• Final Stats

ST. GEORGE, Utah – A pre-game glance backwards helped the Falcons get a win that has them looking ahead to the future.

Jobi Wall led a balanced attack with 10 points Friday and 22nd-ranked Seattle Pacific surrendered its lowest opponent point total in over three years to open the regular season with a 58-42 men's basketball victory over the host Red Storm in the first round of the Dixie State Classic at Burns Arena.

The Falcons (1-0) gained a measure of revenge over a team that beat them twice last season, including a 75-73 decision that eliminated SPU in the second round of the 2011 NCAA Division II Tournament.

“The last thing we said in the locker room before we went out was 'These guys ended our season last year and now it's payback time,'” said third-year SPU coach Ryan Looney.

He projected that Friday's victory over the two-time defending Pacific West Conference champions would prove to be an impactful result.

“This gives us a ton of confidence. It's hard to think about five months from right now, but it's wins like tonight that set the table for possible postseason play.”

Dixie coach Jon Judkins forsees the same future for the Falcons.

“These guys are going to make the NCAA Tournament. We got smashed tonight. There is no question they are a good team. They have all their guys back, they're well coached.”

The Red Storm scored just 14 first-half points and 28 in the second. Their 42 points were the fewest allowed by SPU since a 90-34 home win over Montana State Billings on Feb. 7, 2008.

Seattle Pacific advances to Saturday's 4 p.m. Pacific Time championship game against Colorado Mesa, which defeated Minot State 67-51.

The Red Storm took their final lead at 12-11 on a layup by Kimball Payne with 10:32 left in the first half. They went scoreless for the next 8:21, enabling SPU to reel off nine unanswered points and claim a 20-12 advantage.

Dixie missed seven straight shots from the field, clanked one free throw and committed four turnovers during the drought that ended when Steven Larson hit a hook shot with 2:11 showing on the clock.

The Falcons tallied the final six points of the period, including a 3-pointer at the buzzer by freshman Riley Stockton, to take a 26-14 lead into halftime.

SPU stretched the lead to as many as 19 points in the second half, starting the period with three consecutive 3-pointers. The Falcons, who made just 2 of 12 treys in the first half, hit 7 of 13 in the second.

Wall was the only double-figure scorer for SPU, which also got nine points from Andy Poling and eight apiece from Stockton, David Downs, Jake Anderson and Cory Hutsen.

Anderson grabbed eight rebounds to lead a 36-28 SPU advantage on the boards. The Falcons were credited with assists on 16 of their 22 field goals, including five each from Wall and Downs.

SPU made 43 percent of its attempts from the field (22 of 51) while the Red Storm shot 37 percent (15 of 41), including just 2-of-12 from 3-point range.

Dixie (0-1) was held to its lowest point total, and also failed to put a scorer in double figures for the first time, in six seasons as a Division II member. Solomon Jensen and Griffon Jones each had nine points to top their team.


NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL
Friday, November 11, 2011
Burns Arena/St. George, Utah

(#22) Seattle Pacific 58, at Dixie State 42

SEATTLE PACIFIC  (1-0)
Wall 4-7 0-0 10; Anderson 3-7 0-0 8; Poling 4-7 1-3 9; Downs 3-12 0-0 8; Dorman 1-3 0-0 3; Niang 0-2 0-0 0; Moll 0-0 0-0 0; Todd 0-0 0-0 0; Carel 0-0 0-1 0; WashbStockton 3-4 0-1 8; Hutsen 2-4 4-5 8; Morse 2-5 0-0 4; urn 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-51 5-10 58.

DIXIE STATE (0-1)
Groskreutz 1-4 0-0 2; Jones 3-5 3-4 9; Jensen 3-9 3-5 9; Cole 2-6 2-2 7; Massey 2-6 1-1 5; Thompson 1-1 0-0 3; Larson 1-2 0-1 2; Payne 1-3 0-2 2; Frei 1-3 0-0 2; Owen 0-0 1-3 1; Atkin 0-0 0-0 0; Clegg 0-2 0-0 0; Littlefield 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 15-41 10-18 42.

Seattle Pacific........   26   32  -   58
Dixie State............   14   28  -   42

3-point goals--Seattle Pacific 9-25 (Downs 2-8; Anderson 2-5; Stockton 2-2; Wall 2-5; Dorman 1-3; Morse 0-2), Dixie State 2-12 (Cole 1-1; Thompson 1-1; Massey 0-4; Clegg 0-2; Jensen 0-4). Fouled out--Seattle Pacific-None, Dixie State-None. Rebounds--Seattle Pacific 36 (Anderson 8), Dixie State 28 (Jensen 7). Assists--Seattle Pacific 16 (Wall 5; Downs 5), Dixie State 6 (Massey 3). Total fouls--Seattle Pacific 20, Dixie State 17. Technical fouls--Seattle Pacific-None, Dixie State-None. A-2,038.


Next game
Seattle Pacific vs. Colorado Mesa
Saturday, Nov. 12, St. George, Utah, 4:00 p.m. PST