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THURSDAY, JANUARY 12 –
Seattle Pacific at Central Washington, 7:00 p.m. PST
Nicholson Pavilion / Ellensburg, Wash.
 
SATURDAY, JANUARY 14 –
Seattle Pacific at Northwest Nazarene, 6:00 p.m. PST (7 pm MST)
Johnson Sports Center / Nampa, Idaho
 
TUESDAY, JANUARY 17 –
Seattle Pacific at Saint Martin's, 7:00 p.m. PST
Marcus Pavilion / Lacey, Wash.

• Webcast & LiveStats for all three games: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/spu/
 
SATURDAY, JANUARY 21 –
Montana State Billings at Seattle Pacific, 4:30 p.m. PST
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.

• Webcast: http://portal.stretchinternet.com/spu/
• LiveStats: www.sidearmstats.com/spu/mbball
 
Seattle Pacific's next four games feature a frenetic slate of three road games in six days. The Falcons (7-7, 3-3 GNAC) visit Central Washington (9-3, 4-2) on Thursday, Jan. 12 for a 7 p.m. game. SPU won 10 of the last 14 meetings with the Wildcats. On Saturday, Jan. 14 the Falcons travel to Nampa, Idaho to clash with Northwest Nazarene (5-7, 2-4) at 6 p.m. Pacific Time (7 p.m. Mountain). They won the last 11 encounters versus the Crusaders. SPU plays one of its two Tuesday games on Jan. 17 with a 7 p.m. game at Saint Martin's (8-5, 3-3). The Saints won the most recent meeting to halt a four-game SPU series win streak. On Saturday, Jan. 21 the Falcons return home to host Montana State Billings (9-5, 4-2) at 4:30 p.m. in Brougham Pavilion. SPU has won fourt straight versus MSUB.
 
Falcons Fast Fact
SPU sophomore Coleman Wooten and freshman Tony Miller are tied for the GNAC lead and rank No. 25 nationally in double-doubles with six apiece.
 
Ailing Falcons
A slew of injuries have depleted the SPU roster. Sophomore Gabe Colosimo and junior Sam Simpson are sidelined for the season. Senior point guard Will Parker is out with an injured foot. Sophomore Nathan Streufert missed the first eight games before returning for the last six. Sophomore transfer Trey Miller (North Dakota State) has not yet played due to injury and his return date is uncertain. That leaves 11 available players (Harry Cavell is redshirting). Two of those players are averaging 30 or more minutes per game (Tony Miller and Coleman Wooten).
 
Terrific Trio
Three players account for 60 percent of SPU's point production this season (670 of 1,110). Sophomore Coleman Wooten scores at a 16.8-point clip to top the team, freshman Tony Miller averages 16.5 points and senior Joe Rasmussen chips in 14.6.
 
Coaching Change
Grant Leep is the 12th head coach in the 73-year history of the storied Seattle Pacific program that owns the longest active playoff streak among NCAA Division II men's basketball programs. The run of 12 consecutive postseason berths stretches back to 2005. Leep succeeds Ryan Looney who compiled a 165-51 record in seven seasons at SPU before departing for Point Loma Nazarene in San Diego, Calif. Leep was an SPU assistant in each of Looney's seasons. Leep is a former prep All-American at Mount Vernon (Wash.) High School and standout collegian at Washington (1999-2002).
 
Scouting Central Washington (9-3, 4-2 GNAC)
> The Wildcats won their last three games, moving into third place in the standings.
 
> CWU's Dom Hunter leads the GNAC and ranks No. 3 nationally with a 26.0-point average while Fuquan Niles is fourth in the nation with 3.33 blocks per game.
 
> CWU leads the all-time series 73-53 despite losing 10 of the last 14 meetings. The Falcons won two of three encounters last year, including a 69-65 decision in the GNAC Tournament semifinals.
 
Scouting Northwest Nazarene (5-7, 2-4 GNAC)
> The Crusaders played their last four games on the road, losing three of them.
 
> Maurice Jones tops NNU with 15.3 points and 8.2 rebounds per game.
 
> The Falcons lead the series 57-22, including wins in 11 straight and 21 of the last 23 encounters. They swept last season, winning 69-52 in Seattle and 81-71 in Nampa.
 
Scouting Saint Martin's (8-5, 3-3 GNAC)
> The Saints are in a sixth-place tie with SPU in the GNAC standings with a 3-3 record.
 
> Tyler Copp tops five SMU double-digit scorers, producing points at a 17.3-point clip.
 
> The Falcons boast a 97-35 all-time series lead and won 31 of the last 35 matchups. SMU was victorious in the most recent meeting, winning 67-63 in Lacey.
 
Scouting Montana State Billings (9-5, 4-2 GNAC)
> The Yellowjackets won five of their last six games to tie for third in the standings.
 
> The tandem of Preston Beverly (17.6 ppg) and Marc Matthews (16.2 ppg) combine to average nearly 34 points per game.
 
> The Falcons lead the series by a 39-30 margin and won the last four encounters.
 
Last Action
The Falcons split a pair of home games versus league foes from Oregon.  They fell 76-74 to Western Oregon (Jan. 5) after Coleman Wooten's last-second 3-point try came off the front rim. Joe Rasmussen's 20 points and 19 from Tony Miller were not enough to overcome the 34 points of WOU's Tanner Omlid. SPU rebounded with an 88-83 victory over Concordia (Jan. 7) powered by Wooten's career-high 27-point performance. Miller had double-doubles in both games, his fifth and sixth of the season.
 
Notable
Seven different players have led the Falcons in scoring in at least one game this season ... The Falcons projected starting lineup for Thursday (Wooten-Miller-Rasmussen-Betu-Long) combined to start just five career games prior to this season led by Coleman Wooten's three ... SPU led the nation in rebound margin in 2016 for the second year in a row, collecting 11.7 more caroms per game than opponents ... Senior Joe Rasmussen's father Blair had an eight-year NBA career in Denver and Atlanta.
 
Super Soph
Sophomore forward Coleman Wooten has a GNAC-leading six double-doubles and is averaging 16.8 points and 9.0 rebounds per game. He hauled in 10 or more rebounds in six games with a career-high 16 on Nov. 18 versus Minnesota State. Wooten compiled a career-best 27 points in the last game, against Concordia on Jan. 7. He was named the MVP of the Sodexo Tip-Off Classic (Nov. 11 & 12).
 
2017 Season Preview
You will need a roster to follow these Falcons. Along with a new coaching staff, helmed by former assistant Grant Leep, seven players will wear SPU maroon for the first time. The Falcons have some rebuilding to do, as all five primary starters were seniors from the 2015-16 squad that posted a 22-9 record. Five players return with some starting experience, but only one was in the opening lineup for more than four games last season. Leep must deal with the departure of five of the team's top-six scorers as 6-foot-8 senior center Joe Rasmussen is the top returning point producer with 6.1 per game in 2016. Also returning is senior point guard Will Parker who averaged 4.5 points and 1.5 assists while drawing 14 starts. Senior shooting guard Oliver-Paul Betu looks to have a more significant impact one year after transferring from UC Davis. Increased contributions are anticipated as forwards Sam Simpson and Coleman Wooten see increased playing time. A talented trio of local freshmen, in Sharif Khan (Bellevue HS) Gavin Long (Wenatchee HS) and Tony Miller (Woodinville HS), bolster a lineup that also features North Dakota State sophomore transfer Trey Miller.
 
2016 Season Review
The Falcons forged a 22-9 record last year in the seventh, and final, season under Coach Ryan Looney. They advanced to the GNAC Tournament semifinals before falling 58-57 against eventual champion Western Oregon. SPU participated in the NCAA playoffs for the 12th consecutive year, but suffered a 77-66 opening-round setback versus Azusa Pacific. The season featured lengthy winning streaks of nine and eight games. Senior forward Mitch Penner garnered first-team All-GNAC honors after topping the team with an 18.6-point average. Gillies Dierickx (11.4 ppg) earned second-team recognition and Bryce Leavitt (4.3 apg) was an honorable mention pick.
 
Coach Leep
Grant Leep, 36, assumes control of the SPU program in his first head coaching assignment after seven seasons as an assistant on the Falcons staff. He has a 7-7 record. Leep has strong basketball ties throughout the Northwest as an All-America player at Mount Vernon (Wash.) High School before lettering four years at the University of Washington. He still owns the Huskies 3-point accuracy records for a season (52.7% in 2002) and career (42.9%). Leep's coaching resumé includes stops at Eastern Washington and a pair of community colleges. The Falcons compiled a 165-51 (.764) record during Leep's time as an assistant coach. Two teams (2012, 2013) advanced to the West Regional championship game of the NCAA Division II Tournament. SPU twice won conference regular-season championships, in 2010 and 2014, and captured the GNAC Tournament title three consecutive years, from 2013-15.
 
Postseason Pursuit
SPU is seeking its 13th straight NCAA Tournament berth. The Falcons have been postseason participants every year since 2005, the longest consecutive playoff streak in school history. The stretch of 12 straight postseason berths is the longest current streak among Division II men's basketball teams. The Falcons advanced to the national semifinals in both 2000 and 2006, placing third both times.
 
Upcoming Action
The Jan. 21 game against Montana State Billings at 4:30 p.m. starts a three-game homestand for the Falcons, who host Alaska Fairbanks on Jan. 26 at 7 p.m. Pacific Time before entertaining Alaska Anchorage on Jan. 28 at 7 p.m. PST.