• Complete Release (pdf)


SPU INVITATIONAL
Brougham Pavilion • Seattle, Wash.

Webcast for all games: www.PennAtlantic.com
LiveStats for all games:  www.sidearmstats.com/spu/mbball

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 3 --
(#24) Central Washington vs. Grand Canyon, 5:00 p.m. PST
(#23) Chaminade vs. Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m. PST

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 4 --
(#24) Central Washington vs. (#23) Chaminade, 5:00 p.m. PST
Grand Canyon vs. Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m. PST

This weekend's SPU Invitational at Brougham Pavilion features a fabulous four-team field of NCAA Division II men's basketball teams. Host Seattle Pacific (2-2) opens with 23rd-ranked Chaminade (5-2) on Friday, Dec. 3 at 7 p.m. The Silverswords are coming off a 68-64 upset of Oklahoma in the Maui Invitational. On Saturday, Dec. 4 at 7 p.m., the Falcons have a rematch with Grand Canyon (2-3), a team they beat 79-68 in Phoenix on Nov. 27. Rounding out the field is No. 24 Central Washington (4-0), which plays those same two opponents in reverse order at 5 p.m. both days. The high-scoring Wildcats (89.5 ppg) boast six double-figure scorers. This is the final home appearance for the SPU men until their Great Northwest Athletic Conference opener vs. Western Oregon on Dec. 30.

Live Game Coverage
LiveStats and a free webcast will be available for all SPU Invitational games. The webcast can be accessed at: www.PennAtlantic.com
LiveStats are available at: www.sidearmstats.com/spu/mbball

Recent Recap
The SPU men drew a split on their first road trip of the season at the GCU Thanksgiving Classic in Phoenix, Ariz. They lost 88-82 to Fort Lewis (Nov. 26) despite shooting 55 percent and getting 31 points and 10 rebounds from Chris Banchero. He tied his career high the next night (Nov. 27) with 34 points in a 79-68 win over Grand Canyon.

Brilliant Banchero
Senior point guard Chris Banchero was named the GNAC Player of the Week (Nov. 29) after posting back-to-back 30-point performances last weekend. He is currently averaging 24.8 points per game. Banchero was brilliant during the exhibition season, averaging 33.7 points in three outings. He tallied 38 points in a win at Eastern Washington (Nov. 2) and keyed an SPU win at Nevada with 33 points (Nov. 6). Banchero was named the 2010 GNAC and West Region Player of the Year. He posted double-figure points in all but three games last season. Banchero led every SPU scorer 18 times and reached the 20-point plateau on 16 occasions. He poured in a career-high 34 points against Central Washington (Feb. 25). Banchero averaged 19.6 points to rank No. 2 in the conference. He led all GNAC scorers during league games with 21.1 points per game.



Notable
SPU transfers Andy Poling (6-11, Gonzaga) and Modou Niang (6-10, Utah State) are the tallest tandem in Falcons history ... The team that led at halftime won all four of the Falcons games this season.

Scouting Chaminade (5-2)
> The Silverswords gained national attention for a 68-64 upset of Oklahoma on Nov. 24 in the Maui Invitational. They opened the season with wins over GNAC members Western Oregon (77-66) and Saint Martin's (73-58).

> Chaminade features 5-foot-6 point guard Steven Bennett, who averages 15.9 points and 5.6 assists, and 7-foot center Mamadou Diarra, who averages 15.3 points and 10.0 rebounds. Bennett was named to the All-Maui Invitational Team.

> Matt Mahar is in his sixth season as coach at Chaminade with an 86-57 record.

> These teams haven't met since they were both members of the Pacific West Conference from 1992-2001. SPU owns a 12-5 series lead, including an 8-1 mark in Seattle. Chaminade won the last meeting 103-96 on Jan. 6, 2001 in Hawaii.

> Second-year SPU coach Ryan Looney has never coach against the Silverswords.

Scouting Grand Canyon (2-3)
> The Antelopes clash for the second time in eight days with SPU, which won 79-68 on Nov. 27 in Phoenix behind 34 points from Chris Banchero.

> Second-year GCU coach Russ Pennell was the interim head coach at Arizona in 2008-09 and directed the Wildcats to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.

> Grand Canyon leads the series 11-6 despite losing the last two meetings against SPU. The Falcons were 70-57 victors on Dec. 19, 2009 in the last Seattle encounter.

> Second-year SPU coach Ryan Looney has a 2-1 record against the Antelopes.

SPU BASKETBALL TICKETS...

Tickets for SPU basketball games can be purchased at Brougham Pavilion (3414 Third Ave. W., Seattle 98119) on game day. Ticket windows open one hour before tip-off. Reserved seats are $8 for center court locations and $7 for other sideline areas. General admission tickets are priced at $6 for adults and $3 for students and senior citizens. Groups or teams of 10 or more may qualify for special GA rates by calling (206) 281-2085 at least 72 hours in advance. SPU students and staff are admitted free with i.d.

Exhibition Recap
Senior Chris Banchero reached the 30-point plateau in all three games, leading SPU to a 3-0 exhibition record. The Falcons registered a pair of victories over NCAA Division I opponents. They won 87-82 at Eastern Washington (Nov. 2) led by Banchero's 38 points and nine assists. He led SPU to an 84-81 win with 33 points at Nevada (Nov. 6). Banchero scored 30 and Andy Poling added 20 points and 16 rebounds in an 88-76 home win over Northwest University (Nov. 9).

My Three Sons
The Downs family has a legacy with the SPU men's basketball program that began with father Mike who was a four-year Falcons letterman from 1974-77. He is the head boy's basketball coach at Bellevue (Wash.) Christian High School. His three sons are part of the current SPU squad. Jeff is a senior starter in the backcourt who averaged 8.9 points last season while leading the team with 50 treys. Younger brother, David, is a freshman point guard. Oldest brother, Dan, joined the staff this season as an assistant coach. All three brothers hail from Kirkland, Wash. and played for their father at Bellevue Christian.

2011 Preview
The Seattle Pacific men return three starters from last year's team that posted a 22-6 record and made its sixth straight NCAA Tournament appearance. Heading the list of returnees is senior point guard Chris Banchero (Seattle, Wash.), the reigning GNAC and West Region Player of the Year. Banchero averaged 19.6 points and 2.9 assists while converting 52 percent of his shots from the field. A pair of front-line starters are back; senior Ryan Sweet (Port Orchard, Wash.) and junior Jake Anderson (Burlington, Wash.). Sweet tallied 10.3 points and a team-high 7.8 rebounds per game in 2010. Anderson averaged 6.7 points and 4.9 rebounds. The Falcons front line will be bolstered by the addition of two towering transfers from Division I schools. SPU added 6-foot-11 sophomore Andy Poling (Portland, Ore.) from Gonzaga and 6-10 junior Modou Niang (Richard Toll, Senegal) from Utah State.

GNAC Poll
Seattle Pacific was picked to repeat as Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's basketball champion in the preseason coaches poll. The Falcons collected eight of 10 first-place votes and got a pair of seconds en route to a 98-point total. SPU returns three starters from last season's team that captured the GNAC crown with a 13-3 record. Projected to place second by the GNAC coaches, Central Washington received one first-place vote and 88 points. Montana State Billings was selected third (72 points) followed by Alaska Anchorage (71), which picked up the remaining first-place vote. Western Washington holds down the No. 5 spot (64) followed by Northwest Nazarene (48), Saint Martin's (39), Western Oregon (31), Alaska Fairbanks (29) and first-year conference competitor Simon Fraser (10). SPU, which is the poll favorite for the second year in a row, will be gunning for its fifth GNAC title including its fourth in the past six years.

Magnificent Marksmen
The Falcons combined to shoot 50.8 percent from the field last season, the fourth-best figure among NCAA Division II teams. They finished the 2009 campaign as the nation's second-best shooting squad at 51.8 percent. SPU shot at or above 50 percent 17 times last year, topped by a 66-percent effort against Carroll College (Dec. 4). They won 14 of 15 games when eclipsing the 50% plateau. The SPU men were undefeated in 20 games when their field goal shooting was superior to opponents.

Six-Year Run
The Falcons registered a 126-49 record over the last six seasons, more victories than any Great Northwest Athletic Conference team during that span. SPU compiled a 20-9 record in 2005, 26-6 in 2006, 18-10 in 2007, 21-8 in 2008, 19-10 in 2009 and 22-6 last season. The 126 combined wins are the second-highest six-year total in school history, topped only by a 131-win run from 1997 to 2002. The Falcons competed in six straight NCAA Division II Tournaments (2005-10), advancing to the national semifinals in 2006.

Looney's Ledger
Ryan Looney led Seattle Pacific to a 22-6 record in 2010 and became the first coach to direct the Falcons to a conference championship in his inaugural season. Looney, who led his alma mater Eastern Oregon University to the quarterfinals of the 2009 NAIA Division II Tournament, was hired May 26, 2009 as the coach at SPU. He won his opening nine games on the SPU sidelines, the first coach to win more than his first three for the Falcons. Looney, 35, has a 119-63 (.654) career record and was voted the 2010 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Coach of the Year. He compiled a 95-55 record in five seasons with Eastern Oregon and directed EOU to back-to-back NAIA Tournament appearances in 2008 and 2009.

2010 Review
Coach Ryan Looney directed SPU to a 22-6 record, its sixth straight NCAA Tournament appearance and a No. 18 final ranking during his first season. He was named the 2010 GNAC Coach of the Year and Chris Banchero was the conference and West Region Player of the Year. The Falcons posted a first-place mark of 13-3 in league play. They lost 76-72 to BYU-Hawaii in the first round of the playoffs in Bellingham, Wash. One of SPU's signature victories was a 78-72 home win on Dec. 5 over that same BYU-Hawaii squad that was ranked No. 1 at the time. The Falcons will look to replace two starters, All-GNAC honorable mention guard Brandon Larrieu and forward Rob Diederichs, who set a new conference single-game record with 19 assists on Feb. 25.