SEATTLE – The Seattle Pacific University men's basketball team extended its winning streak to seven games with a 72-62 victory over Northwest Nazarene on Thursday night when five Falcons scored in double-figures, and a massive advantage on the glass led the way to another win.
The hottest team in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference lived up to its moniker on Thursday night. The Falcons turned to balance scoring and strong defense to take down the Nighthawks. SPU went 27-for-47 (55.1 percent) from the field, including an 8-for-17 (47.1 percent) effort from 3-point range. Five Falcons scored in double-figures, led by 20 points from Mason Landdeck on a 7-for-14 shooting performance. Landdeck also led the team with four assists.
SPU's rebounding played a pivotal role in Thursday's game. The Falcons outrebounded the Nighthawks 33-20 and turned six offensive rebounds into 11 second-chance points.
"Anytime you win the glass, you've put yourself in a situation to win the basketball game," Head Coach Keffrey Fazio said. "Rebounding certainly helped us tonight. Keeping the possession game on our side is very important."
The first half featured momentum swings for both the Falcons and the Nighthawks. SPU opened the game with an 11-3 run that lasted nearly three minutes. The Falcons went 5-for-5 from the field during that stretch. Landdeck led the group with five points, while Owen Moriarty scored four.
The Nighthawks responded with a 21-4 run over 6:30. NNU went 8-for-10 during that span, with five players contributing to the scoring. The Falcons fueled the stretch with five turnovers. SPU trailed 24-15 with eight minutes left in the first half.
The Falcons closed out the first half well, going a 19-6 run over the final eight minutes. Trace Evans and Moriarty led the charge with six points each. The run propelled the Falcons to a 34-30 lead into halftime.
SPU carried their momentum into the second half, where they gained control of the game. The Falcons went on a 17-10 run over eight minutes. Landdeck led the group with seven points, while Jonas La Tour and Logan Kinloch splashed home timely 3-pointers. The run gave the Falcons a 51-43 lead with 10 minutes to play.
Free throw shooting helped the Falcons secure the game late. They went 7-for-7 from the free throw line over the final 1:20 of the game. SPU shot 90.9 percent from the charity stripe for the game.
"I thought our guys showed a lot of resilience," Fazio said. "It wasn't easy out there at times for each of them, but they hung in together. That's a big word for us; together. It gets used a lot in team sports. If you're truly together, you have something that cannot be scouted and this team has certainly found that. We need to continue to strengthen that element every chance we get to be together."
Nap was a rebound away from a double-double. He was the second-leading scorer for the Falcons with 16 points, nine rebounds, and three assists. Moriarty finished with 12 points, including two 3-pointers. La Tour had 11 points with three 3-pointers. Evans finished with 10 points and four rebounds.
"I could go on and on about several guys tonight," Fazio added. "Trace [Evans] made some nice plays playing through the post. Mason [Landdeck] ran the point, leading us on both sides of the floor. Jaxon [Nap] is a unique player and gives us a nice option to move around and create advantages. Owen [Moriarty] is tough and scrappy and played well, and Jonas [La Tour] played a very nice, complete game today."
The Falcons will honor Evans, Brian Caldera, and Jacob Gray before they tip off with Central Washington at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday's Senior Day.
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