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Men's Basketball

Falcons Head to NCAA West Regionals This Weekend

SEATTLE – After winning the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Tournament and earning an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament, the Seattle Pacific University men's basketball team takes a trip to San Diego for the NCAA West Regionals. The Falcons open the tournament on Friday against host Point Loma at 5:00 p.m. with the winner of that game meeting the winner of Biola and Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
 
QUOTABLE
"Punching a ticket to the big dance," head coach Keffrey Fazio said. "March madness. It's a dream come true for these guys. This is why you play college basketball for an opportunity to make it into the field of 64. I'm just grateful that these guys let me hang out with them."
 
GNAC TEAM OF THE WEEK
The GNAC announced its Team of the Week award on Monday, with Seattle Pacific University men's basketball named Co-Team of the Week after winning the GNAC Championship last weekend.
 
The Falcons put together a convincing march through the GNAC Tournament. The Falcons flattened Alaska Fairbanks 81-47 in the opening round. The Falcons took down Northwest Nazarene 73-68 in the semifinals. Then, in the championship game, the Falcons beat Central Washington 72-61 to claim their conference-record fifth GNAC title.
 
GNAC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Several Falcons put together strong weekends during their tournament run. Mason Landdeck was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player. He scored 57 points, grabbed 21 rebounds, and dished out 16 assists over the three games. He opened the tournament with a monstrous double-double. He scored 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in the Falcon's win over the Nanooks.
 
Jaxon Nap and Owen Moriarty were named to the All-Tournament team as well. Nap had double-figure rebounds in each of the three games played. He pulled down 15 rebounds in the championship game against the Wildcats. Nap's grabbed double-digit rebounds 17 times this season.
 
Moriarty had impressive scoring outbursts for the Falcons throughout the weekend. He dropped 18 points in SPU's opening-round victory over UAF. Then in the championship game, Moriarty led the Falcons with 20 points while going 6-for-8 from the field and 7-for-8 from the free throw line.
 
A BOOST FROM THE BENCH
Julian Mora made a triumphant return to the court during the GNAC Tournament. Mora hadn't played since Jan. 23. He provided a huge spark for the Falcons, scoring 15 points in the semifinals before adding 11 points in the championship game. Mora was deadly from 3-point range, finishing the weekend 6-for-9 from deep.
 
AN IMPRESSIVE TURNAROUND
It took an impressive turnaround for the Falcons to reach this point in the 2024-25 season. SPU's record fell to 2-8 after a 71-64 loss at home to CSU East Bay on Dec. 14. Since then, the Falcons are 16-6 and have won the GNAC Tournament. This was the fifth appearance in the GNAC title game for the Falcons – and they have won all five (2013, '14, '15, '19, and now '25).
 
WHAT HAS WORKED FOR THE FALCONS
The Falcons turned to a slower-paced playing style and have locked in defensively. SPU allows 69.4 points per game to its opponents, the third-lowest in the GNAC. SPU has been disruptive on defense for its opponents. The Falcons are allowing teams to shoot 42.9 percent from the field. It's the third-lowest opponent field goal percentage in the GNAC. The Falcons turned into one of the best shooting teams in their conference. SPU enters the NCAA Tournament making 47.9 percent of their attempts from the field. It's the third-best field goal percentage in the GNAC.
 
A COUPLE OF MAGIC MOMENTS
The Falcons received some heroic performances on multiple occasions through the 2024-25 season. Both were in the middle of a season-high seven-game winning streak from Jan. 23 through Feb. 15. The extended winning streak pushed the Falcons into the conference tournament and beyond.
 
Owen Moriarty made the game-winning shot against Alaska Fairbanks on Jan. 25, when his jumper from eight feet with 20 seconds left propelled the Falcons to a 56-54 victory over the Nanooks. The Falcons still needed a stop on the other end of the floor. The Nanooks had a timeout but chose to play the game out. UAF's Chris Lee settled for a long 3-pointer over SPU's Trace Evans to win the game. He missed. Moriarty grabbed the rebound and the win for the Falcons.
 
Grant Coleman splashed home a game-winning 3-pointer with five seconds left at Western Washington on Feb. 8. Mason Landdeck dribbled the ball down the court and attacked the basket. He was stopped near the paint. Landdeck turned and passed to Grant Coleman, standing wide open on the left wing. Coleman buried what proved to be the game-winning 3-point shot with five seconds left. Tijane Saine hurried down the court and got a shot up for the Vikings that didn't fall. Coleman's 3-pointer extended the Falcons winning streak to six games while ending a seven-game winning streak for the Vikings.
 
SMART BIRDS
Seven Falcons made the GNAC All-Academic team, the most of any team in the conference. The Falcons made up seven of the 25 selections to the GNAC All-Academic Team. Trace Evans is one of five players earning honors for the second time. Logan Kinloch touts the highest grade point average on the GNAC All-Academic Team. Kinloch owns a 3.97 while studying business administration. Honorees include Brian Caldera, Trace Evans, Logan Kinloch, Jonas La Tour, Julian Mora, Owen Moriarty, and Nikias Schoenerstedt.
 
POSTSEASON AWARD RECIPIENTS
Three Falcons made GNAC All-Conference and the GNAC Tournament team. Jaxon Nap was selected to the Preseason All-Conference Team, and came through at the end of the year with a First Team All-Conference Selection. Trace Evans ultra-efficient offensive performance landed him a Second Team All-GNAC selection. Owen Moriarty led the team in scoring all season long and was named GNAC Honorable Mention.

IT'S BEEN A WHILE
Friday is the first appearance for the Falcons since the 2019-2020 season. The Falcons were set to play Chico State in the opening round before a global pandemic brought everything to halt. The Falcons last played in the NCAA Tournament during the 2018-19 season. They defeated Chaminade 77-75 in the opening round before falling to Saint Martin's 67-63 in the regional semifinals.
 
TOURNAMENT BRACKET
Friday, March 14
12 p.m. | Quarterfinal #1 | #3 Chico State vs. #6 Central Washington
2:30 p.m. | Quarterfinal #2  | #2 Cal State Dominguez Hills vs. #7 Northwest Nazarene
5 p.m. | Quarterfinal #3 | #1 Point Loma vs. #8 Seattle Pacific
7:30 p.m. | Quarterfinal #4 | #4 Biola vs. #5 Cal State San Bernardino
 
Saturday, March 15
5 p.m. | Semifinal #1 | Winner QF1 vs. Winner QF2
7:30 p.m. | Semifinal #2 | Winner QF3 vs. Winner QF4
 
Monday, March 17
7:00 p.m. | Championship Game | Winner of SF1 vs. Winner of SF2
 
WATCH LIVE STREAMS FOR FREE
Every game of this weekend's NCAA West Regional will be broadcast live through Point Loma's channel on the PacWest Network. Every game will be free to watch. Click here, or use the links on the SPU schedule page or at the top of this story to follow live stats and watch live.
 
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Players Mentioned

Brian Caldera

#15 Brian Caldera

G
6' 3"
Senior
Trace Evans

#14 Trace Evans

F
6' 9"
Junior
Logan Kinloch

#0 Logan Kinloch

F
6' 4"
Redshirt Sophomore
Jonas La Tour

#4 Jonas La Tour

F
6' 6"
Redshirt Sophomore
Julian Mora

#2 Julian Mora

G
5' 11"
Redshirt Sophomore
Owen Moriarty

#1 Owen Moriarty

G
6' 2"
Junior
Nikias Schoenerstedt

#33 Nikias Schoenerstedt

F
6' 9"
Junior
Jaxon Nap

#3 Jaxon Nap

G
6' 7"
Junior
Grant Coleman

#11 Grant Coleman

F
6' 8"
Junior
Mason Landdeck

#13 Mason Landdeck

G
6' 3"
Redshirt Junior

Players Mentioned

Brian Caldera

#15 Brian Caldera

6' 3"
Senior
G
Trace Evans

#14 Trace Evans

6' 9"
Junior
F
Logan Kinloch

#0 Logan Kinloch

6' 4"
Redshirt Sophomore
F
Jonas La Tour

#4 Jonas La Tour

6' 6"
Redshirt Sophomore
F
Julian Mora

#2 Julian Mora

5' 11"
Redshirt Sophomore
G
Owen Moriarty

#1 Owen Moriarty

6' 2"
Junior
G
Nikias Schoenerstedt

#33 Nikias Schoenerstedt

6' 9"
Junior
F
Jaxon Nap

#3 Jaxon Nap

6' 7"
Junior
G
Grant Coleman

#11 Grant Coleman

6' 8"
Junior
F
Mason Landdeck

#13 Mason Landdeck

6' 3"
Redshirt Junior
G