ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The Nanooks men's basketball team is on the road for one game this week, taking on in-state rivals Alaska Anchorage on Saturday afternoon.

Saturday, Jan. 18
at Alaska Anchorage | 3 p.m.
Alaska Airlines Center | Anchorage, Alaska

Watch | Live Stats

Last Time Out
The Nanooks went 1-1 in their two games last week, falling to the Central Washington Wildcats 74-93 on Thursday before defeating the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks 71-62 on Saturday.

Chris Lee led the team with 23 points vs. the Wildcats, shooting 8-of-16 from the floor and 4-of-9 from three. He tied for the team lead in rebounds with four, dished out two assists and collected a block. Isaiah Saams-Hoy followed with 13 points on 5-of-11 shooting. He knocked down his only three-point attempt of the evening while notching two blocks and two steals. Jalai O'Keith was the final Nanook to finish in double-digit scoring, posting 11 points. He went 4-of-8 from the floor and 1-of-4 from deep. Ketan Sidhu grabbed four rebounds to tie him with Lee for the team lead. He finished with five points on 2-of-3 shooting while connecting from beyond the arc once. Elyon Zevenbergen posted eight points, going 4-of-5 from the floor, and grabbed three rebounds. Alaska shot 50.9% from the floor and 37.5% from three during the contest, compared to shooting totals of 55.9% and 57.1% for the Wildcats. The Nanooks trailed in second-chance points (12-9), points off turnovers (18-11) and points in the paint (36-26), and were outrebounded 31-25.

The 'Nooks concluded the week by handing Northwest Nazarene its first GNAC loss of the season in a comeback victory. After trailing 60-55 with 4:58 remaining in the contest, Lee scored the next 10 points to flip the script and give Alaska a five-point advantage with 1:54 left. Saams-Hoy added to the lead after sinking a fastbreak layup off his own steal, and Sidhu scored the final four points for the Nanooks, helping them see out the 71-62 victory. Lee and Zevenbergen tied for the team lead with 20 points; Lee finished with three assists, two rebounds and a steal, while Zevenbergen tied for the team lead with nine rebounds and went 8-of-12 from the floor and 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. Saams-Hoy dished out a squad-leading six assists while also finishing in double-figure scoring with 14 points. He went 6-of-12 from the floor and led the team in steals with three and blocks with six while finishing with eight boards. Alaska shot 45.8% from the floor and 40.9% from deep during the contest, shooting 46.2% from three in the second half. Meanwhile, they held NNU to shooting totals of 34.4% and 28% for the game. The Nanooks led in points off turnovers (11-9), points in the paint (32-28) and fastbreak points (12-5).

#NookNotes

• Chris Lee leads the 'Nooks with 16.9 points per game, ranking third in the GNAC.
• Isaiah Saams-Hoy sits right behind him in sixth, posting an average of 16.1 points.
• Saams-Hoy ranks second in the GNAC in field goal percentage, shooting at a 53.7% clip this season. This puts him 81st in Division II.
• Saams-Hoy also leads the team in steals, posting 1.6 per contest to put him fifth in the GNAC.
• Alaska has two of the top 10 blockers in the conference, with Saams-Hoy and Ketan Sidhu averaging 1.2 and one block per game, respectively. This puts them fifth and ninth in the GNAC.
• Jalai O'Keith has grabbed the third-most rebounds per game in the GNAC this season at 7.3.
• The 'Nooks are giving up the lowest opposing field goal percentage in the conference, allowing their opponents to shoot at just a 42% clip.
• The Blue & Gold are number one in the GNAC in defensive rebounds per game, averaging 29.3, which puts them 12th in the nation.
• Their 40.5 rebounds per game puts them second in the conference and 25th in DII.
• Alaska is one of the top three-point shooting teams in the GNAC, with its 36.4% three-point percentage and 9.8 three-pointers per game both ranking second in the conference.

GNAC Standings

1. Northwest Nazarene (12-2, 5-1 GNAC)
2. Saint Martin's (16-3, 5-1 GNAC)
3. Central Washington (11-5, 5-1 GNAC)
4. Alaska (8-7, 4-2 GNAC)
5. Alaska Anchorage (10-9, 3-3 GNAC)
6. Seattle Pacific (7-10, 3-3 GNAC)
7. Montana State Billings (11-8, 2-4 GNAC)
8. Western Washington (10-7, 2-5 GNAC)
9. Western Oregon (4-12, 1-5 GNAC)
10. Simon Fraser (5-12, 1-6 GNAC)

Meet the Opponents
Alaska Anchorage (10-9, 3-3 GNAC)
Head Coach: Rusty Osborne (21st Season)

The Seawolves enter the contest sitting right behind the Nanooks in fifth place in the GNAC standings, going 3-3 in conference play. They dropped their two GNAC games last week, falling to Northwest Nazarene 63-71 and Central Washington 52-64.

UAA has the seventh-best scoring defense in the country this season, as its 61.3 points per game allowed leads all GNAC teams. The Seawolves have forced the most turnovers per game in the GNAC this season, averaging 16.1 takeaways, while committing the second-fewest turnovers per game with 10.9.

Junior guard Tyler Burraston leads the Seawolves with 13.2 points per game. He has knocked down the most three-pointers per game in the GNAC, averaging 3.37 makes from beyond the arc while shooting at the second-highest clip from deep in the conference at 41.6%.

What's to Come
The Nanooks stay on the road next week as they are set to take on Montana State Billings on Thursday, Jan. 23 and Seattle Pacific on Saturday, Jan. 25.

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