FAIRBANKS - The Nanooks men's basketball team opens up 2025 on the road this week. They will face Western Washington and Simon Fraser on Jan. 2 and Jan. 4.

Thursday, Jan. 2
at Western Washington | 6 p.m. AKST
Bellingham, Wash. | Carver Gymnasium

Watch Here | Live Stats

Saturday, Jan. 4
at Simon Fraser | 6 p.m. AKST
Burnaby, British Columbia | West Gymnasium

Watch Here | Live Stats

Last Time Out
The Nanooks are back in action for the first time since their trip to Florida on Dec. 20-21. They opened up with Palm Beach Atlantic on Dec. 20 and fell 71-70 on a last-second make by the Sailfish. They then faced the host school, Saint Leo, but fell 77-60 to fall to 5-6, 1-1 GNAC.

#NookNotes

• Isaiah Saams-Hoy leads the Nanooks with 16.6 points per game. He is shooting a team-high 54.1% from the floor with 72 made field goals and 40.5% from three.
• Jalai O'Keith leads the Nanooks from deep with 27 made three-pointers. He is second on the team with a 42.9% clip. 
• Paul Johnson leads the Nanooks from deep, shooting 43.9% on 18-41 shooting. 
• Elyon Zevenbergen leads the Nanooks on the glass, grabbing 10.8 rebounds per game through six games. O'Keith follows with 8.0 rebounds per game on 88 rebounds.
• Griffin Effenberger, Chris Lee, and Saams-Hoy all have 30+ assists on the year. Saams-Hoy leads the way with 38 assists. Lee follows with 33 and Effenberger has 30. 
• Ketan Sidhu has protected the rim the most for the Nanooks, leading the team with 12 blocks this year. He is the only Nanook in double-digits. 
• As a team, Alaska is outshooting their opponents from the floor (45.5-42.2), three (35.4-34.2), and free-throw line (76.3-69.4). 

Work the Glass
As a team, the Nanooks are eighth and sixth in the nation in rebounds per game and defensive rebounds per game. They are averaging 42.82 rebounds per game, good for eighth in NCAA DII rankings and leading the GNAC. They also lead the GNAC in defensive rebounds per game with 30.45; this is good for sixth in the NCAA DII rankings. 

GNAC Standings

1. Northwest Nazarene (9-1, 2-0 GNAC)
2. Saint Martin's (13-2, 2-0 GNAC)
3. Central Washington (8-4, 2-0 GNAC)
4. Montana State Billings (10-4, 1-0 GNAC)
5. Alaska Anchorage (8-7, 1-1 GNAC)
6. Alaska (5-6, 1-1 GNAC)
7. Western Washington (8-4, 0-2 GNAC)
8. Simon Fraser (4-8, 0-2 GNAC)
9. Seattle Pacific (4-8, 0-1 GNAC)
10. Western Oregon (3-9, 0-2 GNAC)

Meet the Opponents

Western Washington Vikings (8-4, 0-2 GNAC)
The Vikings come into the matchup with the Nanooks with a one-game winning streak. They knocked off St. Mary's in Las Vegas, Nev., 70-68, going 1-1 in the Las Vegas Holiday Hoops Classic. They fell to Lubbock Christian the night before, 75-63. WWU is led by Will Wilson, who is scoring 15.6 points per game while shooting 51.6% from the floor, 37.2% from three and 91.1% from the free-throw line. 

Simon Fraser Red Leafs (4-8, 0-2 GNAC)
Simon Fraser comes into this week on a three-game slide. The losing streak began Nov. 29 with an 88-73 loss at the Academy of Art (Calif.). They then opened GNAC play with a pair of losses to Central Washington and Northwest Nazarene. The Red Leafs are led by Luke Howard, who through 10 games and nine starts is averaging 16.4 points per game on a 48.8% clip from the floor and 38.6% average from three. 

What's to Come
After the pair of road games, the Nanooks return home on Jan. 9 and Jan. 11 to face Central Washington and Northwest Nazarene. The Jan. 9 game against CWU will be the Nanooks' annual Unity Game. The Jan. 11 game against NNU will be Indigenous Appreciation Day. 

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