First at stake. Let’s face it, with four weeks left in the regular season, there are no insignificant games remaining for the Seattle Pacific University men’s basketball team. Holding a slim lead in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings, the 10th-ranked Falcons will see that advantage either disappear or double in size Saturday night (Feb. 12) when they visit Western Washington (8-3, 16-4), the closest challenger. It’s the first of three consecutive road games for SPU, which has won three in a row and seven of eight. It goes to Alaska for a pair of contests next week.

A week to watch. This could well prove to be a pivotal week with regard to the GNAC race and the right to host the NCAA West Regional next month. Only one win separates the Falcons and Vikings in the standings, and regionally they are running second and third, respectively, behind Hawaii Hilo. Meanwhile the Vulcans, who defeated Seattle Pacific Nov. 26, make a rare venture to the mainland, to Montana State Billings and Western New Mexico. Eight teams from the West will earn postseason berths and the region’s top seed can host the regional tournament.

Rubber meets road. With the next games and five of the final seven on the road, SPU must prove itself worthy of hosting the regional at Brougham Pavilion by winning away from it. At home the Falcons are 11-0; in true road games they are 2-4 (and 4-0 on neutral courts). On the bright side, they recently won at Humboldt State, a feat only two teams have accomplished in the last four years. Western Washington is undefeated (10-0) at Carver Gym, however Seattle Pacific has won there 10 times in the last 14 trips.

Chivers comes alive. Four years ago at this time, he was packing his bags and heading to spring training with the New York Mets organization. As imposing as his 6-foot-8 frame must have been on the mound or at the plate (he played both first base and pitcher), Jason Chivers (Sr., 6-8, Los Angeles, Ca./Highland-L.A. Trade Tech) is now sending even more chills into opponents on the basketball court. Chivers is playing just his fourth full season of organized hoops, and in the last five games everything seems to be coming together. He has averaged 23.8 points and 12.0 rebounds over that span while scoring on 69 percent of his shots. Last week he totaled 52 points and 29 rebounds, tying a GNAC record with 20 boards in the 87-74 win over Saint Martin’s. That earned him player of the week in the conference. For the season, Chivers leads the team in scoring (16.2), rebounding (10.0) and blocked shots (1.14).

Second chances. What was once a concern is now just a curiosity about this particular SPU squad. Whether it’s by design or back-to-the-wall necessity, the Falcons have become a second-half team. A typical script finds them pulling away from a close game after halftime. In fact, they have out-scored the opposition in the second half of 12 consecutive games and by an average margin of 9.9 points. The average margin of victory in those games is 8.8. Last week, Seattle Pacific trailed at intermission in both the 87-74 win over Saint Martin’s and the 72-65 homecoming defeat of Central Washington. Not only did the shooting improve (52 percent) after the break, so did the hustle board categories such as rebounds (plus 17) and steals (10 of their 14). Meanwhile, the defense held the Saints and ‘Cats to an average of 31.5 points and 23-percent shooting on threes.

C-Dubya. Sometimes the stars of opposing teams eclipse one another, leaving the outcome to be settled by the supporting casts. That was the case the first time around between SPU and Western, when Chivers was held to a season-low three points. Among those stepping up to more than fill the void in a 76-68 win was Chad Williams (Jr., 6-8, Burlington, Wa./Burlington-Edison-Whatcom CC), who contributed 15 points and nine rebounds. Williams quietly did it again last week versus Saint Martin’s, scoring 12 and boarding seven. For the season, Williams is 11th in GNAC rebounding (6.2) and has averaged 7.6 points while hitting 19 threes.

B&B boys. Not only does the immediate future look bright for the Falcons, but their foundation already appears set for next season. Tony Binetti (Jr., 6-1, Enumclaw, Wa.) and Dustin Bremerman (So., 6-4, Yakima, Wa./Eisenhower), the team’s Nos. 2 and 3 scoring leaders, will figure prominently in Coach Jeff Hironaka’s plans. Binetti has established himself among the region’s top point guards and one gets the feeling that Bremerman is capable of busting loose for big scoring nights. It was Bremerman who sparked the run of 12 unanswered points to open the second half versus Central. Binetti scored 18 and helped preserve the verdict with a string of free throws and three second-half steals. Bremerman was the GNAC freshman of the year last season while Binetti has raised his shooting percentage by 18 points and his scoring average by 6.1 over his sophomore campaign.

Put-backs. When Seattle Pacific scores at least 80 points its record is 10-0 and when opponents score more than 80 points the record is 2-3...In the last six games the Falcons have shot 81.5 percent at the foul line...Seattle Pacific has made over 50 percent of its field goals in 14 of its wins this season and is 24-3 when doing so over the past two seasons...The Falcons are No. 1 in the conference and third nationally in field-goal percentage (.510). They also lead the league in defensive overall field goal percentage (.425) three-point percentage (.308). They are No. 3 in three-point shooting percentage (.392), scoring (83.4) and foul shooting (.741). Individually, Binetti leads the conference in three-point shooting (.525, 31 of 59). He is also No. 2 in overall field-goal percentage (.607) and No. 3 in assists (4.7)...Chivers is No. 2 in rebounding (16th nationally), No. 4 in blocks and No. 6 in both shooting (.569) and scoring. Bremerman is No. 2 GNAC in free throw percentage (.880) and 14th in the NCAA...Jordan Lee (Sr., 6-1, Tacoma, Wa./Life Christian) is seventh in three-point accuracy (.465).

Coaching Staff. In his first season Jeff Hironaka won more games (16) than all but one other first-year SPU coach. A former aide at Idaho State and The Master’s, Hironaka became Ken Bone’s top assistant 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 times, including a Final Four advancement in 2000. Hironaka is the second Japanese-American head coach of a four-year collegiate program. Brock Veltri is Hironaka’s chief assistant. Veltri spent two years in a similar position with Scottsdale Community College in Arizona. A former Idaho State graduate assistant, he played two years at Peninsula College in Port Angeles, Wa. Scott Reid, a King Co coach of the year at Bellevue’s Newport High School, is in his second season and George Parker, who first served as a volunteer assistant in 1986, returns for his 16th year.

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.

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.