ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team dropped their season-opener on Friday night, as the Chaminade Silverswords defeated the Nooks 71-58 at the Alaska Airlines Center. The Nooks now hold a 0-1 record on the season, while the Silverswords improve to 1-0.
The nonconference matchup was part of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference/PacWest Conference Crossover between the Nanooks, the Silverswords, the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves and the Hawaii Pacific Sharks, as the two Alaska team's flip-flop opponents Friday and Saturday in Anchorage.
"We had a tough night shooting from behind the arc tonight, only going 5-for-28," head coach
Mick Durham said on Friday. "Defensively, we did some good things and we can definitely build on that. This new group needs some times and some more games and we'll get a good one tomorrow in Hawaii Pacific."
Individually, only two Nanooks scored double-digit figures, led by junior guard Davis Kimble, who posted a game-high 23 points on the night. Kimble shot 7-for-12 from the field, 4-for-6 from behind the arc and 5-for-10 from the free throw line. The Hayward, California native also chipped in six rebounds, two assists and one block in 32 minutes on the court.
Following Kimble's offensive efforts was senior forward LaDonavan Wilver who shot 5-for-7 from the field and 2-for-3 from the free throw line to tally 12 points. Wilder matched Kimble's six rebounds to tie for a team-high, while junior forward Amenofis Mitchell recorded a team-high five assists.
As a team, Alaska shot 33.3 percent from the field, going 9-for-32. From three-point range, Alaska was only 17.9 percent (5-for-28) but posted a 57.9 percentage from the free throw line (11-for-19).
The Silverswords were led by Erik Schieve, who registered a team-best 19 points against the Nanooks. CU's Justin Bridges and Braden Koeliker also tallied double-digit figures on Friday night, posting 13 and 10 points, respectively.
The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team returns to the Alaska Airlines Center tomorrow (Saturday), Nov. 11 for game two of the GNAC/PacWest Crossover against the Hawaii Pacific Sharks. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30pm AKST.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team, follow @NanooksMBB on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks page on Facebook.
