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2013 NCAA DIVISION II MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT
West Regional / Carver Gymnasium / Bellingham, Wash.
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Tuesday, March 19 (Regional Championship)
(#3) Seattle Pacific vs. (#1) Western Washington, 8:30 pm
 
These longtime Northwest rivals have met 126 times on the court, including three previous encounters this season. Only twice before have the stakes been this high. Only fourth-ranked Western Washington stands in the way of Seattle Pacific advancing to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Tournament. The second-ranked and No. 3-seeded Falcons (27-3) clash with top seed WWU (29-2) on Tuesday, Mar. 19 in the West Regional championship game. That will be their fourth clash this year. Tip-off is 8:30 p.m. at Carver Gym in Bellingham where SPU beat No. 5 Cal Poly Pomona 67-54 in Monday's region semifinal. The only other times these Great Northwest Athletic Conference foes met in the regional championship were last season, when WWU won 56-50 at home en route to the 2012 NCAA title, and 2006 when the Falcons parlayed an 81-77 victory in Seattle into a third-place national finish. Tuesday's winner earns a trip to Louisville, Ky. for the Elite Eight on Mar. 28 and 30. SPU advanced to the Elite Eight in 2000 and 2006,
 
Notable
SPU's 11-game win streak is its longest since a school-record stretch of 15 wins in 2002 ... The Falcons tied their single-season victory record of 27 set in 2000 (27-5).
 
Pacific Northwest Powers
Tuesday's encounter is a rematch of last season's NCAA West Regional championship game in Bellingham on Mar. 12. The Vikings beat SPU 56-50 to earn a trip to the Elite Eight. They won their next three playoff contests, capped by a 72-65 victory over Montevallo in the national championship game. The SPU men also possess an impressive postseason pedigree. They participated in the last nine NCAA Tournaments, dating to 2005, the longest current playoff streak among Division II competitors. The Falcons advanced to the Final Four in 2000 and 2006, finishing third both times.
 
Something's Gotta Give
The West Regional championship battle of Northwest rivals features a stark contrast in styles. There is a 22.1-point difference between what the Vikings score and SPU allows. Western ranks ninth nationally with an offense that produces 84.5 points per game. The Falcons counter with the nation's No. 26 defense that surrenders an average of just 62.4 points to opponents. Both teams rank among the national leaders in scoring differential. WWU is fifth at plus-16.4 and SPU is sixth at plus-13.9.
 
NCAA Title Tilt in Atlanta
The NCAA is celebrating the 75th Division I Men's Basketball Championship in 2013. As part of the celebration, all three men's basketball division championship games will be played in the same city and weekend. The Division II national championship game will be played on April 7 at Phillips Arena in Atlanta, Ga. CBS will televise that game live at 1 p.m. Pacific Time (4 p.m. Eastern).
 
Scouting Western Washington (29-2)
> Tuesday's encounter is a rematch of last year's NCAA West Regional championship game in Bellingham. The Vikings beat SPU 56-50 to earn a trip to the Elite Eight. They won their next three playoff contests, capped by a 72-65 victory over Montevallo in the national championship game.
 
> The Falcons own a 77-49 series advantage, but had lost five straight against Western before winning the last matchup 10 days ago. They beat WWU 72-70 on Mar. 9 in Lacey. Jobi Wall's last-second 3-pointer carried SPU to the GNAC Tournament title.
 
> The Vikings won this season's two regular-season contests, a 66-56 decision on Jan. 3 in Seattle and an 83-76 overtime decision on Feb. 2 in Bellingham. SPU missed eight straight free throws in the final 8:48 before Alex Weber-Brader made the second of two charity shots with 3.5 seconds left in regulation to force overtime.
 
> Western is coached for the first season by Tony Dominguez, who served as an assistant coach on the staff for the last 17 years. He replaced 27-year coach Brad Jackson who is now an assistant at Washington. Dominguez is 2-1 vs. SPU.
> In his fourth season at SPU, Ryan Looney has a 5-5 record against the Vikings.
 
Last Year's Region Final
John Allen scored 16 points and top-seeded Western Washington, limited Seattle Pacific to a season-low 28-percent shooting on Mar. 12, 2012 to claim the West Region championship with a 56-50 victory at Carver Gym. The Falcons never trailed by more than 10 points, but except for once early in the first half, they never surged into the lead. Jobi Wall produced a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds for SPU, which made just 16 of 57 shots from the field and 4 of 19 treys.
 
Famous Uncle
Sophomore 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). The 2013 GNAC Defensive Player of the Year, Riley Stockton prepped at Ferris High School in Spokane, Wash. He led all SPU players in rebounds 22 times, including a career-high 15 boards at Saint Martin's on Feb. 21.
 
We're No. 2
Seattle Pacific rose one spot into the No. 2 position in the NCAA Division II coaches poll released Mar. 12. That is the highest ranking in the school's 70-year history. The Falcons, who were ranked No. 3 last week, have been listed in the top-10 for all but one week this season. Prior to this year, their highest poll position was a No. 4 ranking achieved in both the 1994 and 2007 seasons.
 
Record Results
The current team has guaranteed the finest winning percentage in SPU history, a figure that stands at 90.0 percent and won't drop below the previous record of 84.4 percent established in 1999-2000. This year's Falcons equaled the school-record single-season win total of 27 compiled during that 2000 season.
 
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. On Saturday, Wall hit a last-second, game-winning, 28-foot 3-pointer in SPU's 72-70 GNAC Tournament victory over top-seed Western Washington.
 
20-Game Winners
The Falcons have reached the 20-win plateau for the fourth consecutive season, equaling the school record streak accomplished once before, from 1999 to 2001. They have hit the 20-win plateau 21 times overall.
 
Quoting Coach Ryan Looney on Western Washington
“To have a chance to win the whole thing you've got to beat the best and right now that's what they are. They're the defending national champions. The thing I'm most excited about is that we're giving the people what they want to see. For basketball in the Northwest it's as big a game as there can be. There are no secrets at this point the team that plays better is going to win. The homecourt always give them an edge, but our team has been very good on the road. Hopefully we can be for one more night”
 
Court Report
David Downs ranks eighth among all-time Falcons with 408 career assists and is 17th in scoring (1,126). Andy Poling is SPU's No. 12 career scorer (1,215) ... Among Division II teams, SPU ranks 3rd in assist/turnover ratio (1.53), 5th in 3-point percentage (42.2%), 7th in rebound margin (+10.1), 6th in scoring margin (+13.9) and 13th in assists (17.3) ... SPU has a 21-0 record this season in games when it has a better shooting percentage than foes.
 
SPU in the NCAAs
The Falcons are participating in the NCAA Tournament for the school-record ninth straight season, the longest current streak among Division II teams. Seattle Pacific is playing in the postseason for the 17th time in the last 20 seasons. The Falcons have now won at least one game in 19 of their 24 NCAA playoff appearances. SPU compiled a 29-23 all-time record in the NCAA playoffs and advanced to the national semifinals in 2000 and again in 2006. Last year, the third-seeded Falcons beat Dixie State (70-68) and Alaska Anchorage (80-67) before losing 56-50 to host and top seed Western Washington in the West Region championship game.
 
Remarkable Rebounders
SPU out-rebounded 27 of its 30 opponents this season. After finishing at third (+10.1) last season, the Falcons rank No. 7 nationally with a plus-10.1 rebounding margin. Sophomore Riley Stockton leads the league with 7.5   rebounds per game. If he remains atop the leaderboard, the 6-foot-4 guard would be the shortest player ever to lead the GNAC in rebounding. He topped all SPU rebounders 22 times.
 
Prolific Passers
The Falcons rank No. 13 nationally with 17.3 assists per game. That figure is all the more remarkable considering they rank just 57th in scoring at 76.3 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 leads the GNAC and is 20th nationally with 5.6 assists per game (168 total).
 
Dynamic Defense
The SPU defense ranks No. 26 nationally, surrendering 62.4 points per game. Last year's squad established a school record in that category, limiting foes to 60.7 points. The Falcons have a 13-0 record when keeping opponents under 60 points and just eight teams compiled more than 69 points. Falcons foes are shooting 41.1 percent and just two of them have reached the 50-percent plateau in a game.
 
Looney's Ledger
Ryan Looney has now directed Seattle Pacific into the playoffs in each of his four seasons as head coach. He compiled a 92-27 record at SPU. The Falcons registered a 23-8 record in 2012, 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 187-82 career record, including a 95-55 ledger in five seasons with Eastern Oregon.