THE SCHEDULE
Thursday, Jan. 19               Alaska Anchorage at Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 
Saturday, Jan. 21               Alaska Fairbanks at Seattle Pacific, 2:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats

 
        Weekly release, with complete updated stats (PDF)

SEATTLE – They've returned home. But things don't get any easier for the Seattle Pacific Falcons this week.
 
Looking to bounce back from losses at Simon Fraser and Western Washington, SPU closes the first half of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference schedule by hosting Alaska Anchorage, ranked No. 2 in the media poll and No. 5 in the coaches poll, on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. in Brougham Pavilion.
 
Then on Saturday, Alaska Fairbanks will come to town for the first half of a women's-men's doubleheader. The Falcons and Nanooks tip off at 2:00 p.m., followed by the SPU men against Montana State Billings at 4:30 p.m.
 
Seattle Pacific begins the week tied for fourth place in the GNAC with Northwest Nazarene at 5-3 after last Thursday's defeat at Simon Fraser, 71-61, and Saturday's at Western Washington, 71-53.
 
Alaska Anchorage is the last undefeated team in conference play (8-0) and also has the GNAC's best overall mark at 15-1. Fairbanks is in the middle of the standings at 3-5.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
Both 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.

HOMECOMING IS UPCOMING
Homecoming and the culmination of Seattle Pacific's 125th anniversary celebration is just three weeks away.
 
On the basketball court, the SPU women will take on Simon Fraser in the first game of a women's-men's doubleheader, tipping off at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 11. The Falcon men play Central Washington at 4:00 p.m.

 
Homecoming Saturday starts at 9:15 a.m. with the Falcon Hall of Fame induction ceremony at 9:15 a.m. It will take place in the Fine Center at First Free Methodist Church, which is located on 3rd Avenue West, directly across from campus. Honorees will include men's soccer coach Cliff McCrath, his 1978 NCAA national championship team, coach Virginia Husted, and SPU stalwart John Glancy. Tickets are $20, and those wishing to attend can register online at www.spu.edu/homecoming.
 
The day concludes with an all-athletics reunion in Brougham Pavilion following the basketball doubleheader.
 
TICKET 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. For Saturday's doubleheader, one ticket is good for both games. SPU students, faculty and staff members with proper school identification are free.
 
FALCON THURSDAYS
With GNAC play now in full swing, fans will be encouraged to wear Seattle Pacific gear to all games, but especially on Falcon Thursdays. Throughout the academic year, students, faculty, and staff on campus will be showing their maroon colors to celebrate Falcon Thursdays.





SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- After facing NCAA Division II's leading scorer in Taylor Peacocke of Western Washington last Saturday, SPU just might find itself with a similar challenge this Saturday, albeit against a different opponent. Jordan Wilson of Alaska Fairbanks begins the week averaging 22.4 points per game – tied for No. 1 with Peacocke. The Falcons did manage to slow down the WWU star, limiting her to just 11 points on 5-of-18 shooting.
-- Wilson didn't rack up big point totals against SPU last season, but did shoot very well both times: 15 points on 6-of-10 in a 58-56 Nanooks win at Fairbanks, and 13 on 6-of-7 in SPU's 57-49 victory at Seattle.
-- The Falcons will be looking to bounce back from their lowest scoring output and lowest field goal percentage of the season (53 points and 31.6 percent shooting at Western).
-- The game on Thursday against Alaska Anchorage will be SPU's second against a nationally ranked opponent this season.
-- The first of those was on Nov. 18 against then-No. 17 UC San Diego at the West Region Crossover Classic in Bellingham. The Falcons won, 62-45.
-- Seattle Pacific is 9-1 in Brougham Pavilion. Anchorage is 7-0 on the road; Fairbanks is 2-2 on the road.
-- Regardless of what happens this week, the Falcons are guaranteed to have a better record at the midpoint of the GNAC schedule than they did last year. SPU will be at least 5-5; last year's 10-game mark was 3-7.
-- The Falcons are looking for their first win against Anchorage since Ryan McCarthy became the Seawolves' head coach. His teams are 8-0 vs. SPU.
-- Seattle Pacific's most recent victory against Anchorage came in Brougham Pavilion on Feb. 2, 2012. That was a 67-62 decision. The Seawolves were ranked No. 8 at the time.
-- Although they aren't currently 1-2 in the standings, Seattle Pacific and Anchorage do rank 1-2 in three conference statistical categories: average points allowed, assists, and steals. In all three instances, UAA has the No. 1 spot, and SPU is No. 2.
-- Seattle Pacific ranks No. 11 nationally this week in fewest points allowed per game at 54.4.
-- Courtney Hollander double-doubled in both games against Fairbanks: 14 points and 12 rebounds at UAF, 17 and 13 at SPU.
-- Hollander continues to lead SPU in both categories: 12.2 points (12th in the GNAC) and 7.6 rebounds (3rd).
-- Coach Julie Heisey is 11-15 against Anchorage and 21-1 against Fairbanks.
 
SCOUTING THE ALASKA ANCHORAGE SEAWOLVES: 15-1, 8-0 GNAC (1st) All-time series: SPU leads, 39-26. Current series streak: UAA won 8. Last time: UAA 70, SPU 47 (Feb. 20, 2016 at Seattle). Seawolves on the Web.
Seawolves in a nutshell: Coming off its national runner-up finish in 2016, Alaska Anchorage has just kept it rolling along, even with the loss of its four top scorers, three of whom averaged in double digits. But in fact, last year's team averaged 80.4 points per game. This year's has just one player with a double-digit scoring average – 5-foot-10 senior forward Autummn Williams at 18.3 points per game – yet the team as a whole is scoring four points more per night on average at 84.4, and racked up 101 last Saturday at Northwest Nazarene. Part of that is because the Seawolves are one of the top shooting teams in Division II at 45.7 percent, ranking them No. 13. Williams shoots at a 52.5 percent clip. They are their usual stingy selves on defense, as well, sitting at No. 3 nationally by yielding just 51.3 points per game. But then, it's tough for opponents to score if they can't hang onto the ball. Anchorage, with its constant press on 'D', leads the country by forcing an average of 28.56 turnovers per game, including 17.4 steals, which also ranks No. 1. UAA's only loss is 66-57 to Division I Portland on Nov. 22.
 
SCOUTING THE ALASKA FAIRBANKS NANOOKS: 7-8, 3-5 GNAC (tie 6th)
All-time series: SPU leads, 57-14. Current series streak: SPU won 1. Last time: SPU 57, UAF 49 (Feb. 18, 2016 at Seattle). Nanooks on the Web.
Nanooks in a nutshell: After a tough stretch during which it lost five of its six games, Fairbanks begins the week having won three of its most recent five. The latest of those was last Saturday, a 69-56 victory in Alaska against Central Washington. Senior forward Jordan Wilson's scoring prowess is well known. Her 22.4 average includes four games of 30 points. The 5-foot-11 Wilson gets those points in large part because of her phenomenal shooting ability – 59.1 percent, which ranks No. 8 in Division II. She's just as deadly at the foul line, hitting 87.1 percent, making 81 of her 93 tries. But Wilson is far from the only threat for UAF. Kaylee Skjold, another 5-11 senior forward, averages 15.1 points and is nearly at a double-double by pulling down 9.5 rebounds per night, the top mark in the GNAC, and dishes out 4.1 assists, as well. Senior guard Jaylee May chips in 11.7 points per game. It was May, who converted a traditional three-point play with 6.3 seconds left, who helped Fairbanks beat SPU in Alaska last winter, 58-56, snapping the 27-game win streak that the Falcons had against the Nanooks.
 
FALCONS REPLAY
 – Jordan McPhee poured in 20 points, and Julia Haining grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds last Thursday, but Seattle Pacific was kept off the scoreboard for 4½ minutes of the fourth quarter as Simon Fraser went on an 11-0 run to beat the Falcons, 71-61.
-- Western Washington put together a 22-0 run bridging the second and third quarters last Saturday night, and Seattle Pacific never was able to climb back into it as the Vikings went on to a 71-53 victory.

FINE RESULTS AT THE LINE: FALCONS UP TO NO. 3
SPU continued its steady climb up the list of best free throw shooting teams in the country.
 
By hitting a combined 20 of 23 (86.9 percent) in last week's games at Simon Fraser and Western Washington, the Falcons have bumped their season percentage up to .797 (181 of 227). The only teams shooting better are Roberts Wesleyan College of New York (.833) and Ohio Dominican (.829).
 
SPU is making the most of a low number of opportunities. Its 227 attempts are the second-fewest among the top 10 teams on the free throw list. In fact, seven of those teams have made more free throws than the Falcons have attempted. Tops among those is GNAC rival Western Washington, with 300 makes in 385 tries.
 
 

Among the regulars, three Falcons are shooting north of 80 percent: Brianne Lasconia (.895), Courtney Hollander (.879), and Erica Pagano (.839).

In addition to moving up the national rankings, SPU's percentage finally has put it atop the GNAC. Alaska Fairbanks had been the conference leader at .806, but is now at .784.
 
When the schedule resumed following Christmas break in late December, the Falcons ranked No. 20 in Division II at .769. It was No. 5 at .789 last week.
 
One other noteworthy aspect: The .797 is just one percentage point shy of Seattle Pacific's national-winning mark of .798 for the 2012-13 season.

A BIT OF A DIFFERENT LOOK
For just the second time this season – and the first time since way back in November – coach Julie Heisey made a change to her starting lineup.

 

Senior guard Brianne Lasconia (Seattle / Shorecrest HS) was on the floor for the opening tip of last Saturday's game at Western Washington. Stepping in in for fellow senior Stacey Lukasiewicz, Lasconia responded with a team-leading 10 points. She also had four rebounds, dished two assists, and came up with one steal in 25 minutes.
 
Lasconia started 20 of last year's 26 games, averaging 6.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, and shooting .332 from the field. This season, she has been a big spark off the bench, with averages of 7.1 points, 2.2 boards, 2.0 assists, .361 shooting, and a near-perfect .895 (17 of 19) at the free throw line.
 
In the 16 games so far, Lasconia has scored in double figures six times. That includes the last three games in a row.
 
The only other time the starting five has changed this fall was on Nov. 18 when Rachel Shim started in place of Jaylee Albert. She has kept that spot ever since.
 
DOUBLE-DOUBLE DELIGHTS
The Falcons did not log any double-doubles last week. They have four for the season.
 
COURTNEY HOLLANDER (3 season / 12 career)
13 pts-14 reb vs. UC San Diego, Nov. 18
10 pts-11 reb at Concordia. Dec. 3
10 pts-11 reb vs. Central Washington, Dec. 29
 
JORDAN McPHEE (1 season / 2 career)
14 pts-10 reb at Western Oregon, Dec. 1
 
STACEY LUKASIEWICZ (0 season / 1 career)
 
POLLING PLACE
Seattle Pacific fell out of the top 25 in both the Women's Basketball Coaches Association national rankings and the D2SIDA national rankings this week. The Falcons are still receiving votes in both polls, enough to be listed at No. 29 overall in the WBCA and No. 28 overall in D2SIDA. Ashland of Ohio remains No. 1 in both, and Simon Fraser moved into both for the first time (No. 21 in D2SIDA, which is voted upon by sports information directors, and No. 22 in the coaches poll). Western Washington climbed to No. 17 in D2SIDA, but is not yet receiving votes in the coaches poll.
 
In the D2SIDA West Region rankings, SPU fell to No. 5. Anchorage is a unanimous No. 1, followed by Cal Baptist, Western Washington, and Simon Fraser.
 
MARKING A MILESTONE
Only one milestone was reached last week, as senior Rachel Shim scored the 200th point of her career.
 
In the making
100th assist           Jordan McPhee (has 89)
100th point             Jaylee Albert (has 63)
100th steal             Jordan McPhee (has 93)
                                  Hannah Rodrigues (has 86)
200th point             Lindsay Lee (has 189)
400th point             Stacey Lukasiewicz (has 359)
400th rebound       Hannah Rodrigues (has 389)
500th point             Brianne Lasconia (has 470)
 
Made last week
200th point             Rachel Shim (has 212)
 
NATIONALLY SPEAKING
Among the 318 programs in D2, SPU is …
-- 3rd in free throw shooting (.797)
-- 7th in assists per game (18.3)      
-- 9th in assist / turnover ratio (1.27)
-- 9th in total assists (292)
-- 11th in scoring defense (54.4)
-- 29th in scoring margin (+14.6)
-- 38th in total steals (165)
-- 42nd in rebound margin (+6.3)     
-- 47th in steals per game (10.3)
-- 49th in fewest turnovers per game (14.4)
 
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
Alaska Anchorage maintained its hold on the top spot in the GNAC with easy wins at Central Washington and Northwest Nazarene. The Seawolves boosted their GNAC record to 8-0 and their overall mark to 15-1. Simon Fraser and Western Washington are tied for second at 7-1, but one of them will take over sole possession of that spot on Tuesday after they square off in Burnaby, B.C.
 
Riding a nine-game winning streak, UC San Diego has a 1½-game lead on Stanislaus State and at least a two-game margin on everyone else in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. The Tritons are 13-3 overall, 9-1 in the conference and seem well on their way to an eventual spot in the NCAAs. The next-best overall records are the 8-4 of Cal State San Bernardino (5-3 CCAA) and Chico State's 10-5 (5-4 CCAA).
 
Cal Baptist is still riding high atop the Pacific West, unbeaten in conference play (9-0) and owning an 18-2 overall mark. Not only are they likely to make NCAAs, they could be one of the schools in contention to host the tournament. Still very much in the regular-season title hunt are Hawaii Pacific at 8-1 (11-3 overall) and Point Loma Nazarene at 8-2 (14-3).
 
UP NEXT
The second half of the GNAC slate begins with four straight road games for SPU. The first two of those are next week. The Falcons visit Northwest Nazarene on Thursday, Jan. 26, in Nampa, Idaho, tipping off at 4:15 p.m. Pacific time. On Saturday the 28th, they travel to Ellensburg for a game against Central Washington at 5:15 p.m. in Nicholson Pavilion.
 
 
 
GNAC STANDINGS
                                                Conference          Overall
Alaska Anchorage                    8-0                      15-1
Simon Fraser                             7-1                      16-2
Western Washington                7-1                      13-3
Seattle Pacific                            5-3                      13-3
Northwest Nazarene                5-3                        8-6
Alaska Fairbanks                      3-5                        7-8
Montana State Billings             3-5                        6-10
Western Oregon                        2-6                        6-9
Concordia                                  2-6                        5-11
Central Washington                 1-7                        6-10
Saint Martin's                            1-7                        5-11