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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 28 –
Alaska Anchorage at (#4) Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m. PST
Brougham Pavilion • Seattle, Wash.
 
SATURDAY, MARCH 2 –
Alaska Fairbanks at (#4) Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m. PST
Brougham Pavilion • Seattle, Wash.
 
• Webcast for both games: http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/spu.portal#
• LiveStats for both games: www.sidearmstats.com/spu/mbball
 
The second-place Seattle Pacific men's basketball team concludes the regular season this week with a pair of 7 p.m. Brougham Pavilion games against teams tied for third place. The fourth-ranked Falcons (21-3, 14-2 GNAC) host Alaska Anchorage (17-7, 10-6) on Thursday, Feb. 28. The Seawolves lost in their last eight trips to Seattle. On Saturday, Mar. 2, Alaska Fairbanks (15-9, 10-6) visits. The Nanooks lost 10 of their last 11 versus SPU.
 
Senior Salute
This week marks the final regular-season home playing appearances for SPU seniors Scott Morse, Andy Poling and Jobi Wall. They will be honored in a brief ceremony prior to Saturday's tip-off at Brougham Pavilion. That trio helped the Falcons compile an impressive 86-27 record during the last four seasons, with playoff berths every year.
 


Dynamic Defense
The SPU defense ranks No. 23 nationally, surrendering only 62.0 points per game. Last year's squad established a new school record in that category, limiting opponents to 60.7 points. The Falcons have a 10-0 record when keeping opponents under 60 points and just six teams have compiled more than 69 points. Falcons foes are shooting only 39.9 percent and none of them have reached the 50-percent plateau in a game.
 
Court Report
Andy Poling and David Downs both joined SPU's 1,000-point career club this year. Poling ranks No. 14 among all-time Falcons scorers with 1,172 points and Downs is No. 28 with 1,034 ... SPU ranks No. 4 nationally in assist-turnover ratio at 1.52 assists-per turnover. Sophomore guard Riley Stockton's 2.64 assist-turnover ratio is the nation's ninth best ... The Falcons rank No. 3 nationally with a plus-10.8 rebound differential ... SPU has a 19-0 record when posting a superior field goal percentage to opponents ... The Falcons 41.1-percent 3-point accuracy is the nation's eighth best.
 
Ranking Report
Seattle Pacific rose one spot, to No. 4 in this week's national coaches poll. The Falcons return to the fourth position they held on Jan 29, their highest ranking in six seasons, since the 2006-07 squad opened at No. 4 in the preseason poll. Since starting at No. 9 in this season's preseason poll, the SPU men have been in the top-10 every week except one, when they were 13th the week of Nov. 27. Two other West Region teams are ranked in the Top-5: No. 3 Western Washington and No. 5 Cal Poly Pomona.
 
GNAC Tournament
For the third season, the Great Northwest Athletic Conference is sponsoring a postseason tournament with the winner receiving the league's automatic berth to the NCAA Division II playoffs. The top six finishers from the regular-season standings compete in the conference tournament with the top two, Western Washington and SPU, receiving first-round byes. All games will be played at Marcus Pavilion in Lacey, Wash. on the Saint Martin's campus. The quarterfinal games are Mar. 7 with the semifinals set for Mar. 8. The Mar. 9 championship game will be televised live on Root Sports at 7:30 p.m.
 
Falcons Fast Fact
As a prep pitcher at Faith Christian Academy, SPU senior forward Jobi Wall tossed a perfect game and hit for the cycle in a five-inning contest during the 2008 Colorado state Class 3A playoffs.
 
Scouting Alaska Anchorage (17-7, 10-6 GNAC)
> The third-place Seawolves won three of their last four GNAC games. In non-conference action, they beat Division I opponents UC Riverside (66-65) and Loyola Marymount (83-77).
 
> The UAA offense features 6-foot junior guard Kyle Fossman whose 15.2-point average ranks No. 7 in the GNAC.
 
> Anchorage leads the all-time series 34-28. The Falcons won this season's first meeting 85-79 on Dec. 1 to stop a seven-game losing streak in Anchorage.
 
> The SPU men won the last eight games against the Seawolves played in Seattle, UAA's last Brougham Pavilion win was a 75-73 decision on Mar. 6, 2004.
 
> These GNAC rivals met in the NCAA West Region semifinals last season on Mar. 10, 2012 in Bellingham, Wash. with the Falcons winning 80-67.
 
> Fourth-year SPU coach Ryan Looney has a 5-4 record against the Seawolves.
 
Scouting Alaska Fairbanks (15-9, 10-6)
> The third-place Nanooks are the GNAC's most improved after finishing in last place in 2012 with a 2-16 record.
 
> UAF's Pat Voeut leads the GNAC with 127 assists, just one more than SPU's David Downs.
 
> Mick Durham is in his second year as head coach at UAF. The former Montana State head coach spent the previous three years as an assistant at New Mexico State.
 
>  SPU leads the series 52-15 and won 10 of the last 11.
 
> Fourth-year SPU coach Ryan Looney has a 6-1 record against Alaska Fairbanks.
 
20-Game Winners
The Falcons have reached the 20-win plateau for the fourth consecutive season, equaling the school record accomplished once before, from 1999 to 2001. They have hit the 20-win plateau 21 times overall.
 
Prolific Passers
The Falcons rank No. 13 nationally with 17.5 assists per game. That figure is all the more remarkable considering they rank just 52nd in scoring at 77.0 points per game. SPU registered assists on 24 of 26 baskets in an 85-79 victory at Alaska Anchorage (Dec. 1). Junior point guard David Downs is second in the GNAC and 26th nationally with 5.3 assists per game.
 
Famous Uncle
SPU sophomore starting guard Riley Stockton is the nephew of NBA Hall of Fame point guard John Stockton, who distributed a record 15,806 assists during his 19-season career with the Utah Jazz (1984-2003). Riley Stockton prepped at Ferris High School in Spokane. He led all SPU players in rebounds 17 times, including a career-high 15-board performance at Saint Martin's on Feb. 21.
 
All-GNAC Talent
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.
 
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. Reid participated in the last four games after being sidelined with an injured hand. 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 is in his fourth season after directing Seattle Pacific to postseason berths in each of his first three campaigns. He has an 86-27 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 181-82 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.