cole Preston led Saint Martin’s in the win over Northwest Nazarene with 22 points on 6 of 12 from the field, 9 of 12 from the free throw line and seven assists. Preston had 17 assists in the two games. He continues to lead the GNAC and 14th in Division II with 6.1 assists per game.

• Sophomore guard Rhett Baerlocher had another solid effort in the win over Central Washington, leading the Saints against Central Washington with 20 points o 7 of 13 from the field and 6 of 8 from three-point range with eight rebounds.

• Senior forward Brandon Kenilvort scored a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds against Northwest Nazarene.

• Saint Martin’s is third in the GNAC in scoring at 81.3 points per game and is also averaging 37.8 rebounds per game. The Saints are second in the GNAC in field goal percentage (.475) and three-point defense (.331) and third in scoring defense (73 points allowed per game), scoring margin (+8.3), field goal defense (.427) and defensive rebounds (27.50 per game).

• Saint Martin’s is on the road for the final four games of the regular season as they fight for a GNAC Championships berth. The Saints are at Seattle Pacific on Tuesday and at Montana State Billings on Saturday.

SEATTLE PACIFIC
• Seattle Pacific picked up two big wins to keep its GNAC Championship hopes alive. The Falcons scored an 83-68 win over Northwest Nazarene on Thursday and a 79-61 win over Central Washington on Saturday.

• Thanks to the two wins, the Falcons were selected as the Red Lion/GNAC Team of the Week.

• Freshman forward Tony Miller led the Falcons against Northwest Nazarene with 24 points, connecting on 9 of 15 from the field and 3 of 4 from three-point range. He sat out Saturday’s game. Miller enters the week fifth in the GNAC in scoring at 18.3 points per game and third in rebounding at 9.3 per game. He is 11th in Division II with 12 double-doubles and is 24th with seven defensive rebounds per game.

• Sophomore forward Coleman Wooten picked up the slack in Saturday’s win, finishing with 24 points to go along with nine rebounds. He also connected on 11 of 15 from the free throw line. Wooten enters the week sixth in the GNAC in both scoring and rebounding with 17.5 points and 8.2 boards per game.

• Senior center Joe Rasmussen scored 15 points in both games. He made 4 of 6 from the field and 6 of 8 from the free throw line against NNU and hit 6 of 12 from the field against CWU.

• Seattle Pacific is averaging 79.4 points per game and leads the GNAC in rebounding at 40.3 per game. The Falcons are third in the GNAC in three-point defense (.333), rebounding margin (+4.8) and offensive rebounds (12.29 per game). Seattle Pacific ranks 18th in Division II in free throw attempts (648) and 29th in free throws made (436).

• The Falcons close out the home schedule on Tuesday against Saint Martin’s and play at Montana State Billings on Thursday.

SIMON FRASER
• The streak is over! After taking a close 74-73 loss in the final seconds to Concordia on Thursday, Simon Fraser surged for a 68-63 victory over Western Oregon on Saturday.

• The win snapped an 18-game losing streak that dated back to a loss to Cal Baptist on Nov. 20, and it also snapped a GNAC record 20-game losing streak in GNAC games that dated back to Feb. 13, 2016. Ironically, the GNAC streak started and ended against Western Oregon.

• Junior guard Kedar Wright led the Clan in scoring in both games. He shared top honors with 21 points with five rebounds and six assists in the loss to Concordia and then added 17 points, connecting on 7 of 16 from the field, in the win over Western Oregon. Wright is Simon Fraser’s top scorer, averaging 14.4 points per game.

• Freshman guard Michael Provenano also scored 21 in the loss to Concordia, connecting on 8 of 14 from the field and 3 of 4 from three-point range. Provenzano continues to rank fourth in the GNAC in assists at 3.83 per game and ninth in free throw percentage (.829).

• Simon Fraser enters the week averaging 68.8 points and 38.5 rebounds per game. Among the individual stats, JJ Pankratz is seventh in three-point percenrage (.429) and blocked shots (1.08 per game).

• Simon Fraser takes its final road trip of the season this week, playing at Northwest Nazarene on Thursday and at Central Washington on Saturday.

WESTERN OREGON
• The Wolves took two losses on its final long road trip of the regular season. Western Oregon dropped a 73-63 game at Western Washington on Thursday and lost 68-63 at Simon Fraser on Saturday.

• Despite the losses, the Wolves control their own destiny for the GNAC Championships. Western Oregon enters the week in third at 10-6 and is 13-11 overall.

• Junior guard Ali Faruq-Bey led the Wolves in both contests. He finished with 20 points at Western Washington to go along with five rebounds, four assists and three steals. He then scored 16 points at Simon Fraser, which included 8 of 9 from the free throw line. Faruq-Bey is averaging 14.8 points per game.

• Junior forward Tanner Omlid finished with 19 points against Western Washington on 7 of 17 from the field and then added a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds with three steals against Simon Fraser. Omlid leads WOU in scoring at 15 points per game and is ninth in the GNAC at 7.3 rebounds per game. Omlid leads the GNAC and is first in Division II with 3.43 steals per game. He also leads Division II with 79 total steals.

• Western Oregon enters the week averaging 74.8 points and 33.9 rebounds per game. The Wolves shared the GNAC lead in blocked shots (4.00 per game) and is second in the GNAC and 11th in Division II in turnover margin (4.3). Western Oregon also leads the GNAC and is 12th in Division II with 9.08 steals per game.

• Western Oregon plays three of its final four regular season games at the New PE Building. The Wolves host Alaska on Thursday and Alaska Anchorage on Saturday.

WESTERN WASHINGTON
• Western Washington won both home games over the weekend to clinch its spot in the GNAC Championships. The Vikings scored a 73-63 win over Western Oregon on Thursday and beat Concordia on Saturday, 87-64.

• The win allowed the Vikings to climb three spots to No. 20 in the NABC Division II Coaches Poll. Western Washington is still among teams receiving votes in the D2SIDA Media Poll.

• Senior guard Taylor Stafford was named the GNAC Men’s Basketball Player of the Week after he led the Vikings in both games. He scored 26 points against Western Oregon, connecting on 9 of 19 from the field, 4 of 6 from three-point range and 4 of 5 from the free throw line. He then scored 21 points on 8 of 13 from the field and had six rebounds against Concordia. Stafford enters the week third in the GNAC and 23rd in Division II in scoring at 21.9 points per game. Stafford is also third in the GNAC with four assists per game.

• Senior forward Jeffrey Parker added 19 points in the win over Concordia. He enters the week ninth in the GNAC in scoring at 16.5 points per game and is sixth in free throw percentage (.859) and eighth in three-point percentage (.422).

• Junior forward Deandre Dickson just missed a double-double against Western Oregon, finishing with 18 points and eight rebounds.

• Western Washington leads the GNAC and is 14th in Division II in scoring at 89.2 points per game. The Vikings top the GNAC in free throw percentage (.787), field goal percentage (.498), three-point percentage (.413), assists (15.42 per game) and defensive rebounds (28.00 per game). Western Washington is eighth in Division II in free throw percentage, 13th in three-point percentage and 20th in field goal percentage.

• Western Washington plays Thursday at Central Washington in a game which will air on ROOT SPORTS. The Vikings will then play at Northwest Nazarene on Saturday.