FAIRBANKS, Alaska -- The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team puts their perfect Great Northwest Athletic Conference record on the line this week, as the Nook host Western Washington and Simon Fraser to open a four-game GNAC home stand. Alaska opens the week on Thursday against the Vikings, followed up by a Saturday evening affair with the Clan. Both games are schedules to begin at 7:30 p.m.
Alaska begins the week in a first place tie with their Last Frontier counterpart Alaska Anchorage, as both teams are 4-0. The Nanooks (RV) are off to one of their hottest starts in program history, as they are 10-2 overall going into the third week of conference play.
As for Western Washington, the preseason GNAC favorite comes to Alaska with an 8-5 record overall and a .500 mark in conference play at 2-2. Meanwhile, Simon Fraser comes to Alaska in search of their first conference win this season, as they are 0-4. The Clan are just 1-9 overall through 10 games this season.
Hometown Heroes Weekend
Saturday's game will be a part of this year's 'Hometown Heroes" weekend for both the men's and women's basketball teams. All first responders, emergency personnel and military get in free at the door with valid service agency ID.
Double Header Action
This week's pair of basketball games will be the first GNAC doubleheader of the season for the Alaska men's and women's basketball team. The women will kick things off on both Thursday and Saturday at 5:15 p.m., while the men's game will begin roughly 30 minutes after the conclusion of the women's game. Doubleheader tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for youth. Single game tickets are $8 for adult and $4 for children.
Last Time Out
The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team knocked off the No. 8-ranked team in the nation on Saturday night, as they defeated Seattle Pacific, 79-75, at Brougham Pavilion to remain undefeated in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
Senior Travante Williams scored a team-high 17 points, and once again played a vital role down the stretch for Alaska, as he went on a personal 5-0 run to turn a two-point Alaska lead into a seven-point lead with 2:19 to go. The Anchorage, Alaska native hit a game-high four 3-pointers, as he led a Nooks offense that shot 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from behind the arc.
Receiving National Votes
The Nooks made their first appearance in the 2014-15 NABC Coaches Poll this week, as they received three votes. It is the first time under head coach Mick Durham that the Nanooks have received votes in the NABC Coaches Poll.
Regional Ranking
Alaska moved up one spot in the D2SIDA West Regional Poll to No. 8 after their upset of Seattle Pacific, who was ranked eighth in the nation. This marks the fourth time this season the Nooks have been featured inside the Top 10 of the West Regional Poll.
#Winning
The Nanooks enter the first full week of January on a six-game winning streak, which is currently the longest in the GNAC. It is the second-longest winning streak for the Nooks under head coach Mick Durham, as they rolled off seven-straight victories during the 2012-13 season.
Historic Start?
If Alaska can knock off Western Washington on Thursday night, it will be the first time in program history that the Nanooks have opened GNAC play 5-0. This year's team is currently tied with the 2002-03 squad for the best GNAC start in program history with a 4-0 record.
Balanced Attack
The starting five has provided a lot of offensive firepower this season, as the new lineup of Travante Williams (15.7), Bangaly Kaba (14.3), Joe Slocum (11.4), Almir Hadzisehovic (10.6) and Brandon Davis (10.4) are each averaging over 10 points this season.
The Nanooks are one of four teams in the GNAC to feature five-or-more double-digit scorers.
First Career Double-Double
Redshirt senior Joe Slocum picked up his first career double-double last Thursday, as he scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds at Saint Martin's. The 17 points tied a career-best for the point guard, while the 10 rebounds marked the first time in his Alaska career that he recorded double-digits in the rebounding category.
Scouting the Opposition – Western Washington
The Vikings come to Alaska in search of their first victory in Fairbanks since the 2011-12 season. Alaska has won each of the last three meetings on their home court. WWU is currently 8-5 on the year and 2-2 in GNAC play after getting upset at Montana State Billings last Saturday.
Western Washington is averaging 85.3 points per game, which is the fourth-highest total in the conference. The Vikings have been extremely efficient shooting the ball, as they hold a 48.8 percent field goal percentage. That mark is the second-best in the league. Jeffery Parker leads a quarter of double-digit scorers for WWU with his 17.7 points per game average. His points per game total is the third-best in the GNAC. Kyle Impero (6th; 16.7 ppg) and Ricardo Maxwell (7th; 16.0 ppg) also rank among the top 10 of the GNAC scoring leaders.
Defensively, teams are shooting 45 percent from the field against the Vikings. Western Washington is giving up exactly 73 points per game through 13 contests.
Scouting the Opposition – Simon Fraser
The Clan is currently 0-4 in the GNAC, which puts them in 10th in the 11-team GNAC. Overall, SFU is 1-9 on the year and 0-4 away from Burnaby, British Columbia. Simon Fraser enters this week on an eight-game losing streak that dates back to Nov. 20.
Junior Max Barkeley has provided a spark for the Clan on the offensive side of the court this season, as he is fourth in the GNAC in scoring with his 17.2 points per game average. As a team, Simon Fraser is averaging 71.5 points, which is the second-lowest per game total in the conference. The Clan also holds the lowest field goal percentage in the GNAC, as they are hitting just 40 percent of their attempts from the field.
Conversely, Simon Fraser is giving up 85.6 points per game, which is the second highest points per game average a team is giving up in the league. Teams have been able to shoot the ball extremely well against SFU, as teams are shooting 48.2 percent from the floor.
Coaches Corner
"We're excited to be back home. We have a very good basketball team coming in here on Thursday in Western Washington, who was picked to win the league. We have to stay consistent, it's a long conference season and it's still early. I'm really excited about the way we played out of the break, and now we are home and we have to try to protect our home court." – head coach Mick Durham on returning home.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team, follow @NanooksMBB on Twitter.
