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THURSDAY, JANUARY 13 --
(#17) Central Washington at Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m. PST
Brougham Pavilion • Seattle, Wash.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 15 --
Northwest Nazarene at Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m. PST
Brougham Pavilion • Seattle, Wash.

Webcast for both games: http://spu.nmtvsports.com
LiveStats for both games: www.sidearmstats.com/spu/mbball

The Seattle Pacific men's basketball team (8-4, 2-2 GNAC) has hit a critical juncture. They need to produce during a five-game homestand that begins Thursday, Jan. 13 against 17th-ranked Central Washington (11-2, 4-1) to offset a late road-heavy schedule. The Falcons go forward without the services of All-American point guard Chris Banchero, who is out for the season. SPU and Central tip-off at 7 p.m. in Brougham Pavilion where the Falcons entertain Northwest Nazarene (5-7, 1-4) on Saturday, Jan. 15. CWU won seven of the last nine clashes with SPU. The Falcons won the last five meetings against NNU.

Ticket Talk
SPU basketball tickets can be purchased at Brougham Pavilion on game day. Reserved center court seats are $8 and other sideline seats are $7. General admission tickets are $6 for adults and $3 for students & senior citizens. Groups or teams of 10 or more may qualify for special general admission rates by calling (206) 281-2085 in advance.

Recent Recap
The SPU men drew a split last week in Alaska. Jeff Downs scored 10 of his career-high 25 points inside the final four minutes of an 84-61 win at Fairbanks. Andy Poling had 10 points and grabbed 10 boards to lead the Falcons' 45-20 rebounding advantage. SPU then lost its first full game without Chris Banchero, falling 78-61 at Anchorage despite a combined 30 points from the Downs brothers. Jeff had 18 points and Dan, a freshman starting in place of Banchero, had 12 points and seven assists. SPU completed the non-conference portion of its schedule with a 6-2 record that included a 79-65 home victory over 23rd-ranked Chaminade (Dec. 3), which had beaten NCAA Division I Oklahoma.

Banchero Sidelined
All-American Chris Banchero's brilliant collegiate career was cut short by a knee injury suffered last week. SPU's senior point guard had scored six straight points before being fouled under the Falcons basket with 12:52 left in the first half of Thursday's (Jan. 6) 84-61 win at Alaska Fairbanks. A medical exam on Monday revealed that Banchero sustained a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee. The 2010 GNAC and West Region Player of the Year, Banchero garnered All-America accolades after his 19.6 points per game led the Falcons to a 22-6 record. SPU won the GNAC title and made its sixth straight NCAA Division II playoff appearance. Banchero was scoring at a 24.0-point clip this season, including a career-high 42-point performance at Dominican (Dec. 18).



Homecoming Next Week
Seattle Pacific's annual Homecoming basketball doubleheader is set for Saturday, Jan. 22 at Brougham Pavilion. The women host Western Oregon at 1:30 p.m. and the men meet Montana State Billings at 3:30 p.m. Large crowds are expected and advanced tickets are recommended. Tickets can be securely purchased online at: https://quikpayasp.com/spu/commerce_manager/payer.do?orderType=ATH-Homecoming The basketball doubleheader is just one of numerous Homecoming events on campus from Thursday, Jan. 20 through Saturday, Jan. 22. For a complete schedule of activities, please visit the official SPU Homecoming website at: www.spu.edu/events/homecoming/

Scouting Central Washington (11-2, 4-1 GNAC)
> The 17th-ranked Wildcats are undefeated in their three road games this season.

> Central is the 24th-highest scoring team in the nation with 84.5 points per game. Five players average double-figure points, led by the 17.0 ppg of Chaminade transfer Jamar Berry. Chris Sprinker leads the league with 2.2 blocks per game.

> The Wildcats lead the series 68-42 and won seven of the last nine meetings. SPU won the most recent clash, a 100-92 decision on Feb. 25, 2010 in Seattle.

> In his second season at SPU, Ryan Looney has a 1-1 record against the Wildcats.

Scouting Northwest Nazarene (5-7, 1-4 GNAC)
> The Crusaders, from Nampa, Idaho, feature a balanced attack with five double-figure scorers. Drew Eisinger scores at an 11.8-point clip to lead the team.

> Expect a rugged board battle Saturday as SPU (+8.7) and NNU (+6.2) are the GNAC's top two teams in terms of rebounding margin.

> SPU leads the series 45-22, including wins in nine of the last 10 meetings. The Falcons swept the 2010 encounters, capped by an 87-68 win on Feb. 11 in Seattle.

> The Crusaders lost in their last 12 visits to Seattle Pacific and have not won at Brougham Pavilion since Nov. 7, 1984.

> Second-year SPU coach Ryan Looney has a 2-0 record against NNU.

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 Downs brothers hail from Kirkland, Wash. and played for their father at Bellevue Christian.

TV Time
The SPU men will appear on live television at least twice this season on FSN Northwest. Their Wednesday, Jan. 26 home game against Western Washington airs at 7 p.m. Pacific Time. The Falcons' Feb. 9 contest at Central Washington will be broadcast at 7 p.m. The March 4 GNAC Tournament championship game airs at 5 p.m. on FSN.

GNAC Race
SPU is seeking to win the GNAC championship for the fourth time in six years. The Falcons captured the 2010 and 2006 league titles outright and shared the 2007 crown with Seattle University. SPU was predicted to win the conference title by the annual coaches poll, receiving eight of 10 first-place votes en route to a 98-point total. Projected to place second, Central Washington collected 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. SPU, which is the poll favorite for the second year in a row, will be bidding for its fifth GNAC title.

Fast Fact
Transfers Andy Poling (6-11, Gonzaga) and Modou Niang (6-10, Utah State) are the tallest tandem in Falcons history.

Home Sweet Home
The Falcons have a 4-2 record this season in Brougham Pavilion where they were victorious in 35 of their last 41 games. SPU was 14-1 last year at home. Brougham Pavilion seats 2,650 spectators. It was built in 1953 and renovated in 1992.

2010 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.

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 125-65 (.658) career record, including a 30-10 mark at SPU. He was voted the 2010 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Coach of the Year. Looney 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.

Six-Year Run
The Falcons posted a 126-49 record over the previous 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.

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.