FAIRBANKS - Head men's basketball coach Frank Ostanik has announced the addition of Elyon Zevenbergen to the Nanooks basketball team. Zevenbergen arrives in Fairbanks after spending time with the Edmonds College Tritons of the Northwest Athletic Conference.
Coach Ostanik shared his excitement for adding the 6-8 forward to the squad. "Throughout the process of putting our team together, we had pretty much accepted the fact that we may have to play with a small lineup. However, the addition of Elyon allows us to have a true big man on our roster. He's a walking double-double. Not only does he bring size to the team, he brings exceptional skill. For us to be able to land a player of his size who shot 48% from the three-point line and averaged almost 10 rebounds a game is a remarkable achievement. Elyon will allow us to spread the floor, which will make everyone on the team better. This is a big day for the Nanooks."
During his 2022-23 season with the Tritons, Zevenbergen averaged 16.4 points, 9.5 total rebounds and a block in 23.5 minutes per game. He posted shooting clips of 56.5% from the field and 48.6% from beyond the arc, giving him the second-highest three-point percentage on the team and the highest field goal percentage among players with over 50 minutes played during the season. He led all Triton scorers in points and rebounds per game. Zevenbergen averaged a double-double in conference play, scoring 16.3 points and grabbing 10.6 rebounds per contest. He scored double-digit points on 19 occasions during the season, highlighted by a monstrous 41-point outing in a 101-96 win vs. Whatcom. In Edmonds' second game vs. Whatcom, he dropped 36 points on 14-of-19 shooting, going 6-of-8 from distance. The forward would have four more 20+ point games during his freshman campaign. Zevenbergen posted 13 double-doubles during the year and recorded a streak of six consecutive 10+ rebound games from 1/18-2/8.
Zevenbergen's time with the Tritons landed him on the All-North Region First Team. He garnered NABC All-American honors and was a candidate for the NWAC regional MVP.
When asked about joining the Nanooks, Zevenbergen echoed coach Ostanik's excitement. "I'm blessed to have this opportunity to be with a great coaching staff and be able to perform athletically and academically here as a Nanook at UAF. It's a huge opportunity to showcase what I can do on the court with some great talent alongside me, and hopefully we are able to make a run into March!"
"It's been a long two months," said coach Ostanik on building the team. "I remember waking up in the middle of the night back in June when we had two players on our roster — Corte Mingo and Ketan Sidhu — and just laying there thinking how tough of a season it could be. Now, we have a roster that I believe will be competitive night in and night out. I couldn't be more excited for our community, university and all those around the state who love Nanook basketball."
Further additions to the roster will be announced as we near the start of the 2024-25 season.
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