THIS WEEK IN SEAWOLF MEN’S BASKETBALL
Friday, Nov. 13 — 3 pm AST — Patty Center — Fairbanks, Alaska
Chaminade (0-0) vs Alaska Anchorage (3-2)
&
Saturday, Nov. 14 — 5:15 pm AST — Patty Center — Fairbanks, Alaska
Hawaii Pacific (0-0 [11/13 @UAF]) vs Alaska Anchorage
TV/RADIO: None
LIVE VIDEOSTREAM & STATS: Both games free at portal.stretchinternet.com/uaa
UAA PROBABLE STARTERS (2014-15 stats)
G—Diante Mitchell, 6-1, Jr. (11.6 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 3.6 apg, 1.8 spg, .550 3FG, .900 FT)
G—Sekou ‘Suki’ Wiggs, 6-4, Jr. (23.6 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 3.8 apg, 2.4 spg, .512 FG, .370 3FG, .750 FT)
G—Spencer Svejcar, 6-4, Jr. (11.0 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.8 apg, 1.2 spg, .895 FT)
F— Christian Leckband, 6-7, Sr. (10.0 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 1.8 apg, .487 FG, .375 3FG, .857 FT)
F—Corey Hammell, 6-6, Jr. (11.4 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 1.4 apg, .727 FT)
SOCIAL MEDIA
Twitter: @UAAMBB (for in-game updates) and @UAASeawolves
Facebook: Alaska Anchorage Seawolves
Instagram: UAA_Seawolves
YouTube & SnapChat: UAA Seawolves
Hashtags: #SeawolfHoops #UAASeawolves
ALL-TIME SERIES...
vs Chaminade: UAA leads 18-11
Last: UAA 75-53 (12/20/09 at UAA) / Streak: UAA 2
Notes: CU’s last win came in the lone neutral-court meeting between the programs – an 84-67 NCAA 1st Round decision in Mar. 2006 in Seattle ... UAA has won four of the last five meetings ... teams were league rivals for many years when UAA belonged to the Pacific West Conference ... first official meeting was a 115-87 UAA road win, Feb. 10, 1978.
vs HPU: UAA leads 9-4
Last: UAA 75-53 (12/3/10 at UAF) / Streak: UAA 6
Notes: Saturday’s game will take place on the same court as the first and only neutral-court meeting between UAA and HPU, Dec. 3, 2010 at the Glacier Classic ... HPU is 0-4 against UAA in Alaska ... HPU’s last win came by a 99-84 score, Feb. 9, 2001 in Honolulu ... first meeting was a 101-86 UAA road win, Feb. 21, 1980.
SCOUTING THE HAWAIIANS: Chaminade, picked to finish 5th in the 14-team Pacific West Conference, lost a 101-96 overtime exhibition decision to Honolulu rival and Div. I Hawaii on Nov. 5 ... the Silverswords got 20 points from 6-7 Jr. G Kiran Shastri and 15 points, 14 rebounds from Preseason All-PWC Jr. G Kuany Kuany against the Rainbows ... Hawaii Pacific, picked 6th by the Pac West coaches, is currently on a Midwest exhibition junket, suffering a 91-57 loss to D-I power Wichita State on Nov. 7 and taking at UMKC on Monday night ... the Sharks, also from Honolulu, are led by Preseason All-PWC Sr. F Luke Hager (16.1 ppg, 7.9 rpg).
NO BLINKIN’ VS. LINCOLN: UAA earned 94-47 and 105-50 wins against NCCAA/NAIA program Lincoln Christian in its home openers, Nov. 6-7 at the Alaska Airlines Center ... the Seawolves got 21 points (9-12 FG), 10 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals from Jr. G Suki Wiggs in the first game, plus 15 points (7-11 FG) and 3 steals off the bench from Sr. F Christian Leckband ... Jr. G Drew Peterson poured in 12 points (4-7 3FG), but the victory came at a cost as So. F Sjur Berg suffered a broken elbow on a 1st-half tumble under the basket ... on Saturday, Jr. G Diante Mitchell scored 27 points (8-11 FG, 5-7 3FG, 6-6 FT), dished 4 assists and made a UAA season-high 5 steals as UAA earned its first winning streak of 2015-16 ... Wiggs deposited 22 points (9-14 FG) and Jr. F Corey Hammell tallied 15 points (5-9 FG), 8 rebounds and 3 assists against the visitors from Illinois.
DISNEY RECAP: The Seawolves were one of six teams nationally to get an early jump on the 2015-16 campaign with three games at the CCA Tip-Off Classic in Southern California, Oct. 30-Nov. 1 … in the season-opener, Jr. G Suki Wiggs scored 20 points to spark a rally from down 11 points with under 8 minutes to play against Upper Iowa, resulting in a 74-71 UAA victory in Anaheim … Jr. F Corey Hammell posted 18 points (6-12 FG) and 10 rebounds in his Seawolf debut, Jr. G Spencer Svejcar had 14 points (12-12 FT), and Jr. G Diante Mitchell had 12 points as UAA got 70 of its 74 points from newcomers … So. F Sjur Berg snagged a game-high 11 rebounds against the Peacocks … on Saturday in Anaheim, Wiggs exploded for a tournament-record 34 points (10-22 FG, 12-14 FT), but the Seawolves could not mount a comeback in a 79-68 loss to No. 11 Cal Baptist … Wiggs added 7 rebounds and 4 steals, while Hammell was the only other Seawolf in double figures with 12 points, along with 11 rebounds … on the final day – played in Carson, Calif. – the Seawolves led 17-12 early before succumbing to a game-deciding 20-0 run by Colorado-Colorado Springs in a 79-70 setback … Wiggs posted 21 points, 13 rebounds and 7 assists, and Sr. F Christian Leckband had his best game of the weekend with 15 points (5-8 FG, 3-5 3FG), 6 rebounds and no turnovers … Svejcar scored all 13 of his points in the second half, but no other Seawolf contributed more than six against the defending Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tourney champs.
BRIEF 2014-15 RECAP: The Seawolves registered a 16-13 overall record and tied for third in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference with a 12-6 league mark in their first campaign in the Alaska Airlines Center in 2014-15 ... UAA posted thrilling home wins over Western Washington and Alaska Fairbanks, while earning yet another victory over a Div. I team in the GCI Great Alaska Shootout, defeating Rice, 65-54 ... Sr. G Travis Thompson picked up 3rd Team Academic All-America, 2nd Team All-West Region and his second straight 1st Team All-GNAC award, finishing as the No. 2 scorer and No. 1 three-point shooter in program history, while then-Jr. PG Brian McGill was an honorable mention All-GNAC selection.
TEAM NOTES: UAA is seeking the program’s 11th straight winning season and the 33rd in 39 years … last year’s Seawolves earned the the program’s fifth straight top-4 GNAC finish and plus-.500 league record ... UAA has qualified for the GNAC Tournament each year since the event was instituted in 2011 ... the 2014-15 Seawolves earned NCAA Div. II top-25 statistical rankings in four categories, finishing 7th in assists per game (18.1), 8th in free throw percentage (.770), 16th in assist/turnover ratio (1.42) and 21st in three-pointers made per game (9.6) ... in the GNAC stats, the Seawolves led the league assists per game, FT% and in A/T ratio, while finishing 2nd in 3FGs per game and rebound defense (30.8).
RELIABLE RETURNERS: Sr. F Christian Leckband enters the season with the most experience of any Seawolf on the roster, posting career averages of 5.9 ppg and 3.2 rpg in 83 career appearances, including 28 starts ... the Nome product provided a big lift off the bench in league play last year, registering 7.5 ppg and 4.0 rpg in GNAC counters ... on Jan. 3, the Nome product tied his then-career-high with 16 points in the win over Western Washington, and he reached double figures for the fourth time last year with a career-high 19 points against Seattle Pacific on Feb. 14 ... Leckband ranked 19th in the GNAC with his .384 3FG% last year and is No. 22 on UAA’s career list at .385 ... Jr. F Travis Parrish was quietly one of UAA’s most efficient players in his first season after switching from football (Utah State) to the hardcourt ... Parrish was one of four Seawolves to shoot .550 or better in 2014-15, connecting at a .585 clip (24 of 41) after entering the starting lineup on Dec. 13 ... the Utah native had career-highs of 10 points (4-5 FG, 2-2 FT) at Western Washington and 4 assists at Simon Fraser, and he grabbed a career-high 9 rebounds at Central Washington ... Parrish also led the Seawolves with 44 total offensive rebounds.
REDSHIRTS RETURN: Two players who sat out the 2014-15 campaign as redshirts – So. F Jackson McTier and Fr. G Damien Fulp – will get their chances to impact the lineup this time around ... McTier saw limited action in 24 games as a true freshman in 2013-14, and he has added more muscle to his 6-7 frame ... meanwhile, Fulp has also added about 15 pounds since his prep playing days at Colony High in Palmer ... a former all-state performer for the Knights, Fulp brings the ability to play either guard position.
TRANSFERS GALORE: The Seawolves will rely heavily on six transfers -- all juniors -- in 2015-16 ... the lone Div. I transfer is former Idaho starting guard Sekou ‘Suki’ Wiggs, a double-digit career scorer in his two seasons in Moscow ... last year Wiggs was the Vandals’ third-leading scorer with 11.5 ppg, while ranking second on the team in total assists (81) and first in free throws made (106) ... a Preseason All-GNAC selection this year, Wiggs was the Western Athletic Conference’s Sixth Man of the Year as a freshman in 2013-14 ... meanwhile, five former junior college standouts will join the fray, with combo guard Diante Mitchell (Western Nebraska CC) and swingmen Spencer Svejcar (Laramie County [Wyo.] CC) and Drew Peterson (San Diego Miramar Coll.) joining Wiggs in the backcourt, and California forwards Corey Hammell (Santa Rosa JC) and Tayler Thompson (Cuesta Coll.) boosting the frontcourt ... Svejcar was an NJCAA All-Region IX First Team selection as a sophomore after averaging 16.0 ppg, 3.9 rpg and 2.5 apg, while shooting .405 3FG ... in his two years at WNCC, Mitchell averaged nearly 15 points and 3 assists per game, and he connected at impressive rates of .508 FG, .408 3FG and .860 FT in 2014-15 ... with a 3.86 GPA in junior college, Mitchell was also an NJCAA Academic All-American ... Peterson, the final addition to UAA’s recruting class, was a 2-time All-PCAC honoree at Miramar, where he averaged 12.8 ppg, 4.0 rpg and shot .853 FT last season ... a versatile forward, Hammell averaged a double-double (14.3 ppg/10.2 rpg) as a sophomore, scoring double figures in 20 of 22 games ... Thompson was an All-Western States Conference performer at Cuesta last year, averaging 11.6 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 1.6 bpg and shooting .581 FG.
INJURY REPORT: UAA suffered a blow Nov. 6 when So. F Sjur Berg suffered a broken elbow in the Seawolves’ home opener ... following surgery, Berg is expected to miss at least two months and possibly the rest of the season ... the Norwegian ranked second on the team (15th GNAC) last year with 5.2 rpg and was averaging 7.0 rpg through the first three games this year.
REDSHIRTS ANNOUNCED: Head coach Rusty Osborne has announced that Fr. F/C Curtis Ryan and Jr. G/F Augustus Simmers will redshirt the 2015-16 campaign.
SEAWOLVES TABBED 4TH: The Seawolves were picked to finish fourth in the 2015-16 Great Northwest Athletic Conference preseason coaches’ poll, released Oct. 15.
2015-16 Great Northwest Athletic Conference
Preseason Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Poll
Rk Team (1st-pl. votes) ‘14-15 Records Pts
1. Western Washington (5) 20-11/11-7 (t-5th) 114
2. Western Oregon (4) 23-7/15-3 (1st) 106
3. Seattle Pacific (2) 24-8/13-5 (2nd) 100
4. Alaska Anchorage 16-13/12-6 (t-3rd) 92
5. Central Washington 17-9/12-6 (t-3rd) 80
6. Alaska Fairbanks 7-19/4-14 (8th) 63
7. Saint Martin’s 6-22/3-15 (t-9th) 41
Montana State Billings 5-23/3-15 (t-9th) 41
9. Northwest Nazarene 14-16/11-7 (t-5th) 37
10. Concordia, Ore. 25-7 1st Yr in GNAC 32
11. Simon Fraser 11-15/6-12 (7th) 20
(Votes awarded on 11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis)
THE OSBORNE FILE: Beginning his 12th year as head coach, Rusty Osborne (211-121) has now led the Seawolves to 10 straight winning seasons, along with five NCAA Tournaments and a trip to the 2008 NCAA D-II Semifinals in his tenure at the helm … with UAA’s victory over Alaska Fairbanks on Jan. 10, 2015, he became the first UAA basketball coach to reach 200 career victories … 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 2015-16 by Cameron Turner (5th season) and Kasey Riley (1st season).
--COMPLETE RELEASE ATTACHED--
Nate Sagan
Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations
University of Alaska Anchorage
3211 Providence Dr.
Anchorage, AK 99508
(907) 786-1295 / nate@uaa.alaska.edu
GoSeawolves.com
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