THIS WEEK IN SEAWOLF MEN’S BASKETBALL ...
Thur., Feb. 27 — 7 pm AST — Patty Center — Fairbanks, AK
Alaska Anchorage (17-11, 10-7 GNAC)
at Alaska Fairbanks (16-9, 11-6 GANC)
RADIO: Live locally on FM-93.7 KAFC
TV: None
LIVE VIDEO: Watch free via Stretch Internet (find link at GoSeawolves.com)
LIVE STATS: Find the link at GoSeawolves.com homepage or MBB schedule page
SOCIAL MEDIA: For game updates and more, follow @UAAMBB on Twitter. Seawolf Athletics’ main twitter handle is @UAASeawolves, while fans can like ‘Alaska Anchorage Seawolves’ on Facebook and ‘AlaskaAnchorage’ on Instagram.
UAA PROBABLE STARTERS (2013-14 stats)
G—Brian McGill, 6-2/185, So. (16.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 6.0 apg, .473 FG, .490 3FG, .832 FT)
G—Travis Thompson, 6-1/185, Jr. (21.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 3.2 apg, .416 3FG, .902 FT)
G—Kyle Fossman, 6-0/180, Sr. (16.8 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 3.5 apg, .444 3FG, .843 FT)
F—Teancum Stafford, 6-5/205, Jr. (12.9 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 0.6 bpg, .450 FG, .370 3FG)
F—Colton Lauwers, 6-3/215, Sr. (6.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.1 apg, 3.5-1 A-T ratio, .774 FT)
SCOUTING THE NANOOKS: Alaska Fairbanks has won three of its last four, including a triple-OT win at NW Nazarene and a 71-70 home loss to Western Oregon ... the Nanooks feature five double-digit scorers, led by Sr. G Ronnie Baker (14.6 ppg, 2.5 apg, 1.5 spg, .432 3FG) and Sr. F Andrew Kelly (12.6 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 2.4 apg, .652 FG).
THIRD PLACE ON THE LINE: The Seawolves and Nanooks will battle for the No. 3 seed in the upcoming GNAC Tournament when the meet Thursday in Fairbanks … a UAA win would create a tie in the final standings, with the Seawolves taking the tiebreaker via the season sweep … UAA can finish no worse than tied for fourth in the final standings but could still slide as far as the No. 6 seed in case of a 3-way tie involving UAA, Western Oregon and MSU Billings … UAF could still tie for second place but would need Western Washington to go 0-2 this week at Saint Martin’s and WOU.
ALL-TIME vs UAF: UAA leads 73-21 (31-16 at UAF) / Last Meeting: UAA 96-76 (12/7/13 at UAA) / Streak: UAA 16 / Notes: UAA has the longest streak in series history at 16, although the last four of the last five games have been decided by six points or less … UAA has won seven straight at the Patty Center since a 76-73 loss on Jan. 28, 2006 … UAA leads 20-5 in GNAC meetings (since 2001-02) and 43-9 since 1990 … teams have met at least twice each year since both became NCAA Div. II programs in 1977-78.
TEAM COMPARISONS UAA UAF
UAA Road/Opp. Home 5-3 10-2
Points per Game 86.3 71.4
Points Allowed per Game 77.1 67.4
Rebounding Differential -1.1 -2.7
Assists per Game 18.3 14.3
Turnovers per Game 8.3 11.4
Steals per Game 4.9 8.1
Blocks per Game 1.8 2.0
FG% .457 .445
3-pt FG% .407 .359
FT% .798 .721
LAST TIME VS. UAF: So. PG Brian McGill had 29 points and 10 assists Dec. 7 as UAA pulled away for a 96-76 victory over Alaska Fairbanks in the league opener for both teams at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex … UAA also got 20 points and 8 rebounds from Jr. G Travis Thompson to help the Seawolves extend their win streak to series-best 16 against their oldest rivals … Jr. G/F Teancum Stafford tied his career-high with 12 rebounds and Sr. G Kyle Fossman added 18 points (4-7 3FG) and 6 assists as UAA shot 51 percent and won the rebounding battle 39-33 … the Seawolves also got a big lift off the bench from So. F Christian Leckband, who sparked a first-half rally with a driving dunk and finished with season-highs of 9 points and 8 rebounds … UAA ended with an 11-game win streak against UAF at the WFSC.
SEAWOLVES SEND OFF ‘FARG’ IN RECORD STYLE: The Seawolves shut the doors on 36 years of Wells Fargo Sports Complex history with a pair of wins last week, defeating Saint Martin’s, 88-76, on Thursday and Western Oregon, 96-77, on Saturday … in the first game, So. PG Brian McGill scored 27 points (8-12 FG, 2-2 3FG, 9-10 FT) and Sr. G Kyle Fossman added 18 points (5-9 3FG, 3-4 FT), 6 assists and no turnovers in 40 minutes as UAA led from start to finish against the Saints … McGill tallied the second-highest point total of his career, along with 3 assists and 4 rebounds … as a team, UAA committed only four giveaways on the night, coming one shy of the school record, set twice in recent weeks … all five UAA starters scored at least 9 points, with forwards Teancum Stafford and Colton Lauwers posting identical lines of 9 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists, and Jr. G Travis Thompson adding 15 points (5-8 FG), 5 assists and 5 rebounds … in Saturday’s ‘Farg’ finale, the Seawolves broke or tied a slew of three-point records as they routed the Wolves and clinched a berth in the GNAC Tournament … Fossman scored a career-high 40 points (14-18 FG, 12-16 3FG) and Thompson had 33 points (12-18 FG, 8-12 FT) and 6 assists, helping UAA to a 27-of-41 (.659) three-point percentage … Lauwers added 12 points (4-6 3FG), 5 assists and no turnovers as UAA tied its own school and GNAC record for 3FGs in a game … McGill dished 10 assists and Stafford added 5 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists … Fossman’s 12 treys broke the old school and GNAC single-game mark of 10, while he and Thompson each surpassed the previous UAA (100) and GNAC (102) season records as well.
TEAM NOTES: UAA leads NCAA Div. II with just 8.3 turnovers per game and a 2.21-1 assist-turnover ratio … the Seawolves also sport top-25 national ranks in FT% (2nd, .798), 3FGs per game (3rd, 13.1), 3FG% (12th, .407), assists (15th, 17.6 apg), turnover margin (23rd, +3.7) and scoring offense (23rd, 86.3 ppg) … in the GNAC stats, the Seawolves lead in FT%, 3FGs per game, assists and asst-TO ratio, and rank 2nd in scoring offense, 3FG% (.407), turnover margin and scoring margin (+9.2) … UAA has clinched it’s the program’s ninth straight winning season and the 31st in 37 years … the Seawolves have also clinched a plus-.500 league record for the 26th time in 32 years of conference membership … the Seawolves have already broken 21 school records and 10 GNAC records this season, boosted by the epic three-point barrages against Western Oregon and Northland International; see page 6 for the complete list.
REGIONAL RANKINGS: The Seawolves were not included in the first set of NCAA Div. II West Region rankings, which came out last Wednesday, Feb. 19 … the rankings will be updated this Wednesday and again on Mar. 5, prior to the GNAC, CCAA and Pac West conference tournaments … the top five teams in the poll, along with the three automatic-bid winners from the league tourneys, will advance to the NCAA West Regional Championships, set for Mar. 14-17 at the region’s highest seed.
FOSSMAN NETS GNAC WEEKLY NOD: Sr. G Kyle Fossman was named the co-recipient Monday of the GNAC Red Lion Player of the Week award, following his big performances against Saint Martin’s and Western Oregon … the 6-footer averaged 29.5 points on 70 percent shooting (19 of 27), including 68 percent (17 of 25) on three-pointers, 9 rebounds and 9 assists, as he broke the UAA single-game (12), season (104) and career (248) three-point records Saturday night … on Thursday, Fossman tallied 18 points (5-9 3FG), 6 assists and no turnovers in 40 minutes in an 88-76 win over the Saints … two days later, the Haines native broke the UAA and GNAC single-game record with 12 three-pointers (on just 16 attempts) on his way to a career-high 40-point effort … Fossman became just the sixth player in school history to reach to 40-point plateau and the first since 2011 as UAA drained a school- and GNAC-record-tying 27 three-pointers (on 41 attempts) … he now also stands fifth place on the GNAC’s career three-pointers list, just eight behind the No. 4 mark.
PLAYER NOTES: Jr. G Travis Thompson ranks No. 2 in the GNAC and 15th nationally with 21.7 points per game, along with top-15 national marks in 3FGs per game (5th, 3.7) and FT% (12th, .902) … Thompson leads the GNAC in 3FGs per game, plus ranks of 2nd in FT%, 5th in minutes (34.5), 8th in assist-turnover ratio (2.2), 11th in assists (3.2 apg) and 3FG% (.416) and 14th in steals (1.2 spg) … coming off a redshirt season, the local Dimond HS product has tallied double figures in 26 of 28 games, including six times reaching the 30-point plateau and five consecutive 25-plus games from Jan. 16-30 … Thompson has already broken UAA’s single-season record for 3FGs made (104, tied with Fossman) and attempted (250), along with the old GNAC mark for treys in a season (102, formerly held by current UAA women’s basketball coach Ryan McCarthy [NNU, 2005-06]) … on the other season lists, Thompson is 1st in 3FGs per game (3.7), 3rd in FT%, 5th in scoring average and 8th in points (608) … a 2nd-Team All-GNAC pick in 2011-12 and a preseason all-league selection this year, Thompson has become the latest member of UAA’s 1,000-point club, now ranking 12th (1,165) and needing just eight more points to move into the top 10 … on UAA’s other career lists, he is 3rd in FT% (.875) and 3FGs made (211), 7th in 3FG% (.439), 9th in FTs made (232) and 15th in assists (238) ... Thompson was named Most Outstanding Player of the AT&T Jamboree and made the Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout in November, and he was the GNAC Red Lion Player of the Week for Jan. 20-26 … along with Thompson, the presence of Sr. G Kyle Fossman gives UAA two 1,000-point scorers in the same lineup for the first time since 1986-87 (Jesse Jackson/Hansi Gnad), with the preseason all-league pick currently ranking 9th on UAA’s all-time list with 1,195 points … a First Team All-GNAC pick and team MVP as a junior, Fossman ranks 6th in the GNAC scoring race with 16.8 ppg, boosted by his 40-point performance Feb. 22 vs. Western Oregon … he is also among the league top-10 leaders in 3FGs made per game (t-1st, 3.7), A-T ratio (t-3rd, 3.0), 3FG% (4th, .444), minutes (3rd, 35.1), FT% (7th, .843) and assists (8th, 3.5) … in the NCAA national stats, the team’s only 4th-year senior is 5th in 3FGs per game, 16th in assist-TO ratio and 21st in 3FG% … Fossman now the UAA career (248), season (104, tied with Thompson) and single-game (12) record-holder for 3FGs made, and he ranks No. 4 on the career GNAC list … Fossman’s other Seawolf career ranks include 4th in 3FG% (.452), 7th in FT% (.848), 8th in games started (80), 9th in points (1,195), 10th in assists (249), 13th in games played (103), and 8th in victories (72) … another preseason all-league pick and returning All-GNAC 2nd Team selection, Jr. G/F Teancum Stafford sits 20th in the GNAC scoring race with 12.9 ppg, bolstered by a career-high 29 points in the 83-72 victory over No. 5 Minnesota State … in the other GNAC stats, Stafford is 8th in rebounding (7.2 rpg),12th in 3FGs per game (2.1) and 15th in blocks per game (0.6) … with double-figure scoring in 42 of his 52 career games, the Snow (Utah) College transfer ranks 20th in 3FG% (.388) and double-doubles (6), and 21st in scoring average (13.7 ppg) on UAA’s career lists … Stafford is also a top candidate for Academic All-America honors, having already been selected to the Capital One Academic All-District Team with a 4.0 overall GPA in psychology … recently married and on pace to graduate in May with honors, Stafford has announced that he plans to forgo his final season of eligibility in 2014-15 … So. PG Brian McGill has made a huge impact in his first year of eligibility since transferring from Western Oregon … McGill ranks No. 2 in the league with 6.0 apg, along with other GNAC ranks of 9th in scoring (16.0 ppg), 5th in asst-TO ratio (2.5), 7th in minutes (33.6 mpg) and 10th in FT% (.832) … on UAA’s single-season lists, he is 7th in both assists (168) and assists per game, 13th in FTs made (129) and 19th in FT% … the Clackamas, Ore., native was named the GNAC Red Lion Player of the Week following his 29-point, 10-assist performance in the league-opening victory over UAF, becoming just the fifth player in 14 years to tally at least 25 points and 10 assists in a GNAC game … nationally, McGill is 18th in assists and 47th in A/T ratio … Sr. G/F Colton Lauwers has been UAA’s lunch-pail man, spelling McGill at the point and banging for rebounds at the power forward position … a former Dimond HS teammate of Thompson’s, Lauwers in 2nd in the GNAC with a 3.5-to-1 A/T ratio — dishing 60 assists with just 17 giveaways in 650 minutes — and 20th in 3FGs per game (1.4) … Lauwers has scored double figures seven times this year and is averaging 10.3 ppg over the last six games … Jr. G Boomer Blossom has seen an increased role of late, seeing his playing time nearly double from 8.9 to 15.3 minutes per game over the last seven contests … the Soldotna High product has been a big reason why UAA leads the nation in assist-turnover ratio, sporting an incredible 27-to-1 ratio (in 244 total minutes) … So. F Christian Leckband has been productive off the bench as well lately, averaging 4.7 ppg over the last seven games … during UAA’s current 4-game win streak, the Nome product is shooting 7 of 12 from the field and has committed just one turnover … Leckband ranks 19th on UAA’s career list for 3FG% at .388 — just percentage points better than Stafford.
THE OSBORNE FILE: Tenth-year head coach Rusty Osborne (192-104) has now led the Seawolves to nine straight winning seasons, five NCAA Tournaments and a trip to the 2008 NCAA D-II Semifinals in his tenure at the helm … with UAA’s victory over Saint Martin’s on Jan. 25, he also became the winningest coach in program history, surpassing former mentor Charlie Bruns … Osborne captured his first career GNAC and NABC West District coach-of-the-year awards in 2008 after becoming the second coach to lead UAA to three consecutive NCAA berths (2006-08), and in 2011-12 his Seawolves posted a 24-10 record to equal the 2nd-most victories in program history; Osborne’s 2007-08 club holds that record with a 29-6 mark … before taking over the head job in 2004-05, the Texas native previously served 13 seasons (1991-04) as a UAA assistant, including 11 years as the top assistant … the Seawolves have won over 60 percent of their games with Osborne on the staff, claiming four conference titles and eight trips to the NCAA Division II Tournament. Osborne is assisted in by Cameron Turner (3rd season), graduate assistant Tim Mollerstrom (2nd season), and volunteer coach Dylan Hoch (1st season).
UAA PEGGED FOR SECOND: UAA was picked to finish runner-up by the league’s 10 head coaches in the 2013-14 Great Northwest Athletic Conference preseason poll, released Oct. 15. Here’s a look at the poll, with actual finish denoted on the right:
2013-14 GNAC Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches’ Poll
Rk Team 2012-13 Recs., Pl. Pts
1. Seattle Pacific (9) 27-4 (16-2, 2nd) 99
2. Alaska Anchorage (1) 18-9 (11-7, 3rd) 86
3. Western Washington 31-3 (17-1, 1st) 80
4. Central Washington 15-13 (8-10, 6th) 70
5. Alaska Fairbanks 16-12 (10-8, 4th) 62
6. Western Oregon 10-16 (5-13, 9th) 44
7. Montana State Billings 16-14 (9-9, 5th) 41
8. Northwest Nazarene 13-13 (7-11, 7th) 30
9. Simon Fraser 6-20 (1-17, 10th) 20
10. Saint Martin’s 10-16 (6-12, 8th) 18
2013-14 SEAWOLF INDIVIDUAL HONORS
Kyle Fossman
Preseason All-GNAC Team
AT&T Jamboree All-Tournament Team, 11/16
GNAC Red Lion co-Player of the Week, 2/17-23
Brian McGill
AT&T Jamboree All-Tournament Team, 11/16
GNAC Red Lion Player of the Week, 12/2-8
Teancum Stafford
Preseason All-GNAC Team
AT&T Jamboree Player of the Game vs Holy Names, 11/15
AT&T Jamboree All-Tournament Team, 11/16
Capital One Academic All-District Team, 1/30
Capital One Academic All-America Second Team, 2/19
Travis Thompson
Preseason All-GNAC Team
AT&T Jamboree Player of the Game vs Regis, 11/16
AT&T Jamboree Most Outstanding Player, 11/16
Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout All-Tourney Tm, 11/30
GNAC Red Lion co-Player of the Week, 1/20-26
Nate Sagan
Sports Information Director
University of Alaska Anchorage
3211 Providence Dr.
Anchorage, AK 9508
(907) 786-1295 / nate@uaa.alaska.edu
GoSeawolves.com
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