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SEATTLE – There is no "I" in "TEAM." But there is an "S-P-U" in the 2018 GNAC Men's Basketball Tournament.
 
Hunter Eisenhower and Nikhil Lizotte each tallied 15 points Thursday to lead five double-figure scorers for Seattle Pacific, which clinched a berth in next week's Great Northwest Athletic Conference championships with an 82-69 victory over Central Washington at Brougham Pavilion.
 
Coach Grant Leep lauded the fact it was a total team effort, displayed by an extremely balanced attack. His reserves came off the bench to outscore their Central counterparts by a 32-14 margin.
 
"We love that, we absolutely love that. That speaks volumes about the quality of guys that we bring in. Everybody that comes in for us has a way to hurt you and everyone needs to be accounted for."
 
The Falcons (16-10) improved to 11-8 in league play to force their way into the conference tournament that will be conducted March 1-3 in Anchorage, Alaska.
 
Leep was thrilled that his team didn't back in to the playoffs.
 
"It was really important for us to win our way in. I go back to a year ago when we needed X, Y and Z to take place for us. It got to the point that we were relying on so much help from other teams.
 
"After the win at Billings on Saturday we controlled our own destiny. If we won a game this week we were in. We wanted to make sure we took care of business, and we did."
 
SPU swept the season series from the Wildcats, including an 84-83 overtime decision on Dec. 2 in Ellensburg.


 
Coleman Wooten contributed an 11-point, 12-rebound double-double on Thursday for SPU, which also got 11 points and nine boards form Nathan Streufert. Gavin Long had 15 points.
 
The Falcons were unselfish as 16 of their 27 baskets were set up by assists from teammates.
 
"I love how at different points tonight, it was different guys getting it done," Leep exclaimed.
 
"Gavin did a really good job of getting us going. Nikhil then stepped up when Gavin started to slow. Coleman had his moments of consistency throughout. Gabe (Colosimo) hit a couple of big threes, Harry (Cavell) hit a huge jumper, Trey (Miller) hit a huge jumper and then Hunter just really got it rolling in the second half."
 
Central (15-11) dropped to 10-9 in GNAC play, falling one game behind the fourth-place Falcons.
 
Jawan Stepney compiled 19 of his 26 points in the second half to lead the Wildcats, who also got 11 from Malik Montoya and 10 from Khalil Shabazz.
 
Notably absent from the boxscore were any blocked shots for CWU's Fuquan Niles, who leads the league with 70 blocks. He entered the game averaging 2.8 rejections per game.
 
The 6-foot-11 senior center from Seattle's Rainier Beach High School was honored Monday as the GNAC Player of the Week after registering 18 blocks in two games, including a conference-record 10 against Concordia last Thursday. Niles rejected nine SPU shots in this season's first meeting.
 
Two quick fouls limited Niles to just three first-half minutes. He played the entire second half before fouling out with 56.8 seconds remaining. His block-less stat line read six points and seven rebounds.
 
"Our guys did a great job early of attacking him," Leep described. "Picking up those two fouls early on in the first half was a really big element to that. It shows the level of competitiveness and fearlessness that our guys have when we attack."
 
A 19-7 run that started midway through the opening period produced a 34-21 lead for the hosts with 2:18 showing on the clock. 

 

Five different players scored during the Falcons spree, led by six from Streufert. The junior forward scored a remarkable basket with 3:28 left in the half after Lizotte failed to hit the rim on a shot near the end of the shot clock. Streufert leaped for the rebound eight feet from the hoop and, in one quick motion, grabbed the ball with only his right hand and flung a shot that banked in as the shot clock horn sounded.
 
The visitors drew within 39-27 on a 3-pointer by Sage Woodruff with 7.6 seconds remaining. But SPU's Lizotte rapidly answered at the other end, draining a trey with 1.4 second left to set the 42-27 halftime score.
 
Streufert grabbed nine rebounds in the opening 20 minutes and Wooten had eight, leading the Falcons 28-15 halftime advantage on the boards. They finished the game ahead 41-32 on the glass.
 
The Wildcats started the second half with a furious rally, going on a 16-5 run to draw within 47-43 with 13:11 remaining. Stepney sparked the surge with eight points.
 
A 3-pointer by Gabe Colosimo slowed the CWU run and then a tangle underneath the Falcons basket resulted in three technical fouls being issued. Lizotte sank four free throws after deadball fouls on Naim Ladd and Niles.
 
In the same exchange, Ladd nailed two free throws for a technical on SPU's Long.
 
That made the score 54-45 in favor of the Falcons. After two more Ladd free throws on the subsequent possession, Eisenhower reeled off three consecutive 3-point bombs to provide a 63-47 cushion.
 
CWU never got closer than seven points the rest of the way.
 
Seattle Pacific concludes the regular-season at home on Saturday against Northwest Nazarene. Tip-off is 7:30 p.m. at Brougham Pavilion for the nightcap of a doubleheader with the Falcons women, who start at 5:15 p.m.
 
Two SPU men will be honored on Senior Night with a ceremony prior to their final home game: Eisenhower and EJ Poulsen.
 
 
NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL
Thursday, Feb. 22, 2018
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
at Seattle Pacific 82, Central Washington 69
 
CENTRAL WASHINGTON (15-11, 10-9 GNAC)
Stepney 11-19 3-4 26, Bryant 1-4 0-0 2, Niles 3-3 0-0 6, Shabazz 4-13 0-0 10, Montoya 3-7 4-4 11, Ladd 2-6 4-4 8, Woodruff 1-8 1-2 4, Chaplik 1-2 0-0 2, Cola 0-1 0-0 0, Williams 0-3 0-1 0. Totals 26-66 12-15 69.
 
SEATTLE PACIFIC (16-10, 11-8 GNAC)
Wooten 4-7 3-5 11, Cavell 2-5 2-2 6, Streufert 3-4 4-4 11, Colosimo 3-8 0-0 8, Long 5-11 4-5 14, Eisenhower 5-10 1-1 15, Lizotte 4-11 5-7 15, Miller 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 27-58 19-24 82.
 
Central Washington............   27   42  -   69
Seattle Pacific...............   42   40  -   82
 
3-point goals--CWU 5-17 (Shabazz 2-6, Montoya 1-3, Woodruff 1-5, Stepney 1-1, Bryant 0-1, Ladd 0-1), SPU 9-20 (Eisenhower 4-8, Colosimo 2-6, Lizotte 2-3, Streufert 1-1, Cavell 0-1, Wooten 0-1). Fouled out--CWU-Niles, SPU-None. Rebounds--CWU 32 (Niles 7), SPU 41 (Wooten 12). Assists--CWU 6 (Stepney, Bryant 2), SPU 16 (Streufert, Wooten 4). Total fouls--CWU 19, SPU 18. Technical fouls--CWU-Niles, Ladd, SPU-Long. A-578.
 
 
Next SPU Men's Basketball Game
Northwest Nazarene at Seattle Pacific
Saturday, Feb. 24, 7:30 p.m. PST
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.