LACEY, Wash. – The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team returns to action this week after 19-day hiatus, as they continue Great Northwest Athletics Conference play with a pair of contests at Saint Martin's and at No. 9-ranked Seattle Pacific. The Nooks take on the Saints on Thursday at 12 p.m. AKT before challenging the Falcons on Saturday at 6 p.m. AKT.
The Nanooks look to build on one of their hottest starts in program history. They enter the week with an 8-2 record, which marks the first time since the 2002-03 season that Alaska has won eight-or-more games through their first 10 contests. The team is also off to its best start under head coach Mick Durham, as they also attempt to move to 4-0 in GNAC play this season.
| Dates & Times | Dec. 31, 2015, 12 p.m. | Jan. 2, 2016, 6p.m. |
| Opponent | Thursday: at Saint Martin's
Saturday: at No. 6 Seattle Pacific |
| Location | Thursday: Lacey, Wash.
Saturday: Seattle, Wash. |
| Live Stream and Stats | Click Here |
| Social Media | Twitter | Facebook |
Last Time Out
The Nanooks completed a weekend sweep of Northwest Indian College on Dec. 12, as they defeated the Eagles, 117-70, to give head coach Mick Durham his 300th career victory at the NCAA level.
Junior Bangaly Kaba scored a game-high 20 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the field. Kaba was one of five Nooks in double figures on the night, as four of the five Alaska starters recorded double digits. Junior Brandon Davis followed Kaba with a career-high tying 18 points. Senior Almir Hadzisehovic put in 12 points, while redshirt senior Joe Slocum chipped in 10 points. Junior Neal Chavez recorded a career-best 19 points to lead Alaska to a 50-22 advantage in points off the bench.
Regionally Ranked
The Nanooks were once again featured in the top 10 of the D2SIDA Regional Poll this week, as they came in at No. 9. Alaska has been ranked in three of the six the regular season polls, which includes each of the last two weeks.
GNAC Rankings
Currently, Alaska is tied for first in the GNAC with No. 3 Western Oregon, No. 6 Seattle Pacific and instate rival Alaska Anchorage. All four schools are 2-0.
The Nooks rank second in the conference in points per game, as they are averaging 88.5 points per contest. Alaska is shooting 47.8 percent from the floor, which is the fourth-highest success rate in the league. The Nanooks are also second in assists per game with their 19.3 assists per game average, a mark that also ranks sixth in the nation. Alaska also posts the highest turnover margin in the GNAC, as they hold a +6.20 in the category.
Double Trouble
Senior Travante Williams and junior Bangaly Kaba each rank inside the top 15 in the GNAC points per game. Williams' team-leading 15.6 points per game average is currently the 10th-highest in the league, while Kaba's 14.8 average checks him in at 13th. The two Nook standouts are currently the fourth-highest scoring duo in the league.
The Assist Man
Redshirt senior Joe Slocum has played as huge a role in the Nanooks hot start. The fifth-year college player is averaging a team-best 4.4 assists per game, a mark that is tied for the fifth-most in the GNAC. Slocum has been on a role of late, as he has handed out 17 assists in his last three games, an average of 5.7 per game.
Taking Advantage
Junior Brandon Davis made the first two starts of his Alaska career the last time the Nooks took the court on Dec. 11 and 12 against Northwest Indian. Davis took advantage of the opportunity, as he turned in back-to-back double-digit scoring performances. In the first game against NWIC, Davis scored 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting. He was even better the second night, as he tallied 18 points to tie his career best. Davis comes into Thursday's game against Saint Martin's on a three-game double-digit scoring streak.
High-Octane Offense
Alaska has scored 100-plus points in three games this season. The Nooks come into this week's set of games fresh off back-to-back triple-digits performances. The Nanooks put up 113 points on the Dec. 11 contest against Northwest Indian, and followed that effort with a season-high 117-point outing the next night against the Eagles.
On the year, the Nanooks are averaging 89.5 points per game, a mark that is second in the GNAC and 22nd nationally.
Scouting The Opposition – Saint Martin's
The Saints enter Thursday's contest with a 7-3 mark overall and an even 1-1 in the conference after splitting their first GNAC road trip at Western Washington (L; 71-68) and Simon Fraser (W; 73-66). SMU is currently on a three-game winning streak after they defeated SFU, Capilano (93-50) and Quest (74-33). Of their seven wins this year, only three have come against NCAA Division II West Region teams.
Saint Martin's is averaging an even 70 points per game this season, a mark that is the sixth-best scoring average in the league. SMU is 11th in the GNAC in field goal percentage with just a 42.5 percent success rate. Conversely, the Saints are the top 3-point field goal percentage team in the league, as they are hitting 38.6 percent (88-of-228) of their shots. Fred Jorge is the team's top scorer with his 10.8 points per game average.
SMU has been one of the toughest teams to score on in the GNAC this season, as they are allowing teams to score just 67.2 points per contest. That mark is the second-best scoring defense in the league. Teams are shooting 40.9 percent from the field against the Saints, a mark that is also the second-lowest in the conference.
Scouting the Opposition -Seattle Pacific
The Falcons begin the week as the No. 9-ranked team in NCAA Division II according to the NABC Poll. SPU is currently 9-1 on the year, with a perfect 2-0 mark in GNAC play. Seattle Pacific holds the league's longest current winning streak by winning each of its last nine games. All 10 games the Falcons have played have come against NCAA Division II West Region teams.
SPU boast one of the strongest defensive teams in all of NCAA Division II, as they are allowing just 61.9 points per game. The points against average is tops in the GNAC and is fourth-lowest in NCAA Division II. Teams are shooting 36.7 percent against the Falcons, which is the second-best defensive field goal percentage in the country.
Offensively, Seattle Pacific is averaging 76.2 points per game, which is the seventh-highest average in the GNAC. The Falcons are shooting the second-highest field goal percentage in the conference, as they are hitting 48.8 percent of their shots. Mitchell Penner leads the team in scoring with his 14.8 points per game, which ties him with Kaba for 13th in the league.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks, follow @NanooksMBB on Twitter.
