FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The Alaska Nanooks women's basketball team will head on their last Great Northwest Athletic Conference road tip of the season this week, taking on the Saint Martin's Saints on Thursday, Feb. 21 before facing the Seattle Pacific Falcons on Saturday, Feb. 23. Thursday's game in Lacey, Washington will take place at 6pm AKST, while Saturday's contest in Seattle is set for 3pm AKST.
Where to Watch & Listen
If fans aren't able to make this week's games in Lacey and Seattle, every home and conference contest for the remainder of the season will be broadcasted live through the Alaska Nanooks Stretch Internet Portal in the link posted above. Please be advised that when on the road, the broadcast is produced by the home school and not the Alaska Nanooks Department of Athletics.
Last Time Out
The Alaska Nanooks women's basketball team split at home last week, defeating the Western Oregon Wolves 68-65 on Thursday before falling to Concordia 71-44 on Saturday. Thursday's win over WOU snapped a 17-game losing streak and marked Alaska's first conference win since the 2016-17 season.
GNAC Standings
The Alaska Nanooks women's basketball team ranks 11
th in the GNAC standings with an 1-15 mark in conference play. The Nanooks' upcoming opponents, Saint Martin's (3-13 GNAC) and Seattle Pacific (6-10 GNAC), sit in 10th and seventh place in the conference standings, respectively. Both Alaska Anchorage and Northwest Nazarene tie for first in the league standings and them, along with Simon Fraser, have already clinched a berth into the GNAC Championships.
Ranked Nooks
Two Nanooks rank within the top-10 individually in five different statistical categories:
- Assists
- Field Goal Percentage
- Minutes Played
- Offensive Rebounds
- Steals
All-Time Series
All-time against Saint Martin's, Alaska is 20-24 with the first-ever meeting between the two teams coming as a 74-60 win for the Nooks on the road on Jan. 2, 1986. Alaska is currently on a three-game losing streak to the Saints with their last victory coming as a 56-41 decision at home on Feb. 18, 2017.
The Alaska Nanooks women's basketball team trails the all-time series against Seattle Pacific 18-58. The Nanooks suffered a 53-44 loss at home in their first meeting on Dec. 4, 1974. Alaska is currently riding a three-game losing streak to the Falcons, with their last win coming on Feb. 16, 2017 at home (63-61).
Scouting the Opponent – Saint Martin's Saints
Saint Martin's was in action for a pair of games last week, dropping contests on the road to Western Washington (66-50) and Simon Fraser (77-57). Sophomore Saniah Simpson-Patu has led Saint Martin's in scoring this season, averaging 13 points per game. Simpson-Patu currently leads the conference in field goal attempts (.320). An emphasis on hitting the offensive boards has helped the team this season, ranking second in the GNAC with 13 offensive rebounds per game.
Scouting the Opponent – Seattle Pacific
Seattle Pacific was in action for two games last week, falling on the road to Simon Fraser (82-61) and Western Washington (60-43). The Falcons were led on the week by Cici West, who also leads the club on the glass with 8.9 rebounds per game. Guard Riley Evans leads the team in scoring through 15 weeks of play at a clip of 12.8 points per game. West is next at an average of 10.3 points per game.
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks women's basketball team, follow @NanooksWBB on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks Women's Basketball team page on Facebook.
