Thur., Feb. 21 — 7:30 pm AST Wells Fargo Sports Complex — Anchorage, AK Simon Fraser (6-17, 1-14 GNAC)
at Alaska Anchorage (16-6, 9-5 GNAC)
&
Sat., Feb. 23 — 7:30 pm AST Wells Fargo Sports Complex — Anchorage, AK #2 Western Washington (24-0, 15-0 GNAC [2/21 @UAF])
at Alaska Anchorage
MEDIA DETAILS … RADIO: Live locally on FM-93.7 KAFC TV: Catch the delayed telecast at 11 p.m. each night on KCFT (GCI Ch. 19) LIVE STATS:GoSeawolves.com ONLINE: All UAA home games feature free live video and live stats via Stretch Internet. Surf to GoSeawolves.com and follow the links in the upper right-hand corner … follow Seawolf Athletics as well on Facebook (Alaska Anchorage Seawolves) and Twitter (@UAASeawolves).
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS: Simon Fraser has dropped seven straight and 16 of its last 17, with its lone win in that span coming over Alaska Fairbanks, 68-54, on Jan. 24 at home … the Clan, in their third full season in the GNAC, come into Thursday with a 1-8 road record … SFU is led by 6-6 Jr. F Anto Olah (12.9 ppg, 7.3 rpg, .521 FG, .356 3FG) and 6-1 Jr. G Elijah Matthews (12.7 ppg, 3.2 rpg, .447 3FG, .810 FT) … defending national champion Western Washington is riding a school- and GNAC-record 30-game win as it enters Thursday’s game in Fairbanks … the Vikings, who have not lost since last year’s GNAC Tournament semifinals, have won 10 of their last 11 games by double figures, with the exception being a 83-76 overtime home win over then-No. 4 Seattle Pacific on Feb. 2 … WWU features seven players who average at least 8.0 ppg, led by 6-1 Sr. G John Allen (17.1 ppg, 4.1 apg, .471 FG, .390 3FG, .849 FT) and 6-4 Sr. G Paul Jones (14.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg, .581 FG, .462 3FG, .750 FT).
THE SERIES vs SFU: UAA leads 8-0 (4-0 in Anchorage) Last Meeting: UAA 86-66 (1/26/13 at SFU) / Streak: UAA 8 / Notes: UAA has won all five meetings since SFU joined the GNAC in 2010-11 … the Seawolves have scored at least 85 points in last four meetings (89.0 ppg), including last year’s 85-75 home win … teams met twice in UAA’s first year of Div. II membership in 1977-78, with UAA winning twice at home … teams also met when SFU was a provisional NCAA member in 1999-00 and both teams were in the Pac West Conference.
THE SERIES vs WWU: WWU leads 13-11 (UAA leads 7-5 in Anch.) Last Meeting: WWU 75-62 (1/24/13 at WWU) / Streak: WWU 5 / Notes: WWU is seeking its third straight season sweep, winning all four games by single digits from 2010-12 … WWU is seeking the longest streak in the series — UAA won 5 straight from 2006-08 … UAA’s last win overall came 68-53 at home, Feb. 11, 2010 … the Seawolves had won 7 of 9 prior to WWU’s current streak … WWU leads 14-9 in GNAC meetings (since 2001-02) … first and only non-GNAC meeting came when both teams were Pac West foes, with UAA winning 89-77 at home, Jan. 20, 2000.
LAST TIME VS WWU/SFU: The Seawolves forged a split on the road, challenging Western Washington in a 75-62 loss Jan. 24 and beating Simon Fraser 86-66 Jan. 26 … on Thursday, Sr. C Liam Gibcus scored 13 points (5-7 FG, 3-3 FT) and grabbed 7 rebounds as UAA forged a 32-25 halftime lead before falling … So. G Teancum Stafford had 11 points, Jr. G Kyle Fossman tallied 10 points and dished 4 assists, and Jr. G Colton Lauwers tied for game-high honors with 5 assists … in Canada, Gibcus and Fossman led a balanced attack with 16 points apiece vs. the Clan … the Seawolves also got 13 points each from Lauwers (4-4 FG, 3-3 3FG, 2-2 FT) and Stafford (5-9 FG, 2-2 FT) as UAA’s starters outscored SFU’s 63-35 … Gibcus added 7 rebounds and made 6 of 6 FTs to lead UAA to a season-best .889 FT% (16-18) … UAA also got a big lift off the bench from Sr. F Abebe Demissie and Fr. F Collin Spickerman, who scored 8 points apiece and combined for 9 boards.
SEAWOLVES SWEEP NANOOKS: So. G Teancum Stafford scored 18 points (5-10 FG, 7-9 FT), including the go-ahead free throws with 48 seconds remaining, to help UAA to a 71-69 victory over Alaska Fairbanks at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex on Saturday … the Seawolves also got 16 points apiece from Jr. G Kyle Fossman and Sr. F Abebe Demissie as they beat UAF for the 15th straight time and moved one game ahead of their rivals for 3rd place in the GNAC standings … UAF erased a 60-47 deficit to take the lead three times in the final three minutes, but UAA used a clutch trey from Fr. F Christian Leckband (7 pts, 6 rebs) and three FTs by Stafford in the final 90 seconds to hold on … Stafford added 6 rebounds, Fossman and Jr. G Colton Lauwers dished 5 assists apiece, and Sr. C Liam Gibcus had 10 points (5-9 FG) and 5 rebounds as UAA beat UAF for the 10th straight time in Anchorage.
GNACs ON TAP: With their win over UAF on Saturday, UAA joined Western Washington and Seattle Pacific as the first teams to qualify for the 2013 GNAC Tournament, set for Mar. 7-9 in Lacey, Wash. … the Seawolves have been runners-up in the inaugural two tournaments … the top six teams qualify for the event, which determines the league’s automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament.
TEAM NOTES: The Seawolves have clinched their eighth straight winning season and the 30th in the program’s 36 years … with one more win, UAA will finish with a plus-.500 league record for the 25th time in 31 years of conference membership … the Seawolves are also in position for their eighth straight top-5 GNAC finish, including the 2007-08 title and runner-up showings in 2010-11 and 2011-12 … with the UAF win, UAA also improved to 7-2 in games decided by 6 points or less and 4-1 in one-possession games (1-3 pts) … the CWU home game marked UAA’s 23rd straight victory when scoring 80 points or more, dating to start of the 2011-12 season … the Seawolves have won 28 of their last 30 at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex, with the only losses coming to eventual NCAA champ Western Washington last season and then-No. 13 SPU this year … UAA leads the GNAC in a pair of categories — 3FGs made per game (9.7) and assists per game (18.1) — while ranking 2nd in 3FG% (.406), asst.-turnover ratio (1.4) and rebounds allowed per game (31.9) … in the NCAA Div. II national stats, the Seawolves are in the top 15 in four categories — 7th in 3FGs per game, 8th in assists, and 11th in both A-T ratio and 3FG% … the Seawolves are 9-2 when outrebounding their opponent and 4-0 when shooting 50 percent or better … UAA’s 7-1 start equaled the best 8-game record in program history, joining the 1986-87 squad that started 12-1 … the 71-69 win over UAF on Feb. 16 gave the program its longest streak against any opponent with 15 straight (since 2/25/06); the previous mark was 14 in a row, also against UAF, from 1/20/90 to 2/25/96 … UAA’s last three Div. I victories have come over teams from Southern California — UC Irvine, UC Riverside and LMU … the 15 3FGs made against LMU tied for the 10th-most in program history and were the most ever against a D-I opponent … the 18 opponent rebounds by both WOU (Jan. 10) and SFU (Jan. 26) tied for the 10th-fewest allowed by a Seawolf club … the 9 blocks Nov. 15 against Washington Adventist were the most for a Seawolf squad since Dec. 2005 and just two shy of the program single-game record.
FOSS EVERY DAY: Jr. G Kyle Fossman leads UAA and ranks 5th in the GNAC with 15.6 ppg, along with 3.6 rpg, 2.5 apg and 1.4 spg … the preseason all-league pick leads the league in 3FGs per game (2.8) along with other ranks of 2nd in minutes (36.6), 2nd in FT% (.874), 6th in steals and 8th in 3FG% (.449) … in the NCAA Div. II national stats, he is in the top 30 in three categories — 9th in 3FG%, 25th in FT% and 27th in 3FGs/gm. … last week, the Haines product increased his streak to 30 straight games with at least one 3FG, bringing him two shy of Jim Hajdukovich (32, 11/8/96-11/27/97) for the 2nd-longest at UAA … Fossman holds UAA career top-20 ranks of 4th in 3FG% (.459) and FT% (.864), 12th in 3FGs made (141); he needs five more treys to move into the top 10 … on the single-season lists, he is on pace for 3rd in 3FGs per game, 2nd in minutes per game, 7th in FT% and 14th in 3FG% … Fossman made the all-tournament teams at both the Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout and the AT&T Jamboree.
A-PLUS AUSSIE: Already having his best season on the court, Sr. C Liam Gibcus added a major academic achievement to his resume recently when he earned CoSIDA/Capital One Academic All-District honors … now a candidate for Academic All-America honors, Gibcus owns a 3.80 overall GPA in civil engineering … on the hardwood, the Aussie is averaging 10.9 ppg and team-highs of 6.5 rpg and .575 FG% … in the GNAC stats, Gibcus ranks 4th in FG%, 10th in rebounding, 2nd in offensive rebounding (2.8 orpg) and 13th in FT% (.750), sinking 25 of his last 28 charities … he ranks No. 7 on UAA’s career FG% list at .562, while the team’s only 4th-year senior is also 9th in games played (107), and tied for 4th in games won (77) … with one more victory, he will tie former All-Americans Carl Arts and Luke Cooper (2004-08) as the 2nd-winningest player in program history.
STAFF REPORT: After missing the first UAF game with an injury, So. G Teancum Stafford has returned with seven straight double-digit scoring efforts, including 90 points in the last five games … the Snow (UT) College transfer stands 12th in the GNAC scoring race and ranks 2nd on the team in rebounding (4.5 rpg), while dishing 2.1 assists per game … on UAA’s current 5-1 stretch, he is putting up 17.1 ppg and 6.0 rpg, and shooting .469 (15 of 32) on 3FGs … the Auburn, Wash., native has scored double figures in 17 of 21 games so far and has a current streak of nine straight games with at least one 3FG … Stafford was the MVP of the season-opening AT&T Jamboree and joined Jr. G Kyle Fossman as a Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout All-Tournament Team pick.
MORE PLAYER NOTES: Jr. G Colton Lauwers and Fr. G Jalen Little have complemented each other well at the point, combining to average 11.4 ppg, 7.2 apg, .394 3FG and .787 FT, … Little has twice dished a UAA season-high 9 assists — in wins over LMU and CWU — and currently ranks 8th in the GNAC in assists (3.6 apg) and 4th in asst.-TO ratio (2.4) … the Colorado native is already No. 2 on UAA’s freshman assists list with 80, while his .764 FT% also currently ranks 2nd … Lauwers matched Little with a career-high 9 assists against NNU and now sits 9th in the league at 3.6 apg … the Dimond High product is also 8th in the GNAC in FT% (.811), 6th in asst.-TO ratio (2.1) and 12th in 3FG% (.408) … Fr. F Christian Leckband is also rising up the UAA freshman charts, currently on pace to set the rookie record for 3FG% at .472 … on the other freshman lists, the redshirt is 6th in FG% (.490), 7th in 3FGs made (25) and 5th in games started (17) … the former Alaska 3A Player of the Year from Nome ranks 4th in the GNAC with his .472 3FG% … Sr. F Abebe Demissie tallied double figures for the 10th time this season when he scored 16 points in Saturdays’ win over UAF … the Seattle (Rainier Beach HS) product had his second career double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds at UAF on Jan. 29, and he is currently working on a string of 16 straight games with at least one 3FG … Demissie is UAA’s 3rd-leading rebounder (4.0 rpg) and ranks 12th in the GNAC with 1.7 3FGs per game … Fr. F Collin Spickerman is 6th in the GNAC with 1.0 blocks per game, having paced the Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout with 8 swats … the Portland, Ore. (Jesuit HS) product is 3rd on UAA’s freshman list for blocks with 20, putting him just one behind Hansi Gnad (21, 1983-84) for 2nd place … Sr. F/C Chris Weitzel will join Demissie and Liam Gibcus as pregame honorees for Saturday’s ‘senior night’ ceremonies … after completing his recovery from an ACL injury, the Oregon native has appeared in 10 GNAC contests since Jan. 3, playing a season-high 16 minutes in Saturday’s win over UAF.
INJURY REPORT: The Seawolves have no major injuries.
SEAWOLVES PICKED 4TH IN GNAC: UAA has been picked to finish 4th in the 10-team Great Northwest Athletic Conference coaches’ poll, released Oct. 23:
2012-13 Great Northwest Athletic Conference
Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches’ Poll 2012-13 GNAC Coaches Poll 2011-12 Recs., Pl. Pts
1. Seattle Pacific (8) 23-8 (13-5, 3rd) 97
2. Western Washington (2) 31-5 (16-2, 1st) 90
3. Central Washington 15-13 (8-10, 6th) 79 4. Alaska Anchorage 23-7 (15-3, 2nd) 70
5. Montana State Billings 18-12 (10-8, 5th) 49
6. Western Oregon 18-10 (11-7, 4th) 41
7. Northwest Nazarene 12-14 (6-12, 7th) 34
8. Alaska Fairbanks 5-23 (2-16, 10th) 31
Saint Martin’s 10-17 (6-12, 8th-T) 31
10. Simon Fraser 8-18 (3-15, 10th) 28
2012-13 SEAWOLF INDIVIDUAL HONORS Kyle Fossman
Preseason All-GNAC Team, 10/23
AT&T Jamboree Player of the Game vs Colorado Christian, 11/9
All-AT&T Jamboree Team, 11/10
Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout All-Tournament Team, 11/24
GNAC Red Lion co-Player of the Week, Jan. 28-Feb. 3 Liam Gibcus
All-AT&T Jamboree Team, 11/10
CoSIDA/Capital One All-District Academic Team, 1/31 Jalen Little
Carrs/Safeway Player of the Game vs UC Riverside, 11/23 Teancum Stafford
AT&T Jamboree Player of the Game vs CSU-Pueblo, 11/10
AT&T Jamboree Most Outstanding Player, 11/10
Carrs/Safeway Player of the Game vs Loyola Marymount, 11/24
Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout All-Tournament Team, 11/24
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