Plenty to play for. A suddenly revitalized crosstown rivalry is renewed, heroes of the past are to be honored and the annual congregating of the alumni will all take place as Seattle Pacific University celebrates homecoming week. The Falcons (5-2, 9-7), winners in three of their last four, can break the logjam for second place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference when they host Seattle University (5-2, 12-4) Thursday night (Jan. 30). On Saturday afternoon (Feb. 1) a capacity crowd is expected in Brougham Pavilion for the homecoming game with Northwest Nazarene (1-6, 3-12). SPU next visits travel partner Western Washington in Bellingham Feb. 8.

Once more, with meaning. Two of the basic ingredients to a healthy rivalry are proximity and competitiveness and both are now part of the fixin's when SPU and Seattle U. meet. Geography has never been the problem; only four miles separate the two campuses. On the court, the Falcons had always held their end of the bargain. But not until the Redhawks ended seven years of futility with a 70-64 win in the pavilion back on Nov. 30 did the competitiveness return to the formula. The winner of Thursday's game will remain in second place and, more importantly, stay in contention for one of eight regional berths in the NCAA Division II tournament.

Celebrate them home. In between the two ballgames, giants of the Falcons' proud past will be inaugural inductees into the Falcon Legends Hall of Fame. The charter class of 2003 includes three individuals whose works are particularly evident in the basketball program. Ken Foreman served as head coach from 1952-57, guiding the team to its first postseason (NAIA) berth in his final season. More importantly, Foreman and his father ended the program's nomadic early existence by building Brougham Pavilion, completing it in 1953. Loren Anderson was Seattle Pacific's first true star, scooting through and shooting over defenses to set 13 scoring records during his career (1954-58). Six of those marks, including single game (54 points) and career average (18.9), still stand. Anderson is also the only SPU athlete to have his jersey (No. 5) retired. Another inductee is Howard Heppner, the big cog of the teams which went 62-22 from 1964-66. Heppner was the leading scorer and rebounder for each of those teams, including the bunch which went to the 1965 Elite Eight. Presenting Anderson and Heppner will be Les Habegger, the head coach who won 267 games and took six teams to the NCAA tournament from 1957-74. Rounding out the inductees are track & field champions Ben Moring and Steve Gough and world-class runner Doris Brown Heritage. Friday's noon hour ceremony at Upper Gwinn Commons is sold out.

More Aziz, please. The Falcons arrived home with a satisfactory split from their two-game road trip to Western Oregon and Humboldt State and with Yusef Aziz (Sr., 6-4, Seattle, Wa./Foster) having once again brought his game to a boil. Aziz got SPU off to a strong start, scoring 21 of his 27 points in the first half against the Wolves. Maurice Cato (Sr., 6-0, Fairfield, Ca.) the hit two treys during a pivotal, late 16-4 run for an 88-77 win. Aziz poured in another 24 points at Humboldt however the No. 2-ranked Lumberjacks defense stiffened in the final two minutes and they prevailed, 80-70. For the week, Aziz totaled 51 points (22-37 FGs) and had 15 rebounds and seven assists. In the Seattle U. game, Aziz will be pitted against his former high school and junior college teammate, Darnell Lyons, the Redhawks' top scorer.

Trey magnifique. Seattle Pacific is the top (41 percent) three-point shooting team in the GNAC and one of the best (8th) in the nation. Of particular interest Thursday will be how Seattle U. plans to defend. The Redhawks pride themselves on defense, allowing only 71 points and 42 percent shooting, but in the first meeting SPU made 15 treys. Adam Harris (Sr., 6-0, Fox Island, Wa./Gig Harbor) leads the conference in three-point shooting (53 percent, 24-45) and Jeff Knudson (Fr., 6-7, Mukilteo, Wa./Kamiak), although quiet of late, has NBA range (50 percent, 19-38). Last week at Western Oregon, Seattle Pacific was 8-16 outside the arc and shot a season-best 60.7 percent from the field. Harris (45) and Cato (3-5) combined to sink 7-10 treys.

Put-backs. The Falcons have won their last 12 homecoming games...Over the past four games SPU has connected on 57 percent of its field goals. The loss at Humboldt was the first in 16 games when shooting 49 percent or higher...SPU made a season-low two treys (both by Aziz) at Arcata...The Falcons are 44-4 in conference home games the past three-plus seasons. They are 9-0 this season when leading at halftime...Cato has made 62 percent of his field goals in the last four games (20-32), including 6-12 three-pointers...Center Jason Chivers (So., 6-8, Palmdale, Ca./Highland-L.A. Trade Tech) scored in double figures for the first time in eight games at Humboldt, finishing eith 16 on 8-10 shooting...Knudson, who drained 11 treys in the first four games, has only eight since...SPU is No. 1 in both GNAC 3-point and overall (.498) field goal accuracy. After a cold 18-31 on free throws last week, it is still No. 10 at the foul line (.656)...Aziz ranks No. 6 in GNAC scoring (17.9) and assists (3.8) and ninth in rebounding (6.2). Cato is No. 3 in steals (2.07). Chivers is No. 7 in field-goal accuracy (.618) and eighth in rebounding (6.4).

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 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.