SEATTLE -- Divant'e Moffitt and Harry Cavell combined for 52 points Wednesday and collectively nailed 8 of 9 shots from 3-point range, lifting Seattle Pacific to an 89-71 non-conference men's basketball victory over Northwest University from nearby Kirkland.
 
In just 25 minutes, Moffitt amassed a season-high 29 points on 11-for-15 accuracy from the field, including 3-for-4 shooting on treys. The 6-foot-2 point guard compiled 17 of his points during the first half.
 
Moffitt was on the way to his fifth career 30-point performance, but had to exit the game with six minutes remaining due to a bloody bottom lip. He did not return.
 
Cavell also registered his season scoring high, producing 23 points on 8-for-11 shooting. He nailed all five of his 3-point attempts. The 6-6 senior guard displayed a well-rounded game, leading the team with eight rebounds and five assists.
 
"You need that from veterans like that, experienced guys," said SPU coach Grant Leep. "We've been on nice little run here lately, but we haven't probably played to the quality that we want to play.
 
"So, we needed guys to come out and set the tone. Not necessarily from a scoring standpoint, but from showing how fast we were going to run our offense tonight and displaying what our defense was going to look like tonight. Divant'e and Harry both did a really nice job of that. they stepped up and took charge."

HARRY CAVELL DRIVE & DUNK

That dynamic duo helped SPU to a stellar 11-for-21 night from behind the arc on Iron Coaching Court at Brougham Pavilion.
 
"They both each made their first attempt. When you see that first one go in, that's always a really nice feeling," Leep said.
 
"The thing I was most proud of is that they took the right shots, the ones that were in rhythm within the flow of the offense. That also helps your percentage out when you are taking the right shots. Our team tonight did a really nice job of taking the right shots."
 
SPU (6-4) nearly went wire-to-wire with the lead, trailing only once after the visitors got the initial basket.
 
The Eagles (4-4) remained winless in 14 all-time meetings versus Seattle Pacific.
 
SCORING SUMMARY
Two other players tallied double figures for the Falcons. Kelton Samore scored 14 points and Shaw Anderson had 13.
 
Northwest was paced by the 17 points of CaCoa Chatman. Trey Newman added nine points as did Jase Paulsen, the older brother of SPU's Zack Paulsen. Jase won the brother battle, as Zack attempted only one shot and scored a single point. But Zack's team won the game.
 
DIVANT'E MOFFITT INTERVIEW

TAKING CONTROL EARLY
Jace Paulsen nailed a 3-pointer 18 seconds into the contest to give the Eagles their only lead of the game, 3-0.
 
Northwest missed its next eight shots and the Falcons capitalized, reeling off 15 unanswered points over the next four minutes. Four different players contributed to the run that forged a 15-3 advantage with 14:47 left in the first half.
 
Sparking the surge were three consecutive 3-pointers, by Moffitt, Samore and Cavell.
 
The Falcons briefly faltered, with four missed shots and a turnover in their next five possessions that enabled NWU to claw back seven straight points. Jace Paulsen stopped the Eagles drought with a left-corner trey at 14:18 to ignite an 11-3 surge the closed the deficit to 18-14 with 10:33 remaining.
 
SPU answered with back-to-back 3-pointers from Cavell and Bijon Sidhu.
 
The hosts steadily increased the lead to a first-half high of 17 points, at 42-25, with 3:49 showing on the clock.
 
Tanner Davis closed the period for the Eagles with a contested layup that set the halftime score at 46-32.
 
Moffitt hit 7 of 10 shots in the first half, including both of his trey tries. That helped SPU collectively shoot 55 percent (18 of 33) and 7-for-10 from 3-point range.
 
Northwest was limited to 39-percent shooting (13 of 33) and 4-for-12 on treys.
 
SPU's lead never got fewer than 12 points after intermission. The margin ballooned to 23 points on two occasions, the last time at 85-62 on a 3-pointer by Cavell with 3:29 left to play.
 
FALCONS FAST FACT
• A strange trend continued Wednesday as the team that scored first has lost all 10 games involving SPU this season.

KELTON SAMORE DUNK

UPCOMING ACTION
The Falcons hit the road for their final two away games of the 2021 calendar year. The trip to the Midwest begins on Monday at Texas A&M-Commerce for a 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time clash (7 p.m. CST). Next Wednesday, SPU visit Durant for a matchup with Southeastern Oklahoma State at 5:30 p.m. PST.
 
Coach Leep knows what holds the key to a successful road trip.
 
"It's just about consistency now. We've been successful running certain things or successful with certain lineups. Now it becomes just making sure that's the space we're living in all the time and making sure that we are doing the things that it took to get us there without taking a step back.
 
"We did such a better job of getting into the rhythm and the flow of the game tonight with the pace that we were running on offense, with the intensity we were playing with on defense."
 
The Falcons will be back at Brougham Pavilion on Dec. 20 for their final December game. They host Puget Sound at 3:00 p.m.
 
RECORDS
Northwest University 4-4
Seattle Pacific 6-4
 
NEXT SPU GAME
Seattle Pacific at Texas A&M Commerce
Monday, December 13; 5:00 p.m. PST
The Field House / Commerce, Texas