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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 15 –
Seattle Pacific at Western Washington, 7:00 p.m. PST
Carver Gymnasium / Bellingham, Wash. / ROOT SPORTS TV
 
SATURDAY, JANUARY 18 –
Seattle Pacific at Simon Fraser, 7:00 p.m. PST
West Gym / Burnaby, B.C.
 
• Webcast & LiveStats for both games:
http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/spu.portal#
 
First place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference is up for grabs on Wednesday, Jan. 15 when NCAA Division II men's basketball powers Seattle Pacific and Western Washington clash. The game in Bellingham's Carver Gymnasium will be televised live at 7 p.m. on ROOT SPORTS. Second-place SPU (13-4, 4-2) was the 2013 GNAC Tournament champion while the first-place Vikings (10-3, 4-1) were the regular-season titlists last year. On Saturday, Jan. 18, the Falcons travel to Burnaby, B.C. Canada for a 7 p.m. game against Simon Fraser (7-6, 0-5). SPU won all 10 previous meetings against the Clan.
 
Pacific Northwest Powers
Wednesday's encounter is a rematch of last season's NCAA Division II West Regional championship game in Bellingham on Mar. 19. The Vikings edged SPU 62-58 to earn a trip to the Elite Eight. The Falcons had won the previous meeting, claiming the GNAC Tournament championship with a 72-70 victory on Mar. 9 in Lacey, Wash. on a last-second 3-pointer by Jobi Wall. These two rivals also met in the 2012 NCAA regional final and WWU won 56-50 en route to the national championship. 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.
 
Something's Gotta Give
The battle of Northwest men's basketball rivals features a stark contrast in styles. There is a 22.7-point difference between what the Vikings score and SPU allows. Western ranks 11th nationally with an offense that produces 89.8 points per game. The Falcons counter with the nation's No. 35 defense that surrenders an average of just 67.1 points to opponents. Both teams rank among the national leaders in scoring differential. WWU is 33rd at plus-12.4 and SPU is 40th at plus-11.1.
 


GNAC Race
Picked first in the preseason coaches poll, the Falcons are seeking their fifth GNAC championship since the league was formed in 2002. 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.

Falcons Fast Facts
Senior David Downs ranks No. 4 nationally in 3-point accuracy at 55.3 percent (52 of 94) ... The Falcons rank No. 3 nationally is fewest turnovers per game (8.9) and 11th in field goal accuracy (51.0%) ... Patrick Simon hit a school-record 10 three-pointers on Nov. 29 against San Francisco State ... All eight returning Falcons registered their career-best single-game scoring high this year: David Downs (34), Patrick Simon (33), Cory Hutsen (24), Mitch Penner (22), Riley Stockton (15), Brendan Carroll (15), Ryan Todd (6) and Josh Jordan (2).
 
Scouting Western Washington (10-3, 4-1 GNAC)
> The Vikings boast a school-record 36-game home winning streak. The current stretch of 19 consecutive GNAC victories at Carver Gymnasium is one shy of their own league record of 20 set between 2004-07.
 
> The Falcons own a 77-50 series advantage, but lost six of the last seven meetings. SPU's lone win in that stretch was a 72-70 decision on Mar. 9 in the 2013 GNAC Tournament title game. Jobi Wall's last-second 3-pointer carried SPU to the conference championship.
 
> The Vikings won last 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.
 
> The Falcons lost their last four games against the WWU at Carver Gym directly after winning six straight games in Bellingham.
 
> Western is coached for the second 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 3-1 vs. SPU.
 
> In his fifth season at SPU, Ryan Looney has a 5-6 record against the Vikings.
 
Scouting Simon Fraser (7-6, 0-5 GNAC)
> Located in Burnaby, B.C., Simon Fraser became the first college from outside the United States to join the NCAA and the GNAC in 2010-11.
 
> The Clan's Justin Cole ranks third among GNAC players with 1.69 steals per game and Sango Niang is third in assists with 5.1 per game.
 
> The Falcons won all 10 previous meetings vs. Simon Fraser, sweeping the series last year. They were 86-69 victors on Jan. 5, 2013 in Seattle and won 90-56 on Jan. 31 at SFU.
 
> In his fifth season at SPU, Ryan Looney has a 6-0 record against the Clan.
 
Junior 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. The 6-foot-4 guard last year became the shortest player to lead the GNAC in rebounding at 7.5 boards per game.
 
Dynamic Downs
Senior David Downs is a preseason All-American and was voted the GNAC Preseason Player of the Year by the league's coaches. The 6-foot-2 point guard is averaging a team-high 20.9 points and 4.5 assists. A two-time, first-team all-conference selection, Downs ranks No. 5 among all-time Falcons with 488 career assists. His 1,488 career points place him sixth among all-time SPU scorers, 33 points behind No. 5 Howard Heppner (1,521 from 1963-66). Downs was the Nov. 11 GNAC Player of the Week and the MVP of both the Disney Tip-Off Classic and GNAC/PacWest Challenge. He is shooting a remarkable 55.3 percent (52 of 94) from 3-point range to rank No. 4 nationally. Downs was a Division II Bulletin All-American last year and the MVP of the 2013 GNAC Tournament after leading SPU to the championship.
 
2014 Preview
Six of his top seven scorers back from last season's 24-7 squad that reached the NCAA regional final. An impressive trio of returning starters is headlined by point guard David Downs, the GNAC Preseason Player of the Year. The 6-foot-2 senior received the 2013 GNAC Tournament MVP award after leading SPU to the championship. Downs was the Falcons second-leading scorer with 14.2 points per game and led all GNAC playmakers with 170 assists (5.5 per game). Also back is senior Patrick Simon, a second-team all-conference forward, and junior guard Riley Stockton, an honorable mention pick. Simon scored at a 13.4-point clip and made 66 treys on 46-percent shooting. Stockton led the league with 7.5 rebounds per game and was named the 2013 GNAC Defensive Player of the Year. Six other lettermen return, led by Cory Hutsen (6-8, Jr.) who averaged 9.2 points as the backup center. An impressive cast of newcomers includes Division I transfers Matt Borton (6-5, Jr., G, Idaho) and Jake Ehlers (6-7, So., F, Portland) along with 6-8 freshman center Joe Rasmussen, whose father Blair had a eight-year NBA career in Denver and Atlanta. SPU must fill voids left by starters Jobi Wall and Andy Poling. Wall, a forward, led the Falcons in scoring (14.3 ppg) and topped the nation in 3-point field goal accuracy at 48.9 percent. Poling averaged 10.1 points and 3.9 rebounds from his center position.
 
100 & Counting
Fifth-year coach Ryan Looney registered his 100th victory on the SPU sidelines with a 73-54 home win on Dec. 5 versus Northwest Nazarene. He is the fourth coach in school history to post 100 wins and hit the century mark faster than any of his predecessors, doing so in his 130th game. Previously the quickest to 100 wins on the SPU sidelines was current Washington State coach Ken Bone who took 146 games to reach that milestone in his sixth season with the Falcons. A 105-32 record gives Looney fewer Falcons wins than only Les Habegger (267), Bone (253) and Jeff Hironaka (134).
 
Ryan Looney directed Seattle Pacific into the playoffs in each of his previous four seasons as head coach. He has a 105-32 record at SPU. The Falcons registered a 27-4 record last year, equaling the school standard for single-season victories while establishing the best winning percentage (87.1%) in the 70-year history of the program. They won the 2013 GNAC Tournament title after placing second in the standings with a 16-2 conference record. SPU won two playoff games before losing 62-58 at Western Washington in the West Region championship game. In 2012, the Falcons compiled a 23-8 record and lost 56-50 to eventual national champion WWU in the regional final. In 2011, SPU was 20-10 and upset fifth-ranked Central Washington in the first round of the NCAAs. 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. Looney, 38, who led his alma mater Eastern Oregon to the quarterfinals of the 2009 NAIA Division II Tournament, was hired May 26, 2009 as the coach at SPU. He was a 200-87 career record, including a 95-55 ledger in five seasons with Eastern Oregon.