FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team opens up their 2019-20 GNAC schedule this weekend at home as they host the Western Oregon Wolves on Thursday, Dec. 5 and the Concordia Cavaliers on Saturday, Dec. 7. Game one versus WOU is set for a 7:30 p.m. AKT tip-off while the Saturday matchup is scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m. AKT, both games at the Patty Center.
 

Opponents	Western Oregon (5-0, 0-0 GNAC) | Concordia Cavaliers (1-7, 0-0 GNAC)
Location	Alaska Airlines Court at the Patty Center – Fairbanks, Alaska
Dates & Times	Thursday, Dec. 5 vs. Western Oregon Wolves at 7:30 p.m. AKT Saturday, Dec. 7 vs. Concordia Cavaliers at 3:15 p.m. AKT
Follow Along	Live Video
Social Media	Twitter

 
Last Time Out
The men's basketball team is coming off of a two-loss weekend down in Anchorage. On Friday, Nov. 29, the 'Nooks fell to Northern Michigan 45-95 during the Seawolf Thanksgiving Classic. In game two, the Nanooks held a 12-point lead at the half, but Michigan Tech slowed their offensive attack down and grabbed the victory away from Alaska, 57-65, sending the Nanooks home winless.

Scoring Leaders
Junior-transfer, Shadeed Shabazz has proven himself as one of the top scorers in the GNAC. Through his first eight games with Alaska, Shabazz has averaged 18.1 points per game while shooting 40.2% from the field and 94.3% from the free throw line. Behind him in the scoring totals is Spencer Sweet who is putting up 11.6 points per game on 39% shooting. Sweet is shooting 83.3% from the free throw line and adds a 42.2% three-point range average.
Scouting the Opponents

Western Oregon
Western Oregon comes into Fairbanks boasting an undefeated record of 5-0. Under first year head coach Wes Pifer, WOU is looking to continue their success built up by previous head coach Jim Shaw who departed for Washington State following last season. Pifer joined the Wolves staff after being an associate head coach for the Lumberjacks of Northern Arizona. He was a part of the NAU staff from 2013-2019.

The Wolves are led by Dalven Brushier and Darius Lubom on the offensive end. Brushier, the leading-scorer, is putting up an average of 18.2 points per game while grabbing 3.4 rebounds and shooting 55.4% from the field. Brushier is also shooting 45.8% from three-point range. Lubom finds himself averaging 15.6 points per game while shooting 64.4% from the field. Lubom is also the steals leader for the Wolves, picking 12 steals through the first five games.

Concordia Cavaliers
The Concordia Cavaliers enter this weekend's game with a 1-7 overall record. They will open up their GNAC schedule at UAA before making the trip to Fairbanks. The Cavs lone win came on Nov. 23 against Notre Dame de Namur, grabbing the one-point win 71-70.

Hunter Sweet and Dakota Ayala lead the way for Concorida as Sweet has put up an average of 15.0 points per game through eight games played. Sweet has been solid from the floor, shooting 54.4% while also shooting 44.8% from three-point range. Ayala is second in point per game with 10.4 making him the only other Cavalier in double-digit points per game. Ayala is the most efficient Concordia player from the field, shooting 60% from the field on 60 field goal attempts.

For more information on the Alaska Nanooks men's basketball team, follow @NanooksMBB on Twitter.