• FINAL STATS   |   • VIDEO: NATHAN  STREUFERT
• PHOTO GALLERY

SEATTLE – Nathan Streufert's 11-point, 10-rebound double-double Thursday powered Seattle Pacific past Western Oregon, 66-57, and into sole possession of third place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's basketball standings.
 
The Falcons (14-6) posted their fifth consecutive victory, improving to 11-4 in league play. They entered the clash in Brougham Pavilion tied for third place with WOU (17-7), which fell to 10-5 in GNAC games.
 
The win was SPU's first over the Wolves since Jan. 1, 2015, stopping a 10-game losing streak in the series. Western was a 73-71 victor in this season's first meeting, on Jan. 17 in Monmouth, Ore.
 
"We felt like we gave one away in Monmouth earlier this year with the type of turnovers that we had," SPU coach Grant Leep said of his team's 16 miscues last time. "We knew that we had to do a great job taking care of the ball and, save for a stretch in the second half, we did.
 
"Our guys really wanted to get this one. I love how we started and love how we responded every time that they kind of crept back in."
 
A 15-6 run early in Thursday's game put the Falcons in front and they turned back two furious WOU second-half rallies to secure the result. They shot 51 percent (23 of 45) for the 12th time this season and have won every one of those.


 
Coleman Wooten scored 13 points, making all three of his 3-point attempts, to pace SPU, which also got 12 from Harry Cavell.
 
Streufert registered his second double-double of the season and also distributed a game-high three assists.
 
"He's been working really hard, asserting himself in the post and rebounding, both defensively and offensively," Leep said. "Nate is just finding his groove. When he plays that way and at that pace, he's a tough cover down there."
 
Dalven Brushier tallied 12 of his team-high 15 points in the first half for Western Oregon and Darius Lubom pitched in 12 for the game.
 
The Wolves were limited to 36 percent shooting (21 of 58) and matched their lowest scoring output of the season. They also scored just 57 points in a loss at Alaska Anchorage on Jan. 3.
 
WOU was held 23 under the 80.3-point scoring clip it brought into Thursday's matchup.
 
Back-to-back baskets by Brushier and Kaleb Warner gave Western a brief 6-5 edge three minutes into the game.
 
SPU scored the next four points, on a Streufert layup and Cavell jumper, to take the lead for good. That ignited a 15-6 surge, capped by four points from Gavin Long, that produced a 20-12 advantage with 10:17 left in the first half.
 
That margin grew to as many as 11 points on two occasions before intermission, the last on a tip-in by Streufert with 40 seconds showing on the clock that forged a 37-26 lead.
 
Brushier converted two free throws with seven seconds remaining to draw the Wolves within 37-28 at halftime. Those were the 11th and 12th points of the period for the junior guard.
 
Long distance shooting proved to be the difference in the opening half as the Falcons nailed 4 of 9 treys while limiting WOU to 1-for-5 accuracy beyond the arc.
 
WOU twice closed within six points in the second half, but both times the Falcons answered with scoring sprees.
 
A trey by Warner two minutes after halftime narrowed the deficit to 39-33. But SPU scored the next six points, getting three apiece from Cavell and Wooten, to spark an 11-3 run that netted a 50-36 lead.
 
The Wolves immediately mounted another challenge, notching eight straight points to move within 50-44 with 11:28 left to play.

 

Another response from SPU, this time 10 unanswered points, turned back that rally and built the game's largest margin, 60-44.
 
The visitors went scoreless for over five minutes during that stretch, missing eight straight. The first six of those errant shots were 3-point tries.
 
The Wolves never got closer than nine points the rest of the way.
 
A stretch of four Falcons turnovers in eight possessions provided an opening, but WOU managed only five points of its own during that span. They finished with 13 turnovers and the Wolves were only able to parlay those into nine points.
 
"For the most part we did a great job taking care of the ball. In fact, even the turnovers that we did have didn't lead to a lot of easy points for them," said Leep. "When we turned it into an execution game, we knew that we'd be able to do that well."
 
The SPU men continue their four-game homestand on Saturday when Concordia (Ore.) visits Brougham Pavilion for a 4 p.m. contest.
 
In their first encounter, on Jan. 17 in Portland, the Falcons picked up a dramatic 80-78 victory on a buzzer-beating putback by Streufert.
 
"We'll have our guys attention," Leep said of Saturday's rematch. "We had that game in control in Portland before missing some free throws and didn't finish as well as we wanted to. Thank goodness Nate saved us.
 
"Concordia plays extremely hard and they're always a tough matchup for us and a tough team to beat. We need to be ready to go."
 
 
NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL
Thursday, Feb. 14, 2019
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
at Seattle Pacific 66, Western Oregon 57
 
WESTERN OREGON (17-7, 10-5 GNAC)
Collins 1-8 0-0 2, Hawken 1-3 2-2 4, Warner 4-8 0-0 9, Evans 0-0 0-0 0, Brushier 5-10 5-7 15, Lubom 4-8 0-0 12, Baker 2-7 1-2 5, Souza 2-7 1-1 5, Berg 1-3 0-0 3, Richardson 1-4 0-0 2, Cranston 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-58 9-12 57.
 
SEATTLE PACIFIC (14-6, 11-4 GNAC)
Wooten 4-8 2-4 13, Streufert 4-8 3-6 11, Cavell 5-7 1-2 12, Lizotte 2-7 0-0 6, Long 3-6 2-2 8, Simpson 2-2 1-1 6, Moffitt 1-4 3-4 5, Khan 2-3 0-0 5, Boone 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-45 12-19 66.
 
Western Oregon................  28   29  -   57
Seattle Pacific...............  37   29  -   66
 
3-point goals--WOU 6-20 (Lubom 4-7, Warner 1-3, Berg 1-1, Hawken 0-1, Richardson 0-2, Collins 0-3, Baker 0-1, Brushier 0-2), SPU 8-15 (Wooten 3-3, Lizotte 2-6, Simpson 1-1, Khan 1-2, Cavell 1-2, Long 0-1). Fouled out--WOU-None, SPU-None. Rebounds--WOU 33 (Collins 7), SPU 31 (Streufert 10). Assists--WOU 7 (Collins, Lubom 2), SPU 9 (Streufert 3). Total fouls--WOU 18, SPU 13. Technical fouls--WOU-None, SPU-None. A-287.
 
 
Next SPU Men's Basketball Game
Concordia-Portland at Seattle Pacific
Saturday, Feb. 16, 4:00 p.m. PST
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash