Knudson Sizzles from Outside in Falcons' Win Over Wildcats
January 22, 2004

SEATTLE (Jan. 22) – Jeff Knudson came off the bench to hit all five of his three-point attempts and score 17 points as Seattle Pacific University turned back Central Washington, 87-77, in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference men’s basketball game Thursday night at Brougham Pavilion.

Jason Chivers (Jr., 6-8, Los Angeles, Ca.) added 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Falcons (4-3, 8-8), who dealt the Wildcats (0-6, 3-12) their 10th loss in the last 11 games. Jordan Lee (Jr., 6-2, Tacoma, Wa./Life Christian) finished with 14 points–11 coming in the first half.

Seattle Pacific, winning back-to-back games for only the second time, connected on 12 of 18 shots outside the three-point arc. One of the top foul shooting teams in NCAA Division II, the Falcons also made 19 of 21 at the line.

Knudson (So., 6-7, Mukilteo, Wa./Kamiak) scored 11 of his points in the second period, including a pair of key treys in the final 3:31 to stave off Central’s final comeback bid. The only better three-point shooting display in SPU records was a 6-6 performance by Sergio Gomes in 1990. Lee was 3-5 on treys and Ralph Steele (Jr., 6-2, North Birmingham, Al.) was 2-2.

After a 17-point lead was trimmed to 63-61, four of the Falcons’ final five field goals came on threes. Chad Williams (So., 6-8, Burlington, Wa.) and Tony Binetti (So., 6-1, Enumclaw, Wa.) hit from the left side, boosting the margin back to 70-61. Knudson then bumped the lead to 76-66 and, with 57 seconds to go, drilled a 22-footer from the left side with the shot clock winding down to make it 81-72.

Tyler Mitchell of Central led all scorers with 25 points, converting 10 of 11 from the floor. Scott Freymond scored 13 of his 18 in the second half and Jay Van Hook scored 11 straight points for the ‘Cats midway through the final period. His last basket on the run cut the score to 60-57 and a Jay Thomas dunk pulled the visitors within 63-61 with 8:45 remaining.

SPU had put together a pair of runs to take a 48-31 lead into the locker room. Chivers and Lee combined for 14 points in a 20-3 blitz for a 20-9 cushion. Later in the first half, Steele ignited an 11-3 spurt with a four-point play on a trey. Steele had nine of the points, which gave the Falcons a 43-27 advantage.

Behind Chivers, the Falcons out-rebounded the Wildcats 39-24 in the opening half. It was his 10th double double in his last 11 outings. Central shot 55 percent in the second period and 52 percent overall (31-60), but was outscored 36-12 on three-pointers.

The Falcons, who have beaten the Wildcats in eight of the last nine meetings, host Saint Martin’s in the annual homecoming game Saturday at 3:30.

SEATTLE PACIFIC 87, CENTRAL WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY 77

CENTRAL WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ((0-6) 3-12) Mitchell,Tyler 10-11 5-5 25; Freymond,Scott 7-19 3-3 18; Van Hook,Jay 5-8 1-3 11; Boast,Kyle 4-7 0-0 10; Lynn,Chris 2-4 0-0 5; Conner,Mike 1-3 2-2 4; Stoll,Tobi 1-2 0-0 2; Thomas,Jay 1-4 0-0 2; Lewis,Anthony 0-1 0-0 0; Barsh,R-Jay 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 31-60 11-13 77.

SEATTLE PACIFIC ((4-3) 8-8) Knudson,Jeff 5-5 2-2 17; Chivers,Jason 5-10 5-6 15; Lee,Jordan 5-15 1-2 14; Bremerman,Dustin 4-9 4-4 12; Steele,Ralph 3-6 1-1 9; Binetti,Tony 3-5 2-2 9; Bushmaker,Mike 2-5 4-4 8; Williams,Chad 1-3 0-0 3; Cohen,Chris 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 28-60 19-21 87.

Halftime-SPU 48, CWU 31. 3-point goals-Central Washington University 4-12 (Boast,Kyle 2-2; Freymond,Scott 1-7; Lynn,Chris 1-2; Thomas,Jay 0-1), Seattle Pacific 12-18 (Knudson,Jeff 5-5; Lee,Jordan 3-5; Steele,Ralph 2-2; Binetti,Tony 1-1; Williams,Chad 1-3; Bremerman,Dustin 0-2). Fouled out--Central Washington University-Conner,Mike, Seattle Pacific-None. Rebounds-Central Washington University 24 (Boast,Kyle 6), Seattle Pacific 39 (Chivers,Jason 12). Assists-Central Washington University 25 (Boast,Kyle 6; Thomas,Jay 6), Seattle Pacific 21 (Lee,Jordan 5). Total fouls-Central Washington University 21, Seattle Pacific 18. A-710