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SEATTLE – Perseverance on the bench led to performance on the court Saturday for Will Parker.
 
In a reserve role, Parker tallied 12 of his career-high 15 points during the first half Saturday as Seattle Pacific took control early en route to a 76-64 Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's basketball victory over Alaska Fairbanks at Brougham Pavilion.
 
The Falcons (14-4) improved to 6-2 in league play with their 14th win in the last 15 encounters with UAF. They swept this week's homestand from the Alaska schools, including Thursday's 73-51 triumph over Anchorage.
 
Fairbanks (5-10) dropped to 2-5 in GNAC games with its third straight setback.


 
Parker (Sammamish, Wash./Skyline HS) gave SPU a large lift off the bench, hitting 6 of 7 shots from the field, including all three of his 3-point attempts. The 5-foot-10 point guard compiled his 15 points in just 17 minutes and surpassed his previous single-game high of 12.
 
"It's nice to have a guy like Will we can bring in off the bench at that spot to give us a spark," said SPU coach Ryan Looney.
 
That outstanding performance from Parker enabled the SPU reserves to outscore their counterparts by a 31-10 margin.
 
"It might have been good for him to sit there and watch what was going on a little bit," Looney explained. "Fairbanks really played off of our shooters, trying to prevent us from getting it into the post.
 
"Will was able to sit there and watch for a little while to see what shots would be available, and then took advantage of it."
 
Parker bolstered a backcourt that produced 46 of the Falcons points.

 

Senior guards Matt Borton and Riley Stockton each registered a double-double for the Falcons. Borton (Yakima, Wash./West Valley HS) tallied 13 points and 10 rebounds while Stockton (Spokane, Wash./Ferris HS) chipped in 12 and 11.
 
That duo helped SPU to a 49-35 advantage on the boards.
 
"They've both been warriors," Looney said of Borton and Stockton. "They've been our two best defenders all year long and obviously are both rebounding it at a high level too. Offensively they're doing a nice job, but that's probably the third thing in line for them."
 
Mitch Penner (Seattle, Wash./Kennedy HS) gave the Falcons a fourth double-digit scorer with 12 points.
 
Anthony Reese scored 18 points to lead the Nanooks, who also got 16 from Almir Hadzisehovic and 10 from Eric Fongue.
 
A layup by Fongue six minutes into the contest drew Fairbanks even at 12-12. He had 10 of his team's points up to that juncture, but would not score again.
 
SPU responded with an 11-3 run, getting points from five different players, to break ahead 23-15 with 8:24 left in the opening half. Fairbanks missed eight of its nine shot attempts during that span.
 
The visitors rallied to trim the margin to 30-27 on a 3-pointer by Ashton Edwards at 3:38. But the Falcons finished the period with a 13-4 scoring surge to claim a 43-31 halftime lead.
 
SPU shot 53 percent during the first half (16 of 30) while holding the Nanooks at 33 percent (11 of 33).
 
After intermission the Falcons were limited to 30-percent accuracy from the floor (9 of 30), but managed to match UAF's 33-point second-half total.
 
"It was ugly. Fairbanks did a nice job defensively keeping it out of the post on us," said Looney. "But at the end of the day if you want to have a chance to have a successful season you have to win some games like tonight."

 

After a free throw from Brendan Carroll gave SPU its largest lead, at 52-36 with 15:08 left to play, the Nanooks never got closer than 10 points the rest of the way.
 
The Falcons play five of their next seven games away from home, including a three-game road trip that begins at Montana State Billings on Saturday, Jan. 24. The Falcons next Brougham Pavilion game is Feb. 5 at 7 p.m. against Western Washington.
 
"Traditionally for us there hasn't been much difference in regards to our performance at home or on the road. So, we'll be ready to play whether it's away from Seattle or here in Royal Brougham," Looney concluded.
 
 
NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL
Saturday, Jan. 17, 2015
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
at Seattle Pacific 76, Alaska Fairbanks 64
 
ALASKA FAIRBANKS (5-10, 2-5 GNAC)
Fongue 4-7 0-0 10, Hadzisehovic 6-11 4-5 16, Reese 8-14 2-3 18, Duncan 3-8 1-2 7, Edwards 1-12 0-0 3, Griffin 2-8 2-2 8, Ladines 1-3 0-0 2, Tomlinson 0-2 0-1 0, Robinson 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 25-67 9-13 64.
 
SEATTLE PACIFIC (14-4, 6-2 GNAC)
Penner 4-8 4-4 12, Hutsen 1-3 0-0 2, Stockton 4-8 2-2 12, Carroll 1-7 3-4 6, Borton 4-10 5-7 13, Parker 6-7 0-0 15, Reid 2-5 4-5 9, Rasmussen 3-5 1-2 7, Swanson 0-7 0-0 0, Leavitt 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-60 19-24 76.
 
Alaska Fairbanks.......   31   33 -   64
Seattle Pacific........   43   33  -  76
 
3-point goals--UAF 5-21 (Fongue 2-2, Griffin 2-7, Edwards 1-6, Tomlinson 0-1, Duncan 0-2, Reese 0-3), SPU 7-24 (Parker 3-3, Stockton 2-3, Carroll 1-5, Reid 1-2, Swanson 0-6, Penner 0-2, Borton 0-3). Fouled out--UAF-None, SPU-None. Rebounds--UAF 35 (Hadzisehovic 6), SPU 49 (Stockton 11). Assists--UAF 12 (Hadzisehovic 4), SPU 8 (Stockton 3). Total fouls--UAF 16, SPU 16. Technical fouls--UAF-None, SPU-None. A-281.
 
 
Next Men's Basketball Game
Seattle Pacific at Montana State Billings
Saturday, Jan. 24, 6:00 p.m. PST
Alterowitz Gymnasium / Billings, Mont.
 
 
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