THE SCHEDULE
Thursday, Feb. 3                  Seattle Pacific at Western Washington, 7:00 p.m.
                                                Carver Gymnasium / Bellingham, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 
Saturday, Feb. 5                  Seattle Pacific at Simon Fraser, 7:00 p.m.
                                                West Gym / Burnaby, B.C.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 

SEATTLE – After going toe-to-toe with one nationally ranked women's basketball team, the Seattle Pacific Falcons get to do it again this week – but this time on the road against a different team.
 
Coming off a pair of narrow home court losses to No. 19 Alaska Anchorage last weekend, SPU will head north up Interstate 5 on Thursday to tangle with No. 9 Western Washington. Tip-off in Carver Gymnasium is set for 7:00 p.m.
 
That will be the first of two out-of-town contests for the Falcons (8-10, 4-4 GNAC). On Saturday, they cross the boarder into Canada on the way to Burnaby for a game at Simon Fraser in West Gym. That one also begins at 7:00 p.m.
 
Seattle Pacific and Anchorage went down to the wire last weekend in Brougham Pavilion before the Seawolves ultimately prevailed in both games: 60-58 in overtime on Saturday, and 69-61 on Sunday.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
Both games will have a free live Webcast on YouTube and live stats. The appropriate links can be found at the top of this story.
 
WATCHING IN PERSON
Fans are being allowed at both Western Washington and Simon Fraser. Click on this link to check on policy requirements for games at WWU. Click on this link to check on policy requirements for games at Simon Fraser. In addition, travelers crossing the border into Canada must meet certain requirements. Click on this link for more information about that.
 
CATCHING UP ON THE CALENDAR
Now that Sunday's game against Alaska Anchorage is in the books, Seattle Pacific has three make-up contests left.

The Jan. 13 road game at Saint Martin's will be played on Tuesday, Feb. 8, at 5:30 p.m. in Lacey. The Western Washington home game from Jan. 8 is now scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 15 at 4:00 p.m. in Brougham Pavilion. The Western Oregon road game from Jan. 15 will be played on Monday, Feb. 21 at 5:15 p.m. in Monmouth.
 




SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- Seattle Pacific has a 2-5 record on the road: 1-4 in true road games, and 1-1 on neutral courts.
-- The Falcons and Western Washington played twice in a back-to-back set to close out last winter's abbreviated schedule. The Vikings won both, 58-50 in Bellingham and 59-57 in overtime in Seattle.
-- Thursday's game against Western Washington will be SPU's sixth against a national top-25 opponent this season. The previous ones were Nov. 15 at home against then-No 25 Hawaii Pacific (the Sharks won, 69-60), Nov. 20 against then-No. 5 Azusa Pacific (the Cougars won in overtime, 67-61), Dec. 18 at home against Puget Sound, which was ranked No. 21 in NCAA Division III (Seattle Pacific prevailed, 66-56), then last weekend's two-game set against No. 19 Alaska Anchorage.
-- It has been a bit since the Falcons have defeated Western. The last 'W' in the series was 61-59 on Jan. 7, 2019 in Brougham as SPU rallied from 29-11 down midway through the second quarter.
-- However, Seattle Pacific ended a four-game skid against Simon Fraser by pulling out a 66-64 overtime victory at home on Jan. 6 when Ashley Alter nailed a buzzer-beater from the foul line.
--That was Falcon coach Mike Simonson's first victory against Simon, against whom he is now 1-4. Simonson has a 1-5 record against Western Washington.
-- WWU and Seattle Pacific are two of the top defensive teams in the GNAC. The Vikings lead that list, allowing just 52.7 points per game. The Falcons are No. 3 at 60.1 points.
-- Those two also are the toughest teams to shoot against in the conference. Western is No. 1 at just 32.9 percent, and SPU is No. 2 at 34.8.
-- Senior point guard Abril Rexach Roure was passing the ball as well as ever last weekend, racking up 11 assists in two games against Anchorage (four in the first, seven in the second).
-- Speaking of assists, Rexach Roure had eight in the January win against Simon Fraser, the most she has ever handed out in a Falcons uniform. Her career high is nine when she played at Eastern Wyoming College.
-- Senior point guard Kaprice Boston reached one milestone last Sunday vs. UAA and came close to reaching another. Her 13 points moved her past 400, giving her 408. Her five rebounds left her just one shy of her 300^th.
-- Boston's point total includes a career-high 17 she scored on Jan. 6 against Simon Fraser.
-- Senior forward Natalie Hoff also had 17 in that game, one point shy of her career high.
-- The Falcons overcame a pair of 11-point deficits against Simon Fraser, 26-15 and 28-17, both in the second quarter. That was the largest deficit overcome in a winning effort this season.
-- Despite falling short on Sunday vs. UAA, Seattle Pacific had its best shooting day of the season, hitting 49 percent (24 of 49). Prior to that, its best mark was 45.1 percent (23 of 51) in a 70-60 victory against Westminster on Nov. 27.
 
SCOUTING THE WESTERN WASHINGTON VIKINGS: 12-1, 4-1 GNAC (1^st)
All-time series: WWU leads, 63-32. Current series streak: WWU won 5. Last time: WWU 59, SPU 57 OT (March 6, 2021 at Seattle). Last SPU series win: SPU 61, WWU 59 (Jan. 17, 2019 at Seattle). Vikings on the Web. Vikings in a nutshell: Western Washington had an unscheduled hiatus last week when health and safety protocols within its program forced the postponement of road games at Saint Martin's and Western Oregon (the WOU game was to be made up on Tuesday.) The Vikings have played the fewest games in the conference, but are still one of the top squads. Senior 6-foot guard Emma Duff leads the offense at 15.0 points per game, tied for the No. 6 spot in the GNAC. But she does much more than just score. Duff also is tops on the team for rebounds (7.7), steals (18) and blocked shots (14). Junior 5-10 guard Mollie Olson averages 10.4 points per game. Senior 5-8 guard Dani Iwami averages 8.2 points and also leads Western with 28 assists. Not only does she shoot .466 from the field, she is especially dangerous from downtown, hitting .455 (15 of 333).
 
SCOUTING SIMON FRASER: 6-10, 2-5 GNAC (tie 8^th)
All-time series: Simon leads, 25-14. Current series streak: SPU won 1. Last time: SPU 66, Simon 64, OT (Jan. 6, 2022 at Seattle). Last Simon series win: Simon 75, SPU 68 (Feb. 8, 2020 at Seattle). Simon Fraser on the Web.
Simon in a nutshell: Simon Fraser is looking to get back on track, having dropped five of its last six games. The lone win during that time came last Thursday at Western Oregon, 62-59. Since returning to action on Jan. 1 at home against WOU after not playing in November and December, senior 5-foot-9 guard Jessica Jones is averaging 18 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. The GNAC Preseason Player of the Year went for 21 at Seattle Pacific, but hit just 7 of 23 from the field. Jessica Wisotzki, a 6-2 sophomore guard / forward, scores at a 16.2 clip, ranking No. 5 in the GNAC. Senior 6-1 forward Claudia Hart averages 9.1 points per game and had a team-leading eight rebounds at Seattle Pacific, nearly double her average of 4.5.
 
NEW LOOK FOR GNAC TOURNEY
This year's GNAC Tournament will have a decidedly different look, as the conference announced on Monday that all 10 schools will take part on both the women's and men's sides.
 
Normally, the top six teams in the final standings would qualify. But given the number of postponements and cancelations of games this year due to COVID-19, the GNAC Management Council and CEO Board voted to expand it to all 10 teams.
 
The tournament will take place over four days, Wednesday-Saturday, March 2-5, instead of the customary three days. While Saint Martin's is the official host school, Seattle Pacific will be the site of two play-in games on March 2 and four quarterfinal games on March 3.
 
The final standings will be determined by a points rating system, since it is highly possible that some schools won't be able to complete their entire 18-game schedule. The top six teams will begin play in the quarterfinals on Thursday, March 3. The seventh- through 10^th-place finishers will start with play-in games on Wednesday, March 2 – No. 7 vs. No. 10, and No. 8 vs. No. 9.
 
All semifinals will take place at Saint Martin's as originally scheduled on Friday, March 4, and both championship games will be at Saint Martin's as schedule on Saturday, March 5.
 
POURIN' IN THE POINTS
For three straight games last week, redshirt freshman guard Anna Eddy was in the career-high zone for scoring.
 
 

In Thursday's 68-48 victory against Alaska Fairbanks, Eddy went for 13 points, one more than her previous high of 12, which she set in her college debut on Nov. 12 against Corban University.
 
Eddy matched that career high on Saturday in a 60-58 overtime loss to Alaska Anchorage. Then in Sunday's rematch, which the Seawolves ultimately won, 69-61, Eddy poured in 21 points.
 
But for a player who provides so much spark in her reserve role, it's not just about scoring. In the three games combined, along with those 47 points, Eddy had seven rebounds, seven assists, six steals, and two blocked shots.
 
AROUND THE WEST
Western Washington remains atop the GNAC standings, although its road games at Saint Martin's and Western Oregon were postponed last week. The Vikings (12-1 overall, 4-1 GNAC) have played the fewest games among the 10 schools. Central Washington (13-4, 6-2) has made a rapid climb up the standings, having won five straight in GNAC play and eight in a row overall. The Wildcats play three games in Alaska this week, with a make-up at Fairbanks on Wednesday, then regularly-schedule games at Fairbanks on Thursday and at Anchorage on Saturday.
 
Cal State East Bay and Cal State San Marcos remain in clear command of the California Collegiate Athletic Association. East Bay (15-1, 10-0) is on a 14-game winning streak. San Marcos (13-2, 11-1) has won nine in a row. One of those streaks will end on Thursday when East Bay hosts San Marcos. The closest team to either of them is third-place Stanislaus State (11-4, 6-3 CCAA).
 
Azusa Pacific continues to pull away in the Pacific West Conference. The Cougars (15-1, 11-0 Pac West) have won 12 in a row and now lead second-place Concordia Irvine (11-6, 8-3) by three full games. The Eagles have won four in a row.


AROUND THE GNAC
Click on this link for the latest news, notes, results, and statistics from around the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.

UP NEXT
The Falcons will have a three-game week next week, beginning with a make-up game at Saint Martin's on Tuesday, Feb. 8. Tip-off is at 5:30 p.m. in Marcus Pavilion in the make-up of a game originally scheduled for Jan. 13. Then it's back home to host Western Oregon on Thursday, Feb. 10, at 7:00 p.m., followed by a return match-up against Saint Martin's on Saturday, Feb. 12, at 4:15 p.m.