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Nov. 19, 2012

BELLINGHAM, Wash. - Off to a 3-0 start, its best in four seasons, defending national champion Western Washington University hosts the 12th Chuck Randall Thanksgiving Men's Basketball Classic this weekend at Sam Carver Gymnasium.

The tournament is named in honor of former WWU coach Chuck Randall, who earned school and national hall of fame honors during his 18-year career at WWU. The Vikings are riding a 14-game winning streak at the Randall Classic, which last took place in 2009, and have won 19 of 22 tourney games overall, tying or winning the last seven championships and nine of 11 overall.

WWU meets Concordia University St. Paul MN on Friday (7:30 p.m.), Nov. 23, and Southwest Baptist MO on Saturday (5 p.m.), Nov. 24. University of Alaska Fairbanks completes the four-team field, playing Southwest Baptist on Friday (2:30 p.m.) and Concordia St. Paul on Saturday (2:30 p.m.).

Live stats for all games and video streaming for WWU contests can be found at wwuvikings.com. Both Viking games also will be carried live by the Cascade Radio Group with Friday's on KPUG (AM 1170-Bellingham) and Saturday's on KBAI Radio (AM 930-Bellingham). Doug Lange will be providing the play-by-play and Mark Scholten handling the color commentary.

It will be WWU's first meeting with both Concordia St. Paul and Southwest Baptist.

The Vikings made their season and home debut with a 100-44 win over Multnomah OR on Nov. 9. They then traveled to Hawaii and posted West Region victories over BYU Hawaii, 84-78, on Nov. 12, and Chaminade, 93-83, on Nov. 14.

WWU is ranked No.6 in the latest National Association of Basketball Coaches/NCAA Division II Top 25 Poll.

Senior forward Paul Jones (Kent/Kent-Meridian) is averaging a team-leading 19.0 points per game, shooting 66.7 percent (22-of-33) from the field. He also is averaging 6.7 rebounds.

Junior forward Austin Bragg (Longview/Mark Morris), a transfer from Clark CC, is averaging 14.7 points on 66.7 percent (18-of-27) shooting and a team-high 7.7 rebounds.

Senior guard Rico Wilkins (Dallas, TX) is scoring at a 13.7 clip off the bench and senior guard John Allen (Brier/Mountlake Terrace) is averaging 12.7 points and a team-best 5.0 assists.

The Vikings are averaging 92.3 points, while holding opponents to 68.3.

Concordia St. Paul, which lost its opener 79-70 to Clarke on Nov. 17, has three starters back from last year's 12-14 team. They are 6-6 senior forward Isaiah Thomas (10.3 ppg, 4.2 rpg), 6-1 sophomore guard Terez Van Pelt (8.1 ppg), who scored 39 points in a 109-101 double overtime exhibition win against Wisconsin-River Falls, and 6-5 sophomore guard Cole Olstad.

Two Division I transfers expected to make big contributions for the Golden Bears, coached by Kelly Boe (7th year, 91-76), are 6-0 sophomore guard DJ Lewis from New Mexico State and 6-9 senior center Nick Mabbutt from South Dakota.

Southwest Baptist is off to a 1-4 start for coach Jeff Guiot (9th year,158-87). A talented transfer for the Bearcats is 6-7 junior forward Jaywuan Hill (11.6 ppg) from Trinity Valley College. Heading the returnees is 5-11 sophomore guard Preston Guiot (8.4 ppg, 4.5 apg).

Alaska Fairbanks, 4-1, returns three starters for second-year head coach Mick Durham. They are 6-2 senior guard Dominique Brinson (13.6 ppg), 6-11 junior center Sergej Pucar (11.8 ppg, 7.8 rpg), and 6-7 junior forward Stefan Tico (12.4 ppg), who earned all-tournament honors at the Alaska Anchorage A&T Jamboree two weeks ago.

The Nanooks also have three talented transfers in 6-5 senior forward Zach Ngawaka (6.6 ppg, 7.2 rpg) from BYU-Hawaii, 5-11 junior guard Pat Voeut (14.0 ppg, 5.4 apg), who earned all-region honors at Whatcom CC, and 6-3 junior guard Ronnie Baker from Diablo Valley CC.

THREE-DOT NOTES: WWU's two-season win streak is nine ... The Vikings received on first-place vote in the NABC Preseason Top 25 ... WWU was picked No.8 nationally in the Division II Bulletin preseason poll ... The Vikings will host Simon Fraser, the NCAA's first international member, in a nationally televised game on the CBS Sports Network (CBSSports.com) on March 2 (7 p.m.)

PRE-SEASON HONORS: John Allen was picked as the Great Northwest Athletic Conference preseason Player of the Year and was a Division II Bulletin Super 16 pick. Besides Allen, Paul Jones and Richard Woodworth were named to the GNAC preseason all-conference team.

TOUGH EXHIBITIONS: The Vikings accounted well for themselves in a pair of road exhibition games against NCAA I opponents. They lost 88-78 at Washington on Oct. 24 and fell 105-87 at Duke, ranked No.8 in the Associated Press Preseason Poll, on Oct. 27. WWU trailed by just two points, 74-72, against Washington with 4:30 to play, and versus Duke was within 11, 69-58, with 13:58 to go and 14, 99-85, with 2:13 remaining. The 18-point margin was the closest any defending DII national championship team had gotten to Duke since the Blue Devils began inviting those squads for exhibitions six years ago. In the combined second half of the games with Washington and Duke, the Vikings trailed by just four points. John Allen and Chris Mitchell each scored a team-high 17 points against Washington and Paul Jones added 15. Jones led the Vikings versus Duke with 20 points, 14 in the second half. Allen had 17, Woodworth 13 and Rico Wilkins added 12 off the bench.

COACH DOMINGUEZ: Tony Dominguez is in his first season as head coach at WWU after being ssociate head coach previous two seasons and assistant 17 years overall, all at WWU. During that stretch, the Vikings posted a 317-165 (.658) record, made six regional appearances and won five conference championships. WWU took the NCAA II national crown in 2012, winning a school record 31 games, and reached the national semifinals in 2001. As an assistant, Dominguez was responsible for coordinating scheduling, scouting and budgeting. He played a major role in the recruiting classes of past 12 seasons. Those teams had a winning percentage of .711 (246-100).

RADIO BROADCASTS: Selected WWU games are being broadcast this season on KBAI Radio (930 AM) with Doug Lange handling the play-by-play and Mark Scholten providing the color commentary. They also can be heard on the internet at www.wwuvikings.com.

ON THE WEB: All Viking home games are being video streamed live and are available free at http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/wwu.portal#. For up-to-date statistics, box scores of every game, records, stories, etc., see the WWU Athletic web page at www.wwuvikings.com. Up-to-date league standings and statistics can be found on the Great Northwest Athletic Conference web page at www.gnacsports.com.

PROBABLE WESTERN STARTERS & TOP RESERVES:

G Richard Woodworth, 6-3, **Jr., Bellevue, WA/Newport
G John Allen, 6-1, **Sr., Brier, WA/Mountlake Terrace/WSU
C Chris Mitchell, 6-9, ***Sr., Everson, WA/Nooksack Valley
F Austin Bragg, 6-9, Jr., JC, Longview, WA/Mark Morris/Clark CC
F Paul Jones, 6-4, *Sr., Kent, WA/Kent-Meridian/Whatcom CC

G Rico Wilkins, 6-0, *Sr., Dallas, TX/DeSoto/Yakima Valley CC
G Cameron Severson, 6-5, ***Sr., Petersburg, AK/Petersburg
F Anye Turner, 6-7, So., JC, Tumwater, WA/Black Hills/South Puget Sound CC
*letters

GAME SUMMARIES:

Oct. 24 - Washington 88, WWU 78 at Seattle (Exhibition)

Aided by 17 points apiece from Allen and Mitchell, WWU stayed close until the final moments before falling to Washington, 88-78, in an exhibition at Alaska Airlines Arena on the UW campus. Guard C.J. Wilcox had a game-high 21 points and added seven rebounds for the Huskies, who pulled away after leading by just two, 74-72, with 4:30 to play. The Vikings trailed by nine, 46-37, at halftime, and by 13, 52-39, less than 90 seconds into the second half, but hit six of their first seven shots from the field after halftime and narrowed the margin to four, 55-51, on a Mitchell 3-pointer with 15:37 to play. WWU eventually tied the game at 65 on an Bragg jumper with 9:58 remaining, and had the game tied two more times after that. The Vikings had four different shots, all three-pointers, in the second half that would have put them in front, but none of them fell. Washington eventually took the lead for good, 71-69, on two Abdul Gaddy free throws with 6:44 remaining, but didn't pull away until going on a 12-3 run to take an 86-75 advantage with 1:15 to play. Jones had 15 points for WWU, which shot 48.5 percent (16-of-33) from the field in the second half. Bragg added eight points and a team-high 10 rebounds. Gaddy and guard Andrew Andrews each had 14 points for the Huskies, and guard Scott Suggs added 13 points. UW was 32-of-41 (85.2 percent) on free throws. WWU jumped to a 6-0 lead in the first 2:14, but the Huskies rallied to grab a 10-8 lead with 13:41 left in the first half and never trailed again, eventually leading by as much as 12 in the period.

Oct. 27 - Duke 105, WWU 87 at Durham, NC (Exhibition)

Despite 20 points from Jones, WWU fell to Duke, 105-87, in an exhibition at historic Cameron Indoor Stadium. Center Mason Plumlee tied for game-high honors with forward Ryan Kelly, each having 22 points for the Blue Devils, ranked No.8 in the AP NCAA I Pre-season Poll. Plumlee also had a game-high 11 rebounds. Freshman guard Rasheed Sulaimon scored 20 points, 15 in the first half. Allen had 17 points for the Vikings and Woodworth added 13. Wilkins had 12, all in the first half. The Blue Devils never trailed, and took the lead for good with 10 straight points that turned a 7-7 tie just over two minutes into the contest into a 17-7 lead 1:40 later. Suliamon had seven of Duke's first 17 points, and Kelly added six. WWU closed to within seven, at 39-32, with 6:24 left in the half, but after a Duke timeout, the Blue Devils ran off 13 consecutive points and the margin was and the margin was double digits the rest of the way. The Vikings shot just 37.2 percent (16-of-43) from the field in the first half, but found the range in the second half at 54.1 percent (20-of-37). Jones was key in that, scoring 16 points in the period on 8-of-10 shooting after being just 2-of-7 in the first half. Guard Quinn Cook and forward Amile Jefferson each had 13 points for Duke, which shot 57.6 percent (24-of-59) from the field, and made 31-of-40 free throws (77.5 percent).

Nov. 9 - WWU 100, Multnomah 44 at Bellingham

First-year head coach Tony Dominguez had a winning debut as WWU rolled over Multnomah,100-44, in its season and home opener at Carver Gym. The contest was an exhibition for Multnomah, which entered with a 1-4 record. The Vikings had five players score in double-figures, led by the game-high 18 points of Jones. Allen had 17, Wilkins14 and Bragg and and Severson 10 each. Allen also had eight assists. Forward David Walker led Multnomah with 14 points. WWU held the Lions to 30.2 percent (13-of-43) field-goal shooting and 20.0 percent (5-of-25) from 3-point range. The Vikings forced 21 turnovers and had a 45-16 rebound advantage. WWU shot 58.8 percent (40-of-68) from the floor and was 11-of -21 from beyond the arc with Wilkins hitting four 3-pointers and Allen three. WWU tallied the first 12 points of the game over a span of 4:28 with five different players scoring. The Vikings led 40-9 with 6:58 to go in the first half and had a 44-15 lead at halftime. Multnomah never got closer than 27, 44-17 with 18:38 remaining, and WWU's biggest lead was 57, 98-41, with 47 seconds left. The win was the 11th straight in home openers for the Vikings and it was their fifth consecutive season-opening victory.

Nov. 12 - WWU 84, BYU-Hawaii 78 at Laie, HI

Bragg and Jones combined for 38 points and 19 rebounds as WWU defeated BYU-Hawaii, 84-78, in a West Region match-up at the Cannon Activities Center on the BYUH campus. The Vikings improved to 2-0. The game was the season opener for BYUH. Bragg had 19 points, 15 in the second half, and 10 rebounds. Jones also finished with 19 points on 8-of-12 field-goal shooting and grabbed nine rebounds. WWU's Allen scored 17 points, 16 of them in the second period. Woodworth and reserve Wilkins each had 10, all of Wilkins' points coming in the first half. BYUH got a game-high 27 points from transfer center DeAndre Medlock. Bracken Funk had 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Seasiders, and Okesene Ale contributed 12 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. WWU trailed by as many as 10 points, 33-23, with 5:42 left in the first period, but rallied with a 13-5 run for a 38-38 tie at halftime. Allen hit two 3-pointers and Bragg one in a 9-2 run that gave the Vikings a 57-49 lead six minutes into the second half. They led by as many as nine points on three occasions, the last at 68-59 with 8:18 to go. BYUH came back, three times getting as close as two, the last at 77-75 with 1:47 left. The only scoring after that came at the free-throw line with WWU hitting 7-of-8, four of them by Bragg, and BYUH 3-of-4.

Nov. 14 - WWU 93, Chaminade 83 at Honolulu, HI

WWU had five players score 15 or more points as it defeated Chaminade, 93-83, in a West Region contest at McCabe Gym on the CU campus. The Vikings stayed unbeaten at 3-0. The loss was the first in three games for Chaminade.The Vikings were led by Jones with 20 points. Mitchell and Bragg each had double-doubles in points and rebounds. Mitchell contributed 17 points and grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds, and Bragg had 15 points, 13 in the second half, and 10 rebounds. WWU also got 17 points each off the bench from Wilkins and Severson. WWU shot well, hitting 52.4 percent from the field (33-of-63), 40.0 percent from 3-point range (8-of-20) and 76.0 percent at the free throw line (19-of-25). Leading Chaminade with 17 points apiece were Lee Bailey and Bennie Murray. The Silverswords hit just 40.0 percent (30-of-75) from the floor, including 26.7 percent (8-of-30) from beyond the arc and 48.4 percent (15-of-31) at the charity stripe. WWU went out to a 16-6 lead in the first 5:24 and held that same 10-point margin, 50-40, at halftime. Severson had 14 points in that period and Wilkins 13. The Vikings scored the first eight points of the second half for a 58-40 lead. They were still up by 18, 72-54, with 9:55 remaining. Chaminade went on a 17-5 run to narrow the margin to six, 77-71, at the 5:25 mark, and were still within six, 80-74, with 3:10 to go. WWU then scored eight of the next nine points to go in front by 13, 88-75, with 1:16 left and held a double-digit lead the rest of the way.

Great Northwest Athletic Conference

2012-13 Men's Basketball Report Week 2 (Nov. 20, 2012)

		        Conference	All
	                W	L	W	L	H	A	N
Simon Fraser            0	0	4	0	4-0	0-0	0-0
Alaska Anchorage        0	0	4	0	4-0	0-0	0-0
Seattle Pacific         0	0	4	0	2-0	1-0	1-0
Western Washington      0	0	3	0	1-0	2-0	0-0
Alaska Fairbanks        0	0	4	1	3-0	0-0	1-1
Central Washington      0	0	3	1	0-0	1-0	2-1
Northwest Nazarene      0	0	2	1	1-0	1-1	0-0
Montana State Billings  0	0	2	1	1-1	0-0	1-0
Western Oregon          0	0	2	2	2-2	0-0	0-0
Saint Martin's          0	0	2	2	0-0	0-0	2-2

EXHIBITIONS: October: 24 - Western Washington 78 at Washington 88. 27 - Seattle Pacific 71 at Idaho 77; Western Washington 87 at Duke 105; Northwest Nazarene 45 at Gonzaga 93. 31 - MSU Billings 81 at Rocky Mountain 77. November: 1 - Northwest Christian 51 at Western Oregon 62. 2 - Saint Martin's 55 at Boise State 75; Pacific Lutheran 48 at Seattle Pacific 72; Central Washington 75 at Idaho 92; Simon Fraser 36 at Utah 71. 3 - Simon Fraser 56 at Utah State 92; MSU Billings 91 at Carroll 72. 5 - Alaska Anchorage 57 at Troy 61. 8 - Northwest Nazarene 63 at College of Idaho 50. 12 - Saint Martin's 66 at Evergreen State 50.

LAST WEEK: Monday - Western Washington 84 at BYU-Hawaii 78; Douglas 45 at Simon Fraser 115. Wednesday - Western Washington 93 at Chaminade 83; Capilano 48 at Simon Fraser 77. Thursday - Washington Adventist 58 at Alaska Anchorage 71; UAF GCI Invitational (Alaska Fairbanks 80, CSU Monterey Bay 73). Friday - UAF GCI Invitational (Alaska Fairbanks 77, Oklahoma Panhandle 54); BYU GNAC/PacWest Challenge (Seattle Pacific 73, Hawaii Pacific 53; Central Washington 88, BYU-Hawaii 83); Dixie State 90 at MSU Billings 77; Northwest Nazarene 75 at Azusa Pacific 97; WOU Phoenix Inn Shootout (Emporia State 64, Saint Martin's 56; Western Oregon 73, Notre Dame De Namur 51). Saturday - Washington Adventist 56 at Alaska Anchorage 87; UAF GCI Invitational (Alaska Fairbanks 85, Colorado Christian 72); BYU GNAC/PacWest Challenge (Central Washington 88, Hawaii Pacific 81; Seattle Pacific 71, BYU-Hawaii 54); Northwest Nazarene 53 at Point Loma 36; WOU Phoenix Inn Shootout (Saint Martin's 61, Notre Dame de Namur 45; Western Oregon 65, Emporia State 60).

UPCOMING: Monday - Hawaii Hilo Invitational (MSU Billings 67, Western New Mexico 61). Tuesday - Hawaii Hilo Invitational (Hawaii Hilo vs. MSU Billings, 7:30 p.m.); Northwest Christian at Saint Martin's, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday - UAA Great Alaska Shootout (Belmont vs. Alaska Anchorage, 10 p.m.); Hawaii Hilo Invitational (Maryville vs. MSU Billings, 5 p.m.) Friday - UAA Great Alaska Shootout (UC Riverside or Northeastern vs. Alaska Anchorage, noon or 5:30 p.m.); WWU Chuck Randall Thanksgiving Classic (Southwest Baptist vs. Alaska Fairbanks, 2:30 p.m.; Concordia, Minn. vs. Western Washington, 7:30 p.m.); MSU Billings at BYU-Hawaii, 7:30 p.m.; Grand Canyon Invitational (Grand Canyon vs. Northwest Nazarene, 5 p.m.); Chico State Mac Martin (San Francisco State vs. Seattle Pacific, 5:30 p.m.); Corban Capital City (Carroll vs. Western Oregon, 5 p.m.); Notre Dame de Namur Classic (Simon Fraser vs. Fresno Pacific, 5 p.m.). Saturday - UAA Great Alaska Shootout (Alaska Anchorage); WWU Chuck Randall Thanksgiving Classic (Concordia, Minn. vs. Alaska Fairbanks, 3 p.m.; Southwest Baptist vs. Western Washington, 5 p.m.); Grand Canyon Invitational (Northwest Nazarene vs. Academy of Art, 7:15 p.m.); Chico State Mac Martin (Chico State vs. Seattle Pacific, 7:30 p.m.); Corban Capital City (Western Oregon vs. Corban or Willamette, 2:30 or 7:30 p.m.); Notre Dame de Namur Classic (Simon Fraser vs. Notre Dame de Namur, 7 p.m.). Monday (Nov. 26) - Walla Walla at Central Washington.

ALL-TOURNAMENT: SPU (Nov. 9-10) - David Downs, SPU; (MVP) Jobi Wall, SPU; Mark McLaughlin, CWU. UAA (Nov. 9-10) - Teancum Stafford, UAA (MVP); Kyle Fossman, UAA; Liam Gibcus, UAA; Stefan Tica, UAF. BYU Hawaii (Nov. 16-17) - David Downs, SPU; Mark McLaughlin, CWU; Patrick Simon, SPU. UAF (Nov. 16-17) - Pat Voeut, UAF (MVP); Stefan Tica, UAF; Sergej Pucar, UAF.

GNAC RED LION PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Pat Voeut, Alaska Fairbanks (G, 5-11, Jr., Bellingham, WA - Whatcom CC) scored 46 points and also had 19 assists, nine rebounds and five steals leading the Nanooks to the team title in the GCI Alaska Invitational at Fairbanks. Voeut, who was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, made 17 of 26 shots, including three of six three-pointers. Honorable Mention - Paul Jones, Western Washington; Kyle Fossman, Alaska Anchorage; Rodney Webster, Western Oregon.

IMPRESSIVE WEEK FOR THE GNAC: GNAC teams posted an impressive 17-3 record last week, including 9-2 against PacWest Conference opponents. Seattle Pacific, Western Washington and Central Washington all came back from Hawaii with two victories, including one each against BYU-Hawaii. Alaska Fairbanks' win Thursday over Cal State Monterey Bay was the only contest of the week matching GNAC and CCAA opponents. Including MSU Billings' win over Western New Mexico Monday, GNAC teams have combined for an impressive 30-8 record (.789).

TEAM NOTES

Alaska Anchorage: Kyle Fossman missed just one shot - from three-point distance - in scoring 35 points to lead the Seawolves to two wins over NCAA Division II independent Washington Adventist. Fossman made 10 of 11 field goal attempts (6 of 7 from the three-point line) and all nine of his free thrown attempts. He also had seven rebounds, six assists and three steals. UAA, which also got 24 points from Liam Gibcus, 22 from Abebe Demissie and 21 from Colton Lauwers, outshot the visitors .545 to .295 in the two contests.

Alaska Fairbanks: Pat Voeut scored 18 points and had eight assists in a 85-72 win over Colorado Christian Saturday earning the Nanooks the title in the GCI Alaska Invitational. It marked the first time the Nanooks had won a home tournament since the 2002 BP Top of the World Classic. Joining MVP Voeut on the all-tournament team were Stefan Tica and Sergej Pucar. Both players had 39 points and made eight three pointers (Tica in 16 attempts and Pucar in 14 attempts) in the three-game event. Pucar also had 23 rebounds, seven assists and five steals, while Tica had 10 rebounds and a team-high four block shots. Andrew Kelly had team-highs of 25 rebounds and 11 steals.

Central Washington: Mark McLaughlin scored 48 points to lead Central Washington to wins over BYU-Hawaii (88-82) and Hawaii Pacific (88-81). McLaughlin, who earned his second all-tournament award of the season, converted on 16 of 31 shots and all 15 of his foul shots. CWU's win over BYUH was its first-ever victory over the Seasiders in Laie, but not in Hawaii. CWU had won just one of its previous eight games all-time at the facility -- a neutral-site win over Hawaii Pacific during the 2006-07 season -- and the Wildcats had been winless in five previous road contests all-time versus BYUH. The Wildcats did beat BYUH in Honolulu in the 1999 PacWest Conference playoffs.

Montana State Billings: Omar McDade and Sam Johnson each scored 17 points and Danny Desin netted 15 points in the Yellowjackets' lone game of the week before heading to Hawaii for a trio of contests in the Hawaii Hilo Invitational. Dixie shot a blistering 70.9 percent from the field (39-55) in their victory. MSUB, shot a respectable, 47.3, including 16 of 34 (47.1) from the three-point line. Desin made five of six from the arc and McDade was four of six from the three-point line.

Northwest Nazarene: Kenny Jones scored 28 points and Jonathan Hawkins had 22 points and 10 rebounds as the Crusaders split a pair of games in southern California, losing by 22 at Azusa Pacific (97-75) before winning by 17 at Point Loma Nazarene (53-36).

Saint Martin's: Roger O'Neill scored 34 points, two-thirds of them from the arc where he made seven of 12 shots, as the Saints earned a split two games in the WOU Phoenix Inn Shootout, losing to Emporia State 64-56 before defeating Notre Dame de Namur 61-45. SMU also got 24 points from Evan Coulter and 18 points and 16 rebounds from Rei Jensen.

Seattle Pacific: David Downs earned his second MVP award in two weeks at the GNAC/PacWest Challenge at Laie, Hawaii. Downs had 26 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds as the Falcons posted double-digit victories over Hawaii Pacific (73-53) and BYU-Hawaii (71-54). Joining Downs on the all-tournament team was Patrick Simon, who made seven of 11 three-pointers, and had a team-high 28 points. The Falcons, who also got 23 points from Riley Stockton, 22 from Jobi Wall and 20 from Andy Poling, outrebounded Hawaii Pacific and BYU-Hawaii by a combined 81-49 margin.

Simon Fraser: David Gebru led Simon Fraser with 37 points and also had 13 rebounds in lopsided wins over Douglas and Capilano. Gebru made 17 of 28 field goal attempts and also blocked seven shots. Ibrahim Appiah led SFU on the backboards with 21 caroms.

Western Oregon: Guards Rodney Webster and Devon Alexander scored 28 and 25 points, respectively, as the Wolves posted wins over Notre Dame de Namur (73-51) and Emporia State (75-60). Three other players - Jordan Wiley, Andy Avgi and James Gehring - each had 21 points as WOU evened its record at 2-2.

Western Washington: Paul Jones scored 39 points to lead the Vikings to road wins at BYU-Hawaii and Chaminade. Jones made two-thirds of his field goal attempts (14-21) and didn't miss either a three-pointer (3-3) or foul shot (8-8). Jones also had 14 rebounds and a team-high four steals. The Vikings also got 34 points and 20 rebounds from Clark CC transfer Austin Bragg in running their two-season win streak to nine games.

GNAC DRAWS A BLANK AGAINST D-1: GNAC teams were winless in nine exhibition games with Division I schools. Only two of the games were decided by single digits - Alaska Anchorage's four-point loss to Troy and Seattle Pacific's six-point loss at Idaho. Western Washington lost by just 10 at UW. GNAC teams were unbeaten in six other exhibition games. Exhibition Records (6-9): Montana State Billings 2-0, Western Oregon 1-0, Seattle Pacific 1-1, Northwest Nazarene 1-1, Saint Martin's 1-1, Central Washington 0-1, Alaska Anchorage 0-1, Simon Fraser 0-2, Western Washington 0-2.

PREVIOUS RED LION PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Week of Nov. 5-11: David Downs, Seattle Pacific (G, 6-2, Jr., Kirkland, WA - Bellevue Christian) was named the Most Valuable Player leading the Falcons to the team title in Sodexo Tip Off Classic at Brougham Pavilion. Downs scored 31 points and also had a team-high nine assists as SPU debuted with 20- and 19-point victories. Downs made eight of 14 shots, including four of eight treys. He also led SPU with three steals and had just two turnovers.

GNAC TEAMS OF THE WEEK: Aug. 27-Sept. 2 - Montana State Billings (Women's Soccer). Sept. 3-9 - Western Washington (Volleyball). Sept. 10-16 - Northwest Nazarene (Men's Soccer). Sept. 17-23 - Central Washington (Volleyball). Sept. 24-30 - Central Washington (Football). Oct. 1-7 - Western Oregon (Women's Soccer). Oct. 8-14 - Simon Fraser (Men's Soccer). Oct. 15-21 - Alaska Anchorage (Men's & Women's Cross Country). Oct. 22-28 - Western Oregon (Volleyball). Oct. 29-Nov. 4 - Western Washington (Women's Soccer). Nov. 5-11 - Simon Fraser (Women's Basketball). Nov. 12-18 - Alaska Fairbanks (Men's Basketball).