Four for the road. Ready to raise the stakes, a 20th-ranked Seattle Pacific University men's basketball team begins Great Northwest Athletic Conference play in one of the toughest places to play. The Falcons (4-1), winners of four straight, visit undefeated Central Washington (4-0) in the middle of final exams Thursday (Dec. 6) and then travel down Interstate 5 to Saint Martin's (1-5) Saturday (Dec. 8). Next, the road leads to Las Vegas and a Dec. 15 date with No. 8 Henderson State (Ar.) at the High Desert Classic. GNAC play resumes Jan. 3.

Decembers to remember. Not only has SPU gathered some momentum going into the commencement of conference play but it often seems to hit its stride in the month of December. Last week's victory over Hawaii Pacific extended the Falcons' December win streak to 16 games. Not since a 1998 home defeat to Central (also in the midst of finals) has Coach Ken Bone's squad lost in this month. A year ago Seattle Pacific earned its first win over the Wildcats in Ellensburg since 1984.

Doin' the little things. Occasionally a visiting team can shoot (the ball, that is) its way out of a hostile environment, but more often it depends upon executing the fundamentals. So far, SPU is doing just that. The Falcons have out-rebounded the last four opponents 153-115, held four of five foes under 43 percent shooting from the field and forced an average of 21.2 turnovers. They lead the GNAC in scoring defense (59.6), field-goal percentage defense (.398), and scoring margin (+21.8). And as everyone grows familiar with the offense and one another, the shooting percentages have risen to 47 percent as a team. At the foul line last week the team converted 45 of 51 attempts and leads the conference at .795 accuracy for the season.

Aziz at ease. Forward Yusef Aziz (Jr., 6-4, Seattle, Wa./Foster-Highline CC) has been a solid addition for SPU this season, and has been particularly valuable in establishing a low-post presence on offense. Aziz has exhibited a blend of mid-range shooting and powerful thrusts straight to the hole in averaging a team-high 14.8 points. His scoring method is economical since he's shooting 64 percent from the field (30-47) and 92 percent (11-12) at the line. Aziz is also the leader in rebounds (6.8), thanks to 13 retrievals off the offensive glass. In last week's 103-66 win over Northwest College he came within one steal of the school record with nine swipes.

New kids on the block. In terms of numbers, Bone did little to revamp SPU this season yet three of his four new roster players are playing significant roles. In addition to Aziz, transfer Maurice Cato (Jr., 6-0, Fairfield, Ca./Fairfield-Skyline JC) is starting at point guard and beginning to come into his own while redshirt Jordan Lee (Fr., 6-0, University Place, Wa./Life Christian) is giving the Falcons a scoring lift off the bench. Cato has trimmed his turnovers since the first couple games and in last week's pair of wins averaged 14.0 points, 3.5 assists and 3.0 steals. Following a cold start, Lee has hit four of his last six 3-pointers and had 14 points last week.

Climbing the charts. Two-time all-conference forward Brannon Stone (Sr., 6-9, Oak Harbor, Wa.) often makes the game look all too easy and he continues to glide up the school's career lists with apparent ease. Stone is more involved in playmaking early this season, with nearly as many assists (28) as field-goal attempts (32). His 24 points last week brought him within 34 of 10th on the career list. He is 40 rebounds shy of climbing to No. 5 and 35 steals away from becoming the record-holder there. He became the SPU career leader in blocks as a sophomore and now has 234 to date.

Put-backs. Thursday's game can be heard live on the internet at http://www.cwu.edu/~cwualum/...Nick Johnson (Sr., 6-3, Burlington, Wa./Burlington-Edison) scored 19 points (8-12 FGs) and had eight boards and three assists vs. Northwest College. Johnson is shooting 57 percent in the first five games...Daniel Sandrin (Jr., 6-7, Bothell, Wa./Bothell-Portland) got his first start in 18 games vs. Hawaii Pacific and responded with 12 points. He's shooting 56 percent and averaging 8.4 points to date...Gene Woodard (Jr., 6-4, Edmonds, Wa./O'Dea) came off the bench for 12 points and seven rebounds in 17 minutes vs. Northwest...Eric Sandrin (Sr., 6-10, Bothell, Wa./Shorecrest-Portland) has made 26 trips to the foul line in the first five games and was 8-for-8 vs. HPU.

Opponent & series notes. Seattle Pacific swept Central Washington for the first time in 33 years during the regular season last year but it was the Wildcats who prevailed in the first round of the NCAA playoffs, 101-95 in overtime. All-conference forward Justin Thompson has averaged 19.0 points in taking Central to a strong start. The Falcons trail the series 58-31 but they have an edge of 11-10 under Bone...No opponent has met SPU more times (101) than Saint Martin's. Seattle Pacific has won five in a row, 16 of the last 17 and leads the series 70-31. Gerrit Eades is averaging 16.2 points for the Saints, who have played five of the first six on the road.

SPU Coaches. In his 11 years as coach of his alma mater, Ken Bone has directed the Falcons to seven NCAA tournament berths, five conference titles and 11 consecutive winning records. His winning percentage of .712 is the best in school history, surpassing even the legendary Les Habegger. From 1995-2000 Bone's teams advanced to the regional championship game five times, including a record 27 wins and Final Four appearance in 2000. Jeff Hironaka is in his 11th year as associate head coach. Jarrett Mentink returns to the staff after a four-year absence this season. George Parker who first served as an assistant in 1986, returns for his 13th year on the staff. Former all-conference forward Reggie Paul joins the staff after five seasons of playing professionally in Europe and Asia.