SAN DIEGO – The Seattle Pacific University men's basketball team's season ended in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday evening when host Point Loma took down the Falcons 68-54.
The Falcon's 30th trip to the NCAA Tournament opened with a tough draw in Point Loma. The Sea Lions entered the tournament ranked 7th in the College Sports Communicators Media Poll and 9th in the National Association of Basketball Coaches Poll.
Still, the Falcons put together a strong first half against the Sea Lions. A layup from Trace Evans put the team up 9-8 with 12:14 left in the opening half. Two minutes later, Mason Landdeck knocked down a 3-pointer that gave the Falcons the lead again. A three from Landdeck tied the game at 25 with 3:32 left in the first half. From there, the Sea Lions went on a 10-3 run and never looked back.
"Full credit to our boys for our first half," Evans said. "We came out with decent pop and hung with them. The shots weren't dropping, and we got away from what was working for us."
The Falcons tried to chip away at the Sea Lions but couldn't find an offensive flow. SPU shot 40.74 percent (21-for-52) from the floor in Friday's game, including four 3-pointers. PLNU hit seven 3-pointers and 15 free throws. The Falcons turned it over 15 times, while the Sea Lions scored 19 points from turnovers.
"I thought we had a good game plan going in that our guys were committed to," Head Coach Keffrey Fazio said. "Our guys did a good job of executing that. As the game continued, we weren't scoring enough to keep our juices up. We needed to get stops and score but we couldn't get into a good rhythm on offense. They (Point Loma) can make offense look easy, but they defend as well. I was proud that we gave them a little adversity, but it wasn't enough."
"They're a good team that doesn't make many mistakes," Jaxon Nap said. "They forced us into too many turnovers. They are a team that punishes you for those mistakes. It's fun to be here, but I'm a little disappointed I couldn't give my team more opportunities."
The Falcons grew tremendously throughout the 2024-25 season. They were picked to finish seventh in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches poll. SPU went 2-8 through Dec. 14 before the bounce back was on. They entered this weekend's NCAA Tournament 16-6 over since that date.
The Falcons finished the regular season in third place in the GNAC standings. They needed to win the GNAC Tournament to advance to the big dance. They did just that. In 55 hours, SPU routed No. 6 seed Alaska Fairbanks, 81-47, beat No. 2 seed Northwest Nazarene in the semifinals, 73-68, then led for all but the opening moments of the title game against No. 1 seed and GNAC regular-season champion Central Washington. Landdeck was named the GNAC Tournament's Most Valuable Player, joined by Jaxon Nap and Owen Moriarty on the All-Tournament team.
"I think this is everything," Nap said. "From where we were at the beginning of the season, and the struggles we had in nonconference games. Then we bought into one another. I wouldn't trade those three games in the GNAC Tournament for anything in my life. I'm proud of my teammates and very grateful for these coaches. We earned our way here with how the team played, so I'm proud of that today."
Three Falcons made the GNAC All-Conference team. Nap lived up to Preseason All-Conference billing with a First Team All-Conference selection. Evans's efficient shooting earned a Second Team All-Conference nod. Moriarty led the Falcons in scoring all season long and made GNAC Honorable Mention.
"I'm on the same page as Nap," Evans said. "Our run has meant the world to me. It's tough to lose. We lost a lot at the start of the year. We used that as a learning experience. The feeling that I had when we bought in, played for each other, and started winning basketball games is something that can't be replicated. I'm happy with this year, I'm proud of the boys, and wouldn't trade it for the world."
The Falcons won in the classroom as well. SPU made up seven of the 25 selections to the GNAC All-Academic Team. 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. Brian Caldera, Jonas La Tour, Julian Mora, Moriarty, and Nikias Schoenerstedt joined the duo on the GNAC All-Academic team.
Those accomplishments by the Falcons will be celebrated now, and later.
"I want to enjoy what we did this year and celebrate the guys that may not be with us next year," Fazio said. "Any time you get to play meaningful games in March, that experience is invaluable. What we did at the GNAC Tournament will serve us well next year, along with this game. Right now, I want to celebrate the guys for all of their hard work. They did what the coaches asked them to do and didn't flinch. That's where we'll be at for the next few weeks before we look ahead to the future."
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