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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 29
Northwest Nazarene at Seattle Pacific, 7:30 p.m. PST
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 1
Central Washington at Seattle Pacific, 7:30 p.m. PST
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
• Webcast for both games:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCe1iS12FsEzoRas8fmcWzaA/live
• LiveStats for both games:  www.sidearmstats.com/spu/mbball
• Ticket Information:  http://siteline.vendini.com/site/spufalcons.com
 
A brief, two-game dip into the conference pool begins this week at home for the Seattle Pacific men's basketball team. The Falcons (2-2) host undefeated Northwest Nazarene (5-0) on Thursday, Nov. 29 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference opener for both teams. Tip-off is 7:30 p.m. in Brougham Pavilion as the nightcap of a doubleheader with the SPU women, who play at 5:15 p.m. The Nighthawks swept the season series last year for the first time since they began playing in the same league as SPU, in 2001. Another doubleheader is slated for Saturday, Dec. 1 and the Falcons men clash with Central Washington at 7:30 p.m. The Wildcats (4-2), who are directed by first-year coach Brandon Rinta, lost their last three encounters with SPU. GNAC play resumes on Jan. 3 at WWU.
 
GNAC Report
Prior to last season, the Falcons had won all six conference openers since 2011-12 when the GNAC began starting the league season before Christmas. But that streak ended with a 103-91 loss in last year's opener at Northwest Nazarene on Nov. 30, 2017. The league is loaded this season with only one team sporting a losing ledger (Alaska Fairbanks), while seven have winning records and three sit at .500. SPU is seeking its sixth GNAC regular-season championship, but its first since 2014.

Ticket Talk
Season tickets are available now for SPU home games. They are a tremendous value and assure a seat in the best location for every home game. Falcons fans can also obtain individual-game tickets in advance for all home events. Buy tickets online at: http://siteline.vendini.com/site/spufalcons.com    Individual game tickets for SPU men's basketball games can be obtained at Brougham Pavilion (3414 Third Ave. W., Seattle 98119) on game day. Reserved seats for Falcon men's basketball are $10. General admission tickets are priced at $7 for adults and $5 for students and senior citizens. SPU students, faculty and staff are admitted free with i.d. Groups or teams of 10 or more may qualify for special general admission rates by calling 206-281-2085 in advance.

 

Falcons Fast Facts
The Falcons held all four foes under 48-percent and won both games when shooting 50 percent themselves ... No SPU player has double-figure points in every game with Nikhil Lizotte and Gavin Long reaching double-digits three times apiece ... Senior Coleman Wooten and junior Gavin Long were named to the 15-man Preseason All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference team and the Falcons were picked second in the coaches preseason poll ... Tony Miller, the 2017 GNAC Freshman of the Year, transferred to Montana in June. He averaged 18.0 points and 6.2 rebounds in 12 games last season.
 
2019 Season Preview
All five starters return from last season's 17-12 team, including the Falcons top-five point producers. Heading the list of returnees is senior forward Coleman Wooten, a second-team All-GNAC selection in 2018 after averaging 11.0 points and 7.0 rebounds. Junior guard Gavin Long was an honorable mention all-league pick who averaged 11.9 points. That standout tandem is joined by three other returning starters; seniors Nikhil Lizotte and Nathan Streufert along with junior Gabe Colosimo. "This is the first time in my three years that we've had a really good mix of returning, experienced veterans, but then also some talented young players behind them," said third-year coach Grant Leep. Athletic sophomore Harry Cavell is back after drawing 10 starts in 2018. Two veteran returnees are back from injuries that sidelined them the majority of last year. Senior Sam Simpson is a stat sheet stuffer while sophomore Sharif Khan is a stellar sharpshooter. The lineup is bolstered by the addition of three talented newcomers; junior transfer Sam Boone from Lamar CC and freshmen Divant'e Moffitt and Jacob Medjo.
 
Scouting Northwest Nazarene (5-0, 0-0 GNAC)
> Located in Nampa, Idaho, NNU recently changed its nickname to Nighthawks (previously was Crusaders). Paul Rush is in his second season as head coach after serving three years as an assistant.
 
> Adonis Arms,  a 6-foot-6 junior guard, leads NNU with 18.4 points per game. He is a transfer from Mesa CC that also produced Obi Megwa, who scores at a 14.0-point clip.
 
> The Falcons lead the series 58-25 and had won 11 consecutive encounters before losing three of the last four matchups. The Nighthawks won both meetings last season, 103-91 on Nov. 30 in Nampa and 67-56 on Feb. 24 in Seattle.
 
Scouting Central Washington (4-2, 0-0 GNAC
> The Wildcats won the last two games and their two losses came by four or fewer points in overtime, versus Cal State San Bernardino (87-83) and Westminster (97-100).
 
 
> Five players are averaging double-figures led by sophomore forward Malcolm Cola, from Federal Way (Wash.) High School, at 14.7 points per game.
 
> Brandon Rinta is in his first year as Central's head coach after spending the last seven seasons at Lewis-Clark State. The 2001 CWU grad replaced Greg Sparling.
 
> CWU leads the all-time series 74-56 despite losing 14 of the last 18 meetings. SPU was victorious in the last three encounters and swept last year's season series, emerging with an 84-83 overtime decision on Dec. 2, 2017 in Ellensburg and winning the rematch, 82-69, on Feb. 22 in Seattle.
 
Wonderful Wooten
Senior Coleman Wooten, who was named GNAC Player of the Week on Nov. 19, has collected double-figure rebounds every game and averages 11.0 per game. He was recognized as a second-team All-GNAC honoree last season after being an honorable mention selection in 2017. In 2018, Wooten led SPU in assists with 83 (2.9 apg) and was second in rebounds (7.0 rpg) while scoring at an 11.0-point clip on 54-percent shooting accuracy. On Jan. 17, 2017 Wooten erupted for a career-high 35 points at Saint Martin's. The 6-foot-5 forward has 16 career games of 20 points or more and 18 double-digit rebounds games, including a career-high 16 boards on Nov. 18, 2016. The two-time Sodexo Classic MVP has 12 career double-doubles.
 
Super Students
Six student-athletes from this year's SPU team were 2018 All-GNAC Academic honorees, led by Sam Simpson with a 3.87 grade point in biochemistry. Nathan Streufert boasts a 3.76 GPA in physiology. The other academic all-stars are: Gabe Colosimo (3.49, psychology), Gavin Long (3.41, physiology), Conner Van Dyken (3.31, health) and Coleman Wooten (3.50, accounting).
 
Opening Weekend Cancelled
The Falcons were scheduled to start the 2018-19 season at the Mac Martin Invitational in Chico, California on Nov. 9 and 10. The team arrived in Chico on Nov. 8, but returned home that night due to the "Camp" wildfire. The tournament was cancelled and the games were postponed with the possibility of makeup dates and venues to be arranged.

 

Gavin the Great
Gavin Long leads the Falcons with a 14.8-point scoring average. He has been SPU's game-high scorer  twice this season with 19-point performances against both Westminster (Nov. 16) and St. Cloud State (Nov. 23). The 6-foot-5 junior guard poured in a game-high 19 points in the season-opening win over Westminster (Nov. 16) and matched that with 19 versus St. Cloud State (Nov. 23). Long was a 2018 honorable mention All-GNAC selection. He is SPU's top returning scorer with an 11.9-point average. He netted a career-high 26 points at Simon Fraser on Jan. 25, 2018, the top scoring game by a Falcon last season. Last year Long ranked second on the team in blocked shots (15) and third in both field goal accuracy (52.4%) and assists (53).
 
Carom Collector
Senior Nathan Streufert was a dominating presence on the boards last year, collecting 7.4 caroms per game to lead SPU. On Feb. 1 versus Alaska Anchorage, he out-rebounded the rest of his teammates by a 17-14 margin. Streufert grabbed 11 rebounds in this season's opening win over Westminster (Nov. 16). His father, Earl Streufert, is the boy's basketball coach at Richland (Wash.) High School.
 
Hot Lizotte
Senior Nikhil Lizotte started the second half on Nov. 17 with SPU trailing 30-28. He erupted for 19 points and hit 5-of-5 treys with four assists in 15 minutes to spark the win over Azusa Pacific. Lizotte led all SPU scorers with 17 points against Cal State San Bernardino (Nov. 24). He was fourth on the team with 9.8 points per game in 2018 with 13 double-digit efforts. Lizotte was the Falcons top free throw shooter at 86.9 percent (73-84). All of his SPU-high 20 points on Nov. 24, 2017 came after halftime. Lizotte transferred to SPU from Humboldt State where he started all 29 games in 2016-17. The 5-foot-9 guard led the Lumberjacks in 3-pointers (75) and was second in scoring (13.8 ppg). Lizotte is a graduate of Davis High School in Yakima, Wash.
 
Coach Leep
Grant Leep, 38, begins his third season directing the SPU men's basketball program after seven years as an assistant on the Falcons staff. He has a 31-30 career record. Leep coached the 2018 team to a 17-12 record, including an 11-9 GNAC mark. He has strong basketball ties throughout the Northwest as an All-America player at Mount Vernon (Wash.) High School before lettering four years at Washington. Leep still owns the Huskies 3-point accuracy records for a season (52.7% in 2002) and career (42.9%). His coaching resumé includes stops at Eastern Washington and a pair of community colleges. SPU had a 165-51 (.764) record during his time as an assistant.
 
2018 Season Review
The Falcons finished the 2017-18 season with a 17-12 record, tying for fourth in the standings at 11-9. They beat host Alaska Anchorage in the GNAC Tournament first round before a semifinal loss to Western Oregon. Coleman Wooten earned second-team All-GNAC honors and Gavin Long was honorable mention.
 
Postseason Pursuit
SPU seeks to return to the NCAA Division II Tournament after a two-year absence. Prior to that, the Falcons forged a run of 12 straight playoff berths, from 2005-2016, that was the longest active streak among Division II men's basketball teams. SPU advanced to the national semifinals in both 2000 and 2006, placing third both times.