SEATTLE – The Seattle Pacific University men's basketball team puts a pause on Great Northwest Athletic Conference games for a contest against Evergreen State College on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at Royal Brougham Pavilion.
QUOTABLE
"Coming off our first weekend of conference play, a long road trip to Alaska specifically, it will be nice to have a home game Thursday," head coach Grant Leep said. "For us, this week is going to be about continuing to build on the identity this team is establishing. We have seen a lot of growth from all 16 guys on this team, but now is not the time to be satisfied with that. For us to be the team we ultimately want to become this season, there is still a lot of work to be done and that must be our approach to this week."
LAST TIME OUT
The Falcons went on one of their toughest road trips of the year, visiting Alaska Fairbanks and Alaska Anchorage last weekend. SPU returned to Seattle after splitting the weekend.
A poor shooting led to a late comeback attempt from SPU against Alaska Fairbanks, but the Nanooks hung on to take the game 64-56. Shaw Anderson was solid on both ends of the floor for the Falcons. He scored a game-high 20 points while blocking three shots and grabbing two steals. Maui Sze had a breakout night as well. He scored a career-high 13 points on 5-for-8 shooting.
Five Falcons scored in double-figures on Saturday against the Seawolves, as the Falcons earned a crucial 90-87 victory. Zack Paulsen led the way with a team-high 20 points on an efficient 7-for-10 field goal attempts. Paulsen pulled down four rebounds and dished out two assists.
Anderson had 19 points on 5-for-8 shooting. Anderson went 8-for-9 on free throw attempts. Ben Baker-McCann, Syon Blackmon, and Kelton Samore finished in double figures, helping the Falcons finish on top. The team went 32-for-52 from the field (63.5 percent) and made sic 3-pointers throughout the contest.
THE D2SIDA WEST REGION POLL
The Falcons were featured for the second consecutive week in the D2SIDA West Region Poll. This week, SPU is tied with Hawaii Hilo for 10th in the region. CSU San Bernardino leads the poll with 59 points and a 6-1 record. Saint Martin's follows closely in second with 55 points.
SCOUTING THE EVERGREEN STATE COLLEGE GEODUCKS (1-4, 1-1 CCC)
The Geoducks have played quality opponents to open their 2022-23 season. They've faced GNAC foes Northwest Nazarene and Saint Martin's. They fell to the Nighthawks 110-77 before losing to the Saints 70-49 in an exhibition.
ESC scores 65.2 points per game while allowing 83.8 points per game. They're shooting 37.1 percent from the field and have gone just 35-for-112 (31.3 percent) from 3-point range. Four players are scoring in double-figures for the Geoducks. Joseph Jordan leads the team with 12 points per game. Lauren O'Neill has scored 11 per contest in just two games. Tyler Williford and Jayden Upshaw have matched each other with 10.8 points per game.