SEATTLE – The Seattle Pacific University men's basketball team played their home opener in the PacWest/GNAC Challenge on Friday night, as five Falcons scored in double-figures, leading to an 86-82 victory over the Cougars.

"It's always great to play at home," Interim head coach Keffrey Fazio said. "The fan support brought it to another level. It was loud, our fans were into it, and it helped our team gain confidence as the game went along. I'm glad our guys were ready for the moment and made the most of playing in front of family and friends."

Friday night's matchup put two of the best players in the country against each other in SPU's Shaw Anderson and APU's Ken West. Both were First Team All-Conference players a season ago and enter this year as their conference's Preseason Player of the Year.  

Anderson got the better of the two on Friday night. He led all scorers with 24 points on 6-for-15 shooting from the field. Anderson took advantage of his free throw opportunities, sinking all 11. Anderson grabbed three rebounds and had three assists in a strong performance.

West didn't have a bad night for the Cougars. He poured in 14 points with six rebounds. Still, Anderson and the Falcons found a way to get it done in front of a packed Royal Brougham Pavilion.

"We're fortunate to have him [Anderson] on our team," Fazio added. "He's such a good player. He wants to lead this team, and our guys aren't hesitant to follow him. He never does too much. It's always a simple and efficient game from Shaw. We're proud of him and what the togetherness of our team looks like right now as things start to come together."

Jadin Penigar had a career night for the Falcons against the Cougars. He scored 19 points on 7-for-11 shooting, including four 3-pointers. Penigar pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds as part of his first double-double with the Falcons.

"Jadin had a great night," Fazio said. "We're excited to see him progress and grow throughout the season. He was finding open shots in the flow of our offense. He's a strong, athletic kid who works really hard. We feel like he's been close to having a night like this. It was nice to see him do that tonight."

Jonas La Tour, Owen Moriarty, and Trace Evans scored double figures as well. La Tour had 12 points on 4-for-6 shooting. Moriarty had 11 points and five rebounds. Evans had 10 points and just missed a double-double with nine rebounds.

The Falcons shot 53.8 percent (28-for-52) from the field. They knocked down half of their 3-point attempts with 11 on the game. The Falcons shared the ball well, with 17 assists. SPU out-rebounded APU 38-25.

The Falcons play another home game tomorrow night when they host CUI at 7:15 p.m. inside Royal Brougham Pavilion.