• Complete Release (pdf)
 
GNAC/PACWEST CHALLENGE
Cannon Activities Center / Laie, Hawaii

FRIDAY, NOBEMBER 16 --
(#9) Seattle Pacific vs. Hawaii Pacific, 7:00 p.m. PST (5:00 HST)
• LiveStats: http://eis-web1.byuh.edu/apps/athletics/livestats/bball/xlive.htm
 
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 17 --
(#9) Seattle Pacific at BYU-Hawaii, 9:30 p.m. PST (7:30 HST)
• LiveStats: http://eis-web1.byuh.edu/apps/athletics/livestats/bball/xlive.htm
• Webcast: http://tv.byuh.edu/livestream/livestream.php
 
For the second straight season the Falcons fly 5,360 miles round trip to Laie, Hawaii for the GNAC/PacWest Challenge men's basketball tournament at the Cannon Activities Center. Ninth-ranked Seattle Pacific embarks on the voyage to the Oahu for two games, beginning on Friday, Nov. 16 against Hawaii Pacific (0-0) at 7 p.m. Pacific Time (5 p.m. Hawaii Time).  On Saturday, Nov. 17, the Falcons clash with host BYU-Hawaii (0-1) in a 9:30 PST game (7:30 HT). SPU and the Seasiders meet for the fifth time in the last four year, including two times last season when the Falcons swept a pair of games. The SPU men are on the road for three weeks before returning to Brougham Pavilion for a Dec. 8 non-conference game against Evergreen State.
 
Recent Recap
SPU started the season last weekend with a pair of wins in its own Sodexo Tip-Off Classic. David Downs topped four Falcons in double-digit scoring with 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting in an 85-65 win over Academy of Art. They led just 34-30 at halftime, but shot 58 percent in the second half (15 of 26) to pull away. Andy Poling scored 15 points and Riley Stockton had a 12-point, 10-rebound double-double in a 72-53 victory over Azusa Pacific. SPU was the only team to go undefeated in the two-day tournament. The Falcons drew a split of their two exhibition games, losing 77-71 at Idaho (Oct. 27) before beating Pacific Lutheran 72-48 at home (Nov. 2).
 
Falcons Fast Facts
Sophomore guard Riley Stockton is the nephew of NBA Hall of Famer John Stockton who compiled a record 15,806 assists during his 19-year career with the Utah Jazz ...  Patrick Simon is a 6-foot-8 junior transfer from Washington State who scored 10 points in his SPU debut last week  ...  As a prep pitcher at Faith Christian High School, Jobi Wall tossed a perfect game and hit for the cycle in a five-inning contest during the 2008 Colorado state Class 3A playoffs ... SPU owns the longest current playoff streak among NCAA Division II men's basketball teams. The Falcons earned eight straight postseason berths dating to 2002.
 
2012 Review
The SPU men registered a 23-8 record last year and finished third in the GNAC with a 13-5 mark. They won two playoff games before losing 56-50 at eventual national champion Western Washington in the West Region championship game. Point guard David Downs and center Andy Poling were first-team All-GNAC performers.
 
GNAC Race
The Falcons are seeking to win their fifth GNAC championship since the league was formed in 2001-02.  They captured the 2010 and 2006 conference titles outright. SPU shared the 2007 GNAC crown with Seattle University and in 2002 finished in a three-way tie with Humboldt State and Western Washington.
 
2012 Preview
Fourth-year coach Ryan Looney returns four starters from last season's 23-8 squad that made its eighth straight playoff appearance. Heading the list of returnees are 2012 All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference selections David Downs and Andy Poling. Downs (6-2, Jr., PG) is the top returning scorer in the GNAC who led SPU with 15.6 points per game. Poling (6-11, Sr., C) transferred from Gonzaga prior to the 2010-11 season. He is the league's leading returning rebounder with 7.4 rebounds per game in 2012 while scoring at a 15.4-point clip. Those two are joined on this year's preseason All-GNAC team by Jobi Wall and newcomer Patrick Simon. Wall (6-6, Sr., F) averaged 11.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game last season. Simon (6-8, Jr., F) is a transfer from Washington State who averaged 2.6 points in limited duty last year. Four other lettermen return, led by starter Riley Stockton (6-4, So., G) and backup center Cory Hutsen (6-8, Jr., C). Stockton is the nephew of Hall of Famer John Stockton, the NBA's all-time assist leader. An impressive cast of newcomers includes athletic Montana State transfer Shawn Reid (6-4, Jr., F) and freshman Brendan Carroll (6-4, Fr., G) from Brisbane, Australia.
 
Scouting Hawaii Pacific (0-0)
> The Sea Warriors were picked 10th in the preseason PacWest coaches poll.
 
> HPU lost its top-six scorers from last season's squad that posted an 11-15 record and placed eighth in the league with a 6-12 mark. Senior 6-foot-9 center Marko Cukic is the top returning scorer at 5.7 points per game.
 
> Friday marks the Sea Warriors first game, but they played three exhibition contests. They lost 64-63 at Santa Clara and 75-67 at Hawaii before beating Tahiti 99-51.
 
> The Falcons won the last six meetings to take a 6-2 series lead over HPU. The most recent encounter resulted in a 70-52 SPU win on Nov. 18, 2011 in Seattle.
 
> Fourth-year SPU coach Ryan Looney has a 1-0 record against the Sea Warriors.
 
Scouting BYU-Hawaii (0-1)
> The Seasiders, national runners-up in 2011, were projected for a third-place finish in the preseason poll of PacWest Conference coaches.
 
> BYUH features 6-2 senior guard Okesena Ale and 6-7 junior forward Bracken Funk, who were both named to the preseason All-PacWest squad.
 
> The Seasiders lost their season opener 84-78 against defending national champion Western Washington on Nov. 12 in Laie despite 27 points from DeAndra Medlock.
 
> The Falcons won the last three meetings to take a 10-1 series advantage. They defeated then No. 3-ranked BYUH 76-65 on Nov. 19, 2011 in Seattle and were 89-76 victors on Dec. 10, 2011 in Laie, Hawaii.
 
> In his fourth season at SPU, Coach Ryan Looney has a 3-1 record vs. the Seasiders.
 
Terrific Transfers
The Falcons roster is bolstered by the addition of NCAA Division I transfers Shawn Reid and Patrick Simon. A 6-foot-4 junior forward, Reid was the second-leading scorer at Montana State, averaging 10.6 points and 3.3 rebounds in 2012. He started 10 games, including a Feb. 15 contest against Weber State during which he made five 3-pointers en route to a career-high 31-point performance. Simon is a 6-8 junior forward who played two seasons at Washington State. He averaged 2.6 points in limited duty for the Cougars, getting 15 of his 22 baskets from 3-point range.
 
Looney's Ledger
Ryan Looney begins his fourth season after directing Seattle Pacific to postseason berths in each of his first three campaigns. He has a 67-24 record at SPU. The Falcons registered a 23-8 record last year and finished third in the GNAC with a 13-5 mark. They won two playoff games and advanced to the West Region final before losing 56-50 to eventual national champion Western Washington. In 2011, SPU was 20-10 and upset fifth-ranked Central Washington in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Looney led SPU to a 22-6 record in 2010 and became the first coach to direct the Falcons to a conference championship in his inaugural season. He was voted the 2010 GNAC Coach of the Year. 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, 37, has a 162-79  career record, including a 95-55 ledger in five seasons with Eastern Oregon. He directed EOU to back-to-back NAIA Tournament appearances in 2008 and 2009.
 
Eight Great Years
Seattle Pacific boasts the longest current playoff streak among NCAA Division II men's basketball programs, a stretch of eight years that dates to 2005. The Falcons posted a 169-67 record over those previous eight seasons, more victories than any GNAC 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, 22-6 in 2010, 20-10 in 2011 and 23-8 last season. The 169 combined wins are the second-highest eight-year total in school history, topped only by a 174-win run from 1995 to 2002. The Falcons advanced to the national semifinals in 2006.
 
GNAC Coaches Poll
Seattle Pacific, which returns four starters from a team that advanced to the 2012 West Region final, was selected as the favorite to capture the Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's basketball championship by the preseason coaches' poll. In addition, SPU placed a league-high four players on the 15-man preseason all-conference team. The Falcons collected eight of 10 first-place votes en route to a 97-point total. Defending national champion Western Washington was projected to place second by the GNAC coaches, receiving the remaining two first-place votes for 90 points. Central Washington was selected third with 79 points, followed by Alaska Anchorage (70), Montana State Billings (49), Western Oregon (41) and Northwest Nazarene (34). Alaska Fairbanks and Saint Martin's tied for ninth with 31 points and Simon Fraser had a 10th-place total of 28. Among the Falcons four individuals honored were unanimous preseason picks David Downs and Andy Poling, who were all-conference team members in 2012. They are joined on this year's early GNAC squad by Jobi Wall and newcomer Patrick Simon. SPU claimed four league championships in the past 11 seasons.