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This week...
Thr., Feb. 1, 7:30 p.m. -- MEN'S BASKETBALL v HAWAII PACIFIC,
Brougham Pavilion, Seattle, Wa.
Sat., Feb. 3, 3:30 p.m. -- MEN'S BASKETBALL v BYU HAWAII, Brougham
Pavilion, Seattle, Wa.
Complete
2000 Schedule
Home at last...
It's a homecoming in more ways than one. After playing six of the
last eight games on the road, Seattle Pacific University
welcomes back its men's basketball team for not only two games
this week, but the annual homecoming game and seven of the final
nine regular season outings. The Falcons (6-3, 13-4), winners in
11 of the last 13 contests, face Hawaii Pacific (3-6-, 8-10)
Thursday night (Feb. 1) and BYU Hawaii (5-4, 11-7) in a Saturday
matinee (Feb. 3). Next week holds the only two remaining road
games for SPU, beginning Feb. 8 at Northwest Nazarene.
Capacity crowd expected...
For the second time this season Brougham Pavilion should be packed
to the rafters. Over 1500 tickets for the homecoming doubleheader
have already been sold, including all of the lower courtside
reserved sections (reserved balcony bleacher seating is still
available). Saturday represents a rematch of the 2000 Pacific West
Conference championship game in which SPU defeated BYU Hawaii
113-59 in Ellensburg. Currently the Falcons are in second place in
the West Division while the Seasiders are tied for third in the
Pacific.
Ticket information...
Reserved seating tickets for all home games are priced $7 and $6.
General admission is $5 for adults, $3 for students, youth and
senior citizens. Group rates are available by call (206) 281-2085
in advance. Ticket windows open at 4:30 Thursday and 12:30
Saturday.
Save him a seat...
Relatively speaking, few Falcon fans got to see their team in
January and even Coach Ken Bone (11th year) missed seeing
the dramatic finish of the most recent win. Bone, after arguing
the no-call when one of his players was bundled a couple rows into
the bleachers by an opposing player, was ejected for the first
time in his tenure as head coach. Associate head coach Jeff
Hironaka guided the team through the final 25 minutes and its
77-76 comeback win over 25th-ranked Humboldt State. The Falcons,
who had trailed by as much as 12, prevailed on a rebound layup by
point guard Aaron Bellessa (So., 6-2, Federal Way, Wa./Decatur)
with 3 seconds left.
But still no ranking...
Unfortunately Seattle Pacific, which dropped the first game last
week, 84-81 at Western Oregon, did not sufficiently impress the
pollsters to warrant a return to the NCAA Division II top 25
rankings. It dropped out of the poll Jan. 8. Two of the four
losses this season were to teams currently ranked in the top 25
(No. 5 Cal State San Bernardino and No. 22 Western Washington). In
last week's West Region poll, SPU was fifth (Humboldt was second).
The top six teams in the region qualify for the NCAA tournament
next month.
Was father like son?...
Maybe some of the alumni will know whether forward Brannon
Stone (Jr., 6-9, Oak Harbor, Wa.) takes after his father, or
if he basically broke the mold to become perhaps the most complete
player in the region. As a freshman, Brannon became the first
forward to lead the team in both rebounding and assists since his
dad, Jeff Stone, did so in 1974. It's been no fluke, either.
Brannon is coming off a Humboldt game in which he topped SPU in
scoring (24 points), rebounds (a career-high 16), assists (3),
blocks (2) and steals (1). He's also connected on 30
3-pointers--second-most on the squad. For the season, Stone is
averaging 14.4 points, 5.6 boards, 3.5 assists, 1.7 blocks and 1.6
steals. He's also shooting 82 percent from the foul line. The
latter four figures lead the team.
Center of attention...
Along with Stone, Seattle Pacific has another player capable of
taking over a game at times. Center Eric Sandrin (Jr.,
6-10, Bothell, Wa./Shorecrest-Portland) certainly drew Humboldt
State's attention when he was in the game. Sandrin played only 24
minutes due to foul trouble but converted 10 of 14 shots, scored
21 points and hauled down nine rebounds before picking up his
fifth personal with 2:34 to go. He is the program's
highest-scoring center (15.2) since Caio Silveria (15.5) in 1990.
This season he ranks sixth in PacWest rebounding (6.8), fourth in
field-goal accuracy (.594) and 10th in blocks (1.0).
Nick at night...
He rivals both Sandrin and Stone in versatility, but is unequaled
in intensity. Guard Nick Johnson (Jr., 6-3, Burlington,
Wa./Burlington-Edison) gives SPU a little bit of everything and a
whole lot of energy. At Arcata alone, he chased down five
offensive rebounds. At Western Oregon Johnson played more minutes
(35) than anyone else, scored 21 points while taking just nine
shots (making seven) and passed out five assists. For the year he
leads the conference in 3-point accuracy (60 percent, 24-40) and
is averaging 12.7 points and 4.5 rebounds.
Series, opponent notes...
Hawaii Pacific, which met SPU in both the PacWest and NCAA
playoffs in 1999, is in the throes of its second straight subpar
season. The Sea Warriors have lost five of their last six and are
just 1-6 on the road this season. The series is tied 2-2 with the
Falcons winning the last two installments, a first-round regional
playoff in '99 and a midseason game in Honolulu last year...BYU
Hawaii, the PacWest runnerup and a regional playoff team last
year, is coming off a couple home wins but so far has struggled on
the road. The Seasiders, like SPU, one of the top shooting teams
in the nation, are 0-2 vs. Seattle Pacific.
Put-backs...
Hopefully the familiar surroundings will help forward John
Hubbard (Sr., 6-5, Inglewood, Ca./Grays Harbor CC) get his
shooting groove back. Hubbard, the team's top scorer on the season
(17.8), totaled just 14 points last week, and in the last five
games he has hit just 29 percent from the field (20-68)...Next
Thursday's flight to Idaho for the Northwest Nazarene game will
mark the final time the team leaves the city in the regular
season. The other road game is Feb. 11 at Seattle
University...After Western Oregon hit an opponent season-high 58
percent, Humboldt State became the seventh foe held to 40 percent
shooting or worse. SPU is 7-0 when opponents shoot that poorly.
The Falcons hit 55 percent from the field at Monmouth but just 40
percent at Arcata.
S-P-U on the W-E-B...
You can follow Seattle Pacific via the world wide web. The
Falcons Online features weekly releases, rosters, schedules,
updated results, histories and coaching profiles for all 12
varsity sports. You're already here!
PacWest
Conference Standings
Personnel notes...
No Player Yr-Exp Hgt '00-01 stats Hometown Notes
4 Abe Fox Jr-2V 6-8 2.7/1.9 reb Port Townsend, Wa. Averaging 10.2
minutes; 12 pts v Linfield
10 Adam Harris So-1V 6-0 4.5/1.0 ast Fox Island, Wa. Gig Harbor
grad scored 14 points v TESC
11 Aaron Bellessa* So-1V 6-2 2.1/3.1 ast Federal Way, Wa. Starter
at point guard; 11-20 FG
20 Darrell Walker Sr-TR 6-0 7.4/3.1 ast Marysville, Wa. 21-47
3-pointers, 45%; 1.3 steals
21 Brannon Stone* Jr-2V 6-7 14.4/5.6 reb Oak Harbor, Wa. 30 3ptrs;
1.8 blks, 1.6 stls; 82% FT
22 Jesse Keely So-TR 6-7 1.5/1.4 reb Fircrest, Wa. Played in 14
games; 6-10 FG
23 Nick Johnson* Jr-2V 6-3 12.7/4.5 reb Burlington, Wa. Career-hi
24 pts v Tarleton St.; 60% 3-ptrs
30 Gene Woodard So-1V 6-4 4.6/2.1 reb Edmonds, Wa. Career-high 20
pts at Linfield; 60% FG
32 John Hubbard* Sr-1V 6-5 17.8/3.4 reb Inglewood, Ca. 38-105
3-ptrs (36%); 79% FT
34 Eric Sandrin* Jr-TR 6-10 15.2/6.8 reb Bothell, Wa. 59% FG, 1.0
blks; 9-20 3-ptrs
40 Daniel Sandrin So-TR 6-7 3.8/3.0 reb Bothell, Wa. Averaging
14.1 minutes; 51% FG
42 Chris Cohen Fr-RS 6-8 0.8/0.9 reb Saint Helens, Or. Played in
12 games; 4-7 FG
*projected starter
Coach: Ken Bone (SPU '83) 11th year (221-90/.711)
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