SPU CLASSIC SCHEDULE
Friday, Dec. 16                Concordia-Portland vs. Nova Southeastern, 5:00 p.m.
                                            Seattle Pacific vs. Concordia Irvine, 7:00 p.m.
                                            Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
 
Saturday, Dec. 17           Concordia-Portland vs. Concordia Irvine, 3:00 p.m.
                                             Seattle Pacific vs. Nova Southeastern, 5:00 p.m.
                                             Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
 
LIVE WEBCASTS (all games)   
LIVE STATS (all games)


        Weekly release, with complete updated stats (PDF)
        SPU Classic Tournament Central (HTML)

SEATTLE – One opponent is from just down the West Coast. The other is from the opposite corner of the country.
 
Both will provide the Seattle Pacific Falcons with their final two tune-up opportunities before they head full-on into the heart of their women's basketball schedule.
 
Concordia Irvine and Nova Southeastern, along with Great Northwest Athletic Conference stablemate Concordia-Portland will make the trip to the Northwest this weekend for the SPU Classic tournament in Brougham Pavilion.
 
The two-day tournament will feature two games each day. Concordia-Portland is in the first game both days, at 5 p.m. on Friday against Nova Southeastern, and at 3 p.m. on Saturday against Concordia Irvine. SPU has the opposite opponent, at 7 p.m. on Friday vs. Irvine and 5 p.m. on Saturday vs. Nova.
 
These will be the third and fourth games of a seven-game homestand for Seattle Pacific, the last four of which will take them fully into their GNAC schedule.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
All four tournament games will have a live Webcast and live stats available. The Webcast will be through Stretch Internet, the official Internet provider of the Great Northwest Athletic conference. The appropriate links can be found at the top of this story.
 
TICEKT TALK
Tickets will be available at the door of Brougham Pavilion, with windows opening 60 minutes prior to tip-off time. Prices are $9 for adult reserved, $6 for adult general admission, and $3 for youths, students with identification, and senior citizens age 65 and older. One ticket each day is good for both games on that day. SPU students, faculty and staff members with proper school identification are free.
 
HEISEY APPROACHING 400th WIN
SPU coach Julie Heisey is almost at another milestone in her distinguished coaching career: her 400th victory.

 

Heisey comes into this week with 399 wins, having notched the latest one last Saturday with a 54-48 decision against Cal State Los Angeles in Brougham Pavilion. Now in her 21st season overall, her career mark is 399-205.
 
Of those 399 wins, 237 have come at SPU, where Heisey is in her 12th year. She is 237-86 with the Falcons after a nine-year tenure at Trevecca Nazarene in Nashville, Tenn., where she went 162-119 before coming to the Pacific Northwest in 2005.
 
Heisey's 200th and 300th victories came in Brougham. The 200th was a 68-59 triumph against crosstown rival Seattle U on Feb. 3, 2007. Then, No. 300 was a 64-43 rout of Central Washington on Feb. 12, 2011.
 
PRESNELL ON MILESTONE MARCH, TOO
Heisey isn't the only coach with SPU connections on the brink of a big win. Gordy Presnell, who spent 18 seasons in charge of the Falcons before taking the head coaching job at Boise State, is one away from his 600th.

 

Presnell, in his 12th season with the Broncos, was in Seattle with his team last Sunday to take on Washington, ranked No. 11 in Division I. But the Huskies rolled to a 92-66 victory.
 
So, his next opportunity at No. 600 will be this coming Sunday, Dec. 18, at home against the University of Portland Pilots in a non-conference game.
 
Presnell racked up 396 of his 599 wins from 1987-88 through 2004-05 at Seattle Pacific. His teams won five conference titles, three regional titles, and played in the 2005 Division II national championship game.
 
SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- The Falcons are still the stingiest team in the country in terms of points allowed, ranking No. 1 in Division II at 46.8 per game.
-- This will be SPU's first game against Concordia Irvine and Nova Southeastern.
-- Irvine is a Pacific West Conference member, and the Falcons already have two wins against schools from that circuit this season: 90-39 vs. Fresno Pacific in the season opener on Nov. 11 in Seattle, and 75-49 against Azusa Pacific on Nov. 19 at the West Region Crossover Classic in Bellingham.
-- Nova Southeastern of the Sunshine State Conference will be SPU's sixth opponent from Florida. In 1993, the Falcons played four Florida schools, beating West Florida in Seattle, 95-71, then going 1-2 on a three-game road trip: a 78-51 win at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, an 89-61 loss at Florida Tech in Melbourne, and a 78-62 loss at Florida Atlantic in Boca Raton. The other Florida opponent was Barry College, a 64-51 win at home in 2000.
-- Last Saturday's 54-48 victory at home against Cal State Los Angeles was Seattle Pacific's lowest offensive output of the season.
-- On the other hand, the Falcons kept their opponent below 50 points for the sixth time in eight games.
-- Both games will count in SPU's overall record, but only the Concordia Irvine contest will count for West Region rankings. The Falcons already have seven in-region victories in their eight games, the lone exception being the 88-47 rout of NAIA member Evergreen State on Nov 22.
-- In eight games, junior forward Courtney Hollander has led the Falcons in scoring four times, and junior forward Erica Pagano has done so three times.
-- The win against Cal State L.A. came after Seattle Pacific trailed at the half, 24-23. It was the first time this season the Falcons have been behind heading into the intermission.
 




SCOUTING THE CONCORDIA IRVINE EAGLES: 5-4, 2-2 PAC WEST (tie 7th)
All-time series: First game. Eagles on the Web.
Eagles in a nutshell: After dropping its first two games of the year, Concordia Irvine has won five of its past seven. The Eagles split a pair of Pac West games last week, beating Fresno Pacific, 66-57, but falling to Point Loma Nazarene, 79-66. Setting the offensive pace for Concordia is 5-foot-7 junior guard Sopavy Seng, with an average of 11.1 points per game. Zoe Scott-Goss, a 5-10 junior guard, is near double digits at 9.6 per contest, and comes up with an average of 2.4 steals..Ugochi Anudokem, a 6-1 freshman guard, is averaging 8.0 rebounds per game, tied for No. 8 in the Pac West. Gaby Johnson, a 5-10 senior forwards pulls down 7.0 boards per game to go along with her 8.4 scoring average. Montana Walters, a 5-4 junior guard, dishes assists at an average of 5.1 per game, ranking No. 2 in the Pacific West.
 
SCOUTING THE NOVA S'EASTERN SHARKS: 7-2, 4-1 SUNSHINE STATE (3rd)
All-time series: First game. Sharks on the Web.
Sharks in a nutshell: Nova Southeastern has been one of the best programs in the country for four straight years. It qualified for three consecutive Division II Elite Eights: 2013 (lost to Western Washington in the first round), 2014 (made it to the semifinals), and 2015 (lost in the first round). Last season, the Sharks came up short in the South Region semifinals. During those four years, they put together an overall record of 103-27, a .792 winning percentage. Nova comes to Seattle off a 75-71 win against Lynn in a conference game last Saturday. At 70.6 points per game, this will be the highest-scoring opponent SPU has played this season. Christen Prasse, a 5-foot-9 junior guard, leads the Sharks in scoring at 14.1 points per game, shoots 46 percent from the field, and hands out 6.1 assists each night. Samantha Logan is just two rebounds away from averaging a double-double. The 5-10 senior guard / forward had averages of 10.7 points and 9.8 rebounds in nine games. She shoots at a .500 clip overall (34 of 68) and is sharp from 3-point range at 42 percent (22 of 52). Also in double-digit scoring is 5-5 redshirt senior guard Taylor Buie (11.3).
 
FALCON REPLAY
-- Courtney Hollander scored seven of her game-high 13 points during the fourth quarter last Saturday, and Julia Haining came up with a blocked shot at one end of the court that led to her own lay-up at the other end as Seattle Pacific kept its record perfect with a 54-48 non-conference victory against Cal State Los Angeles.

POLLING PLACE
Despite playing just one game last week, Seattle Pacific made a big jump in the latest Women's Basketball Coaches Association national poll. The Falcons climbed nine places to No. 14, receiving 230 points. Ashland of Ohio, with its 10-0 record, leads with 595 points, slightly ahead of 10-0 California (Pa.), with 570.
 
The last time SPU was that high in the WBCA poll was at No. 15 on Feb. 17, 2015.
 
In the D2SIDA national poll, which is voted upon by sports information directors, the Falcons climbed one place to No. 8. Ashland also is on top of that list.
 
The D2SIDA West Region rankings find Seattle Pacific at No. 2, just four points behind top-ranked Alaska Anchorage.

BRINGING BACK THE YEOMAN
It's rare to see or hear the phrase 'yeoman's effort' anymore. But its definition – good, honest, dependable hard work – is still very much alive.
                     
That's particularly true when Julia Haining comes into the game.

 

After two years on the sidelines (2013-14 as a redshirt freshman, 2014-15 with a knee injury), Haining saw somewhat limited playing time last winter. Now, she's coming off the bench as a regular part of SPU's rotation, and is making the most of it.
 
In the eight games so far, Haining has grabbed at least one rebound in all of them, and scored at least two points in seven of them. She also has one or more steals in seven games.
 
In the three contests to start off December,  Haining had lines of 8 points-5 rebounds-2 assists-1 steaal-.750 shooting (3 of 4) at Western Oregon, then 8 points-1 rebound-1 assist-3 steals-.571 shooting (4 of 7) at Concordia, and finally 7 points-8 rebounds-1 steal-2 blocked shots-.500 shooting (3 of 6) against Cal State Los Angeles.
 
For the season, she has career-best averages of 5.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.6 steals, 1.3 assists, and is shooting .548 from the floor – all in 12.6 minutes per game.

COACH JULIE HEISEY SAYS …
(On Concordia Irvine)
"They're running the dribble drive and playing really aggressive defensively. Montana Walters is an outstanding point guard. She's tiny (5-4), but she gets to the rim, and can really shoot it deep. She poses a challenge. They're really athletic."
 
(On Nova Southeastern)
"They're very, very good offensively. It's kind of like when we played UC San Diego – they run things that you don't see every day, so they're very difficult to guard."
 
(On the improvement in limiting turnovers)
"We knew we had to get better offensively, and you're not going to do that if you don't take care of the ball. We've made a big point every day in practice of trying to track turnovers."

EIGHT IS GREAT
With last Saturday's win against Cal State L.A., the Falcons are 8-0 for the fifth time in school history, and for the second time since Julie Heisey became head coach in 2005
 
The four previous teams that won their first eight all went on to the NCAA West Region title game, and two of them won that game to advance to the Division II Elite Eight. The 1997-98 squad went 12-0 before falling by three to Western Washington, but ultimately qualified for the Elite Eight and finished with a 27-3 record.
 
The 2002-03 team went 29-0 before it season ended with a loss to Cal State Bakersfield in the West Region final. Then the very next season, SPU went 30-0 before losing in the first round of the Elite Eight.
 
Heisey's 2007-08 team went 29-0 before falling six points short of Alaska Anchorage in the West Region championship game
 
Here is how Heisey's teams have fared through eight games:
8-0:   2016-17, 2007-08.
7-1:   2014-15, 2013-14
6-2:   2012-13. 2011-12. 2010-11, 2009-10, 2008-09, 2005-06
5-3:   2015-16, 2006-07

BOOST FROM THE BENCH
Since the subject is yeoman's efforts, that could apply in a big way to SPU's bench bunch as a whole.
 
Through the first eight games, the Falcon reserves have accounted for 38 percent of the team's scoring (218 of 570 points). That's an average of 27.2 points of SPU's 71.7 average. They've grabbed 117 rebounds, nearly 36 percent of the 328 total, an average of 14.6 per game.

 

In addition, the reserves have 72 of the 147 assists (49 percent, an average of 9.0) and 45 of the 95 steals (47 percent, an average of 5.6).

"We've talked all along that we're not going to be successful unless we use our depth," coach Julie Heisey said. "We've won a lot of games because of our bench. We're able to continue to play aggressive defense, we're getting good scoring out of them, and they're taking care of the ball. Whether it's Bri (Lasconia), Lindsay (Lee), Julia (Haining), Hannah (Rodrigues) – every one of them is really good."
 
NATIONALLY SPEAKING
Among the 302 programs in D2, SPU is …
-- 1st in scoring defense (46.8)
-- 3rd in field goal defense (.313)
-- 9th in scoring margin (+24.5)
-- 13th in assists per game (18.4)
-- 16th in assist / turnover ratio (1.27)
-- 23rd in steals per game (11.9)
-- 30th in rebound margin (+8.8)
-- 41st in free throw shooting (.750)
-- 48th in total assists (147)
-- 53rd in fewest turnovers (116)     
-- 56th in field goal shooting (.434)
 
Click on this link to see how the Falcons stack up nationally in all statistical categories. Click on this link to see how other GNAC teams and players rank.
 
AROUND THE WEST
While most GNAC teams are focused on their final non-conference games between now and the end of December, Alaska Anchorage did have a GNAC contest last week, beating in-state rival Alaska Fairbanks, 73-57, to take over sole possession of first place at 3-0 (7-1 overall). SPU (8-0) and Northwest Nazarene (4-2) are both 2-0 in conference play. Simon Fraser did not play and remains 9-2 overall.
 
Stanislaus State likewise took over the California Collegiate Athletic Association's top spot at 3-0, though its overall record is just 5-6. The best mark in the conference belongs to Cal State San Bernardino at 5-1 (2-0 in CCAA play).
 
The best mark in the Pacific West is Cal Baptist's 11-2, including a 3-0 conference record. Matching that 3-0 start is Academy of Art, though its overall record is 5-4. Dixie State (0-9, 0-3 Pac West) remains the only winless team in the West Region.

 
AROUND THE GNAC
Click on this link for news, notes, results, and stats from around the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.
 
UP NEXT
Following this week's games, the Falcons will begin a week-long Christmas break that is a mandated part of the Division II calendar. They will return to practice on Dec. 27 to prepare for their first two GNAC home games of the season. Central Washington is in Brougham Pavilion on Thursday, Dec. 29, at 7:00 p.m., followed by Northwest Nazarene on New Year's Eve Saturday, Dec. 31, at 2:00 p.m.
 
Both teams have an SPU connection. Former assistant coach Randi Richardson is in her second year as the lead assistant at Central, and former assistant Steve Steele is in his first year as the NNU head coach.


GNAC STANDINGS
                                                Conference          Overall
Alaska Anchorage                     3-0                       7-1
Seattle Pacific                            2-0                       8-0
Northwest Nazarene                2-0                       4-2
Simon Fraser                             1-1                       9-2
Western Washington                1-1                       6-2
Western Oregon                        1-1                       4-4
Concordia                                  1-1                       3-5
Montana State Billings             1-1                       3-6
Central Washington                  0-2                       5-5
Saint Martin's                             0-2                       4-4
Alaska Fairbanks                      0-3                       4-6