FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team returns to their home court this week for a pair of Great Northwest Athletic Conference matchups, as they host the No. 21 Western Washington Vikings on Thursday, Jan. 18 before taking on the Simon Fraser Clan on Saturday, Jan. 20 at the Alaska Airlines Court. Thursday's game is scheduled for 7pm AKST, while Saturday's contest is slated for 2pm AKST.
Where to Watch & Listen
If fans aren't able to make this weekend's games in Fairbanks, both Thursday and Saturday's games will be broadcasted and streamed live through the Alaska Nanooks Stretch Internet Portal (link posted above). Please note the home school will be producing the stream.
Nanooks Men's Basketball Named Red Lion/GNAC Team of the Week - Last Time Out
On Monday, the Great Northwest Athletic Conference named the Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team the Red Lion Team of the Week after their pair of road wins last weekend. The Nanooks used a late rally to down Northwest Nazarene 80-74 on Thursday before holding off the Central Washington Wildcats 86-83 on Saturday for their third-straight win.
GNAC Standings
The Alaska Nanooks now sit in third place in the GNAC standings with a 5-3 conference record. Earlier this week, Alaska shared the third place spot with Seattle Pacific, but the Falcons fell to Saint Martin's 80-73 last night to drop to fourth place with a 5-4 league mark.
All-Time Series
All-time against the Vikings, Alaska trails 14-30 with the first-ever meeting between the two programs coming as a 79-67 loss in the 1966-67 season. The Nanooks defeated the Vikings 94-88 at home in the two teams' last meeting in Fairbanks on Feb. 4, 2017.
Against the Clan, Alaska leads the all-time series 30-20 with their first meeting coming as a 89-84 victory for the Nanooks in the 1966-67 season. Alaska is currently on a four-game winning streak against Simon Fraser, with their last meeting resulting in a 77-64 victory for the Nooks at home on Feb. 2, 2017.
Nooks are Rollin'
The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team ranks within the top-three in the conference in four different statistical categories. Alaska ranks second as a team in three-point field goal percentage (.399), assists (16.8/game) and three-point field goals-made (10.1/game) and ranks third in field goal percentage (.481).
Ranked Nooks
Five Nanooks rank within the top-10 individually in the GNAC in eight different statistical categories:
- Rebounds
- Field Goal Percentage
- Assists
- Free Throw Percentage
- Three-Point Field Goal Percentage
- Three-Point Field Goals-Made
- Offensive Rebounds
- Defensive Rebounds
Scouting the Opponent – Western Washington Vikings (13-3, 8-0 GNAC)
Western Washington continued their undefeated streak and improved to eight-straight wins last week, defeating Simon Fraser 69-54 on Thursday before downing Montana State Billings 100-91. The Vikings are currently tied for 21st in the D2SIDA Media Poll, rank fourth in the NABC Coaches Poll and are second in the D2SIDA West Region Rankings. Junior guard Trey Dreschsel was named the GNAC Men's Basketball Player of the Week after averaging 15 points and 10 rebounds per game in last week's GNAC contests to go along with 10 assists and six steals. The Vikings lead the GNAC in free throw percentage (.765), field goal defense (.410), rebounding (42.4 per game), rebounding defense (29.8), rebounding margin (+12.7), blocked shots (6.69 per game) and defensive rebounds (30.19 per game).
Scouting the Opponent – Simon Fraser Clan (8-8, 2-6 GNAC)
Simon Fraser dropped both games last week, falling 69-54 to cross-border rival Western Washington on Tuesday before dropping Thursday's game 78-73 to Montana State Billings. Simon Fraser enters the week averaging 76.7 and 34.1 rebounds per game. The Clan is second in the GNAC and 21st in Division II with 8.7 steals per game and is 26th with 139 steals total. In addition, SFU is second in the GNAC and 28th in DII in three-point defense (.316).
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team, follow @NanooksMBB on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks page on Facebook.
