Thrice in a lifetime. Brougham Pavilion is serving as the launching pad to send the West’s best men’s basketball team clear across the continent to Massachusetts this week. For just the third time in 41 years, Seattle Pacific University has earned the right to host the West Regional tournament, which begins Friday (Mar. 10). The 17th-ranked Falcons (22-5) face Central Washington (15-12) in the first-round nightcap. All seven tourney games take place on the SPU campus, including the Saturday night (Mar .11) semifinals and the Monday evening (Mar. 13) championship game. The West winner advances to the Elite Eight and meets the South champion Mar. 22 in Springfield, Mass.

Demolition derby. Few matters have gone according to form out west this season, with Seattle Pacific joining Chaminade and Sonoma State as unlikely conference champions. The Falcons were picked fourth in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference preseason poll but soon emerged as a surprise power and overtook favored Western Washington for the region’s top seed in the final week of the regular season. Western is the No. 2 seed and only other nationally-ranked team (No. 9 as of Feb. 28). The Vikings (21-6) meet Humboldt State (17-9) in the first round. Other pairings are Chaminade (18-8) and Alaska Anchorage (19-11) in the opening game and Sonoma State (18-8) versus Cal State Bakersfield (20-7) for the right to face either SPU of Central.

Deja vu all over? This is Seattle Pacific’s 17th trip to the NCAA tourney and 10th in the last 13 years, and the only times the Falcons have won the West Regional have come at home (1965, 2000). Oddly enough, SPU took a similar path six years ago. It lost to Central Washington in the final home game, only to retake the region’s top spot and play the Wildcats again in the playoffs. SPU prevailed the second time around and eventually advanced to the Final Four.

Core values. He lost his top two scorers and promoted personnel primarily from within. But Coach Jeff Hironaka believed all along that team chemistry outweighs star power, and that solid fundamentals and a cast of excellent shooters can trump teams with more raw athletic talent. Hironaka believed, his players worked and the result was the first GNAC title since 2000. Consequently, he was a near-unanimous of peers for coach of the year. The Falcons possess five players averaging more than 10 points and a squad which ranks No. 2 in the nation in field-goal percentage (.524), No. 5 in foul shooting (.772) and ninth in three-point accuracy (.408). They are No. 4 in assists.

Name recognition. Prior to the season, nobody had made an all-conference team, yet success has changed all that. Tony Binetti (Sr., 6-1, Enumclaw, Wa.) and Dustin Bremerman (Sr., 6-4, Yakima, Wa./Eisenhower) not only form the most prolific 1-2 scoring punch in program history, they were both voted first team all-conference. Better yet, Binetti was selected as the GNAC player of the year. The point guard averaged 18.5 points, 5.2 assists and 2.0 steals during the regular season, when he shot 57 percent from the field, 48 percent outside the arc and 84 percent at the line. Bremerman is the team scoring leader (19.2) and ranks sixth nationally in three-point accuracy (.465). Both Bremerman and Binetti have a chance to break the top 10 in season scoring (523), needing five and 24 points. Binetti is 22 assists from cracking the top five in that category.

Wait, there’s more. While the backcourt may become the focus of scouting reports, the frontline is both versatile and effective. Center Robbie Will (So., 6-10, Seattle, Wa./O’Dea-Bellevue CC), an imposing presence underneath, was named the GNAC newcomer of the year after leading the league in blocked shots (2.0) and averaging 11.5 points and 6.1 boards. A slashing forward, Mike Bushmaker (Sr., 6-7, Yakima, Wa./Eisenhower) received honorable mention all-conference as the top-scoring sixth man (11.6). Forward Chad Williams (Sr., 6-8, Burlington, Wa./Burlington-Whatcom CC) comes into the tournament on a tear, drilling 18 of 28 shots and scoring 46 points in his last three outings.

Offensive behavior. Even the best shooters’ legs can get a bit weary at this stage of the season, so one less day of practice and only one game last week may have helped SPU going into the postseason. The Falcons scored 213 points in their last two contests and have made 50 percent or higher from the field 16 times, winning each of those games. They are coming off a season-high 69.5 percent (41-59) display at Northwest Nazarene–a mark which ranks No. 2 all-time. SPU has lost its last four games when shooting under 50 percent. Offensively, Seattle Pacific is averaging 87.3 points, the most in 17 seasons and 13th in the NCAA.

Put-backs. Seattle Pacific is 12-0 when owning a rebounding advantage, 13-0 when having fewer turnovers and 17-1 when leading at halftime...The Falcons have made 10 or more three-pointers 12 times, going 11-1...Will is tied for the No. 5 season block total (54)...Bremerman is now tied for No. 9 in career scoring (1211) with Scott Rolfness. Binetti is 12 points shy of breaking into the top 10...Binetti, the first conference player of the year since Jeff McBroom in ‘98-99, has scored in double figures in all 27 games...Eight players have NCAA tournament experience from 2005...Brian Lynch (Jr., 6-1, Missoula, Mt./Great Falls) hit for 10 points in 15 minutes at NNU...Bushmaker’s scoring average is the best by a nonstarter since John Hubbard’s 13.7 in ‘00...Bremerman has scored 30 points or more five times this season, the most in the GNAC...In the last eight games, Binetti has 40 assists and just seven turnovers, and 13 steals in the last five games...Seattle Pacific leads in conference in overall shooting (.524) and is No. 2 in blocked shots (3.85) and field goal percentage defense (.459). Individually, Binetti is No. 4 in three-point accuracy (.482), steals (2.0) and assists (5.2). Bremerman is fifth in three-point percentage (.465) and free throw shooting (.858) and sixth in scoring (19.2). Bushmaker is No. 3 in field-goal percentage (.634)...The Falcons are only 4-4 when outscored in the second half and 4-3 when allowing opponents to shoot 50 percent or higher...Seven times this season SPU has come from at least eight points down to win, including three on the road...In each loss, SPU has made less than 33 percent of its threes, and in the four Div. II losses yielded an average of 93.0 points.

Coaching Staff. In his first season Jeff Hironaka won more games (16) than all but one other first-year SPU coach, and he took a team to the NCAA tournament in only his third year–faster than any predecessor. His record entering this season is 50-33. 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 conference championships and qualified for eight NCAA tournaments, including a Final Four in 2000. Hironaka is the second Japanese-American head coach of a four-year collegiate program. Brock Veltri is in his second season as the chief assistant.

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.