SEATTLE – It's crunch time for the Seattle Pacific University men's basketball team, as they play two of their final five regular-season games at home this weekend. The Falcons host #13 Saint Martin's on Thursday at 7 p.m. followed by a 2 p.m. contest against Western Oregon on Saturday.
QUOTABLE
"Like everybody else in the conference, we are fighting for a spot in the postseason. We had a tough road trip last week, but we're excited to be back home. We had some good moments in the past two games, but we didn't get enough stops on defense. We have to get back to shooting the ball well, too. I am looking forward to seeing how our team responds this weekend." interim head coach
Keffrey Fazio
SPU ATHLETICS FALCONS OF THE WEEK
Shaw Anderson was named an SPU Athletics Falcons of the Week for the second week in a row.
Anderson finished the weekend with 52 points on 22-for-36 shooting, with four made 3-pointers, 11 rebounds, and six assists. Last weekend started with a game-high 32-point eruption from Anderson against Western Washington on Thursday. On Saturday at Simon Fraser, he scored a game-high 20 points on 8-for-14 shooting. He added five rebounds and two assists to his totals.
Anderson's career point total sits at 1,854 entering the weekend. He ranks second all-time in program history. Anderson trails program leader Loren Anderson (1955-58) whose 1,948 points are the most in program history.
MAUI'S MILESTONE MOVES CLOSER
A season ago,
Maui Sze arrived at SPU as a transfer from Bellevue College. Now, the established guard is just 10 points away from hitting 1,000 career points between the two institutions. Sze finished his career with the Bulldogs with 689 points. His 311th point with the Falcons will give him the milestone accomplishment and could happen this weekend.
SHOOTING IT WELL
Through 13 conference games, the Falcons fare well in a handful of statistical categories. SPU leads the GNAC in field goal percentage, hitting 48.7 percent of their attempts. They also lead the league in 3-point field goal percentage with 38 percent of their shots falling. SPU leads in 3-point field goals made with 120 for an average of 9.2 makes per GNAC game.
HOW THE STANDINGS ARE SHAPING UP
The Falcons are fighting for a spot in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference championships in March. The Falcons and Wildcats are tied for fifth with Western Washington. SPU has five games remaining on its regular season schedule.
- MSU Billings (11-2)
- Saint Martin's (9-3)
- Northwest Nazarene (9-4)
- Central Washington (8-5)
- Western Washington (6-7)
T5. Seattle Pacific (6-7)
- Alaska Anchorage (5-7)
- Simon Fraser (4-9)
- Alaska Fairbanks (3-9)
- Western Oregon (2-10)
GNAC teams are competing to make the conference tournament hosted by Central Washington in Ellensburg, Wash. from March 7-9. The top six teams are invited, with the top two seeds earning a bye into the semifinals.
ABOUT #13 SAINT MARTIN'S
The Saints have put together a season that has made them nationally relevant. SMU enters the weekend 19-3, with a 9-3 record in conference play. Their three losses have been by a combined six points, and they haven't dropped a game by more than three points this season.
The Saints average 84.7 points per game while allowing just 71 points per game. Kyle Greeley has been excellent, averaging team-bests with both 17.3 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. Greeley is one of four Saints scoring in double-figures this season.
The Falcons played Saint Martin's on Jan. 20, falling 89-71 on the road. Anderson led the Falcons with 23 points.
Jadin Penigar poured in 18 points and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds. Sze made the offense work, especially in the second half. He finished with seven assists for SPU.
ABOUT WESTERN OREGON
The Wolves have struggled throughout the 2023-24 season, with a 5-15 record while going 2-10 in conference play. They're allowing 78 points per game. Qiant Myers has found ways to be productive for the Wolves. He's scoring 16.3 points per game. Cameron Benzel leads the team in rebounding with 7.9 per game.
The Falcons visited Western Oregon on Jan. 18 and rode an unbelievable opening six minutes to a 91-56 victory over the Wolves. SPU erupted for a 21-0 run over the first six minutes. Penigar highlighted the run when he drove down the lane and threw down a monster dunk. The Falcons went 8-for-9, including three 3-pointers during the stretch.
Penigar led everyone with 24 points on 11-for-17 shooting. He went 2-for-3 from 3-point range. He added two rebounds, two assists, and one block to a stellar night for the Falcons.
Owen Moriarty scored 15 points on 6-for-9 shooting.
Jonas La Tour led the bench with 15 points on 6-for-7 shooting.
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