Just around the corner. A new era of Seattle Pacific University men's basketball is about to begin and the Falcons' faithful will get a sneak peek at two upcoming preseason exhibitions in Brougham Pavilion. Coming off a 24-5 record, a No. 9 final ranking and with a new coach at the helm for the first time in 12 years, SPU hosts the Northwest All-Stars Friday night (Nov. 8) and The Son's Blue Angels Nov. 15. The regular season begins Nov. 22-23 with the with Vitamilk Tip-Off Classic. In fact, the first four games will be at home before hitting the road for all five December contests.

All we need is a Hiro. For the past 11 years he was the quiet, unassuming man behind the scenes of so many successes. Now Jeff Hironaka is the head coach of one of the top programs in NCAA Division II for the past 10 years. A career assistant at Idaho State, The Masters' and then associate head coach at SPU since 1991, Hironaka succeeded Ken Bone last spring following Bone's move to the University of Washington. With Hironaka on Bone's staff, the Falcons won 236 of 323 games, won five outright or shared conference championships and earned NCAA tournament berths eight of the past nine years. Hironaka becomes only the second Japanese-American head coach of a four-year collegiate program.

Fighting through the pick. Seattle Pacific's path to another GNAC championship will be arduous. Three starters were lost to graduation while Humboldt State, which eliminated SPU in the second round of the playoffs, returns its lineup virtually intact. As expected, Humboldt was installed as the clear preseason favorite by the GNAC coaches, earning nine of 10 first-place votes. The Falcons finished fourth in the poll, behind Western Washington and Central Washington.

A solid start. Hironaka must replace two all-conference performers in Nick Johnson and Brannon Stone, plus center Eric Sandrin, who is now playing professionally in Europe. Still, Hironaka's already got a fairly solid foundation on which to build. Yusef Aziz (Sr., 6-4, Seattle, Wa./Foster-Highline CC) was the newcomer of the year in the GNAC and the Falcons' leader in scoring (16.2), steals (1.7) and field goal percentage (.548). Point guard Maurice Cato (Sr., 6-0, Fairfield, Ca.) is also back after averaging 10.4 points, 2.8 assists and hitting 51 three-pointers. Forwards Daniel Sandrin (Sr., 6-7, Bothell, Wa./Bothell) and Gene Woodard (Sr., 6-4, Edmonds, Wa./O'Dea), together, averaged 12.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and shot 55 percent as the top two reserves a year ago. Rounding out the senior class are fifth-year guard Adam Harris (Sr., 6-1, Fox Island, Wa./Gig Harbor) and post Jesse Keely (Sr., 6-7, Fircrest, Wa./Bellarmine). Harris is a solid shooter but, more importantly, a steadying influence in the backcourt. Keely's a strong rebounder, particularly on the offensive glass. Chris Cohen (Jr., 6-8, Saint Helens, Or.), the sole junior, will see increased minutes inside.

Fine fresh faces. The roster is heavily weighted toward seniors (6) and freshmen (6), yet the only two sophomores are making a bid to start. Jason Chivers (So., 6-8, Palmdale, Ca./Highland-L.A. Trade Tech) would provide a huge presence inside. In his freshman season Chivers, the only transfer brought in among five recruits, led all California junior college players by averaging 15.6 rebounds. He also averaged 14.1 points and 3.4 blocked shots in a season cut short by a knee injury. Chivers had spent the previous four years as a minor league prospect in the New York Mets farm system. Jordan Lee (So., 6-0, University Place, Wa./Life Christian) is competing for the second guard spot. Among the freshmen, Tony Binetti (Fr., 6-1, Enumclaw, Wa./Enumclaw), an all-state point guard, will get plenty of minutes as Cato's understudy and redshirt Jeff Knudson (Fr., 6-7, Mukilteo, Wa./Kamiak) is considered an excellent perimeter shooter to bring off the bench.

Put-backs. In addition to Binetti and Knudson, two other freshmen will see action. Dustin Bremerman (Fr., 6-4, Yakima, Wa./Eisenhower), like Knudson, is a long-range shooter. He attended junior college classes but did not play last year. Mike Bushmaker (Fr., 6-7, Yakima, Wa./Eisenhower), a high school teammate of Bremerman, was a redshirt last season...The early signing period for national letters of intent is Nov. 13-20. Last year both Binetti and Bremerman committed at that time...Hironaka plans to redshirt two freshmen: guard Jordan Beede (Fr., 6-1, Bellingham, Wa./Squalicum) and forward Tim Gabelein (Fr., 6-6, Langley, Wa./South Whidbey).

Tickets, please. Reserved tickets for all SPU home games are priced $7 and $6. General admission is $5 with youth, students and senior citizens $3 with proper identification. Groups or teams can qualify for discounts by calling (206) 281-2085 in advance.SPU

Coaches. The longest-serving assistant in program history, Jeff Hironaka was selected to succeed Ken Bone as head coach Apr. 30, 2002. A former aide at Idaho State and The Master's, Hironaka joined Bone in 1991 and from there the Falcons won 236 of 253 games, claimed five outright or shared conference championships and qualified for the NCAA tournament eight of the last nine years, including a Final Four advancement in 2000. Hironaka is the second Japanese-American head coach of a four-year collegiate program. Keith Cooper, an alumnus of Seattle Pacific, is the staff's top assistant. Cooper previously was an assistant at Central Washington and Pacific Lutheran, and head coach at Federal Way's Decatur High School. George Parker who first served as an assistant in 1986, returns for his 14th year on the staff. Others who are new to the staff are Rich King, former Nebraska and Seattle SuperSonics center, and Michael Johnson, an all-state selection from nearby Ballard and four-year letterman at Washington.

Missing links. For the latest and best information on Seattle Pacific University athletics, stay where you're at -- on The Falcons Online. For updated standings and statistics, see the Great Northwest Athletic Conference web site.