Men's Basketball Weekly Notebook
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THIS WEEK IN PACIFIC MEN'S BASKETBALL
SIMPSON (CALIF.) AT PACIFIC
Game No. 5/Home Game No. 2
Wed., Nov. 28, 7 p.m., Stoller Center, Forest Grove
Live Stats:
www.goboxers.com/livestats
Live Video:
www.goboxers.com/webcasts
PACIFIC AT WALLA WALLA
Game No. 6/Away Game No. 1
Sun., Dec. 2, 3 p.m., Winter Education Complex, College Place, Wash.
NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE CONTINUES WITH NAIA FOES
The Pacific men's basketball team flew home happy on Sunday after sweeping their games in the Surf's Up Classic in Honolulu over Whittier and Cal Lutheran. The Boxers now turn their attention from Division III competition to NAIA foes this week, hosting Simpson (Calif.) for the first time on Wednesday before traveling east on Sunday to take on Walla Walla.
BOXER BYTES
• Pacific came back from a 14-point first half deficit to force overtime before
Coby Proctor won it with a lay-in and free throw in the final 30 seconds as the Boxers wrote off Whittier 74-72.
Danny Brakebush led the Boxers with 18 points, all off of three-pointers.
• After leading for much of the contest on Saturday, Pacific had to hold off a late surge by Cal Lutheran to beat the Kingsmen 73-70.
Danny Brakebush led all scorers with 25 points, including two free throws with four seconds left to seal the deal. The Boxers finished the game shooting 55.1 percent from the field.
• Thanks to his two big efforts on the Hawaii road trip,
Danny Brakebush leads the Boxers and is ranked seventh in the NWC with an average of 14.2 points per game. He also ranks fifth in the NWC in field goal percentage and 10th in three-point percentage.
• Pacific continues to improve on the boards, ranking fourth in the NWC with 41.8 rebounds per game. The Boxers rank three players in the NWC's top-10 in rebounding, led by
Dustin Bowser, who is ranked third with 7.8 per game.
• Pacific also enters the week as one of the top defensive teams in the NWC, limiting opponents to 38.7 percent from the field (ranking second) and 33.3 percent from three-point range (ranking third).
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
SIMPSON (CALIF.)
The Redhawks, NAIA Division II members of the California Pacific Conference, enters the week with a 2-7 record. Simpson will play at Northwest Christian on Tuesday before facing the Boxers on Wednesday. Simpson has not played since Nov. 17 when they took an 87-84 loss at Multnomah. The Redhawks led at halftime, but saw Multnomah come back to tie the game late in the second half and win it with a three-pointer by Steve Bustrin with three seconds left. Ian Corella led the Redhawks with 26 points and nine rebounds. Pacific is the only NWC team that Simpson will face all season, which includes a Dec. 17 game in Redding, Calif. Guy Varsek leads Simpson with averages of 16.8 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. He has connected on 41.5 percent of his shots from the field, while Corella is hitting 49.3 percent. As a team, Simpson is averaging 68.1 points per game, 38.8 percent from the field, 29.3 percent from three-points range, 62.4 percent from the free throw line and 35.8 rebounds per game. Matt Thacker is the Simpson head coach.
ALL-TIME SERIES: First Meeting
AGAINST CLEARY: First Meeting
WALLA WALLA
The Wolves, a NAIA Division II independent, enter the week with a 0-11 record. Walla Walla dropped both of their games over the Thanksgiving week, losing 82-57 to Eastern Oregon on Tuesday and 72-59 to Northwest (Wash.) on Saturday. The Wolves were limited to 38.2 percent from the field in their loss to the Mountaineers and rebounded to connect on 48.8 percent from the field and 53.3 percent from three-point range in Saturday's loss to the Eagles. Tristan Greenidge leads the Walla Walla offense, averaging 11.1 points per game and has shot 39.5 percent from three-point range. Miguel Martinez is the Wolves' leading rebounder, averaging 6.3 per game. As a team, the Wolves are avaeraging 51.4 points and 35.8 rebounds per game. They are shooting 37.3 percent from the field, 27.7 percent from three-point range and 59.7 percent from the free throw line. Jimmy Hill is Walla Walla's head coach.
ALL-TIME SERIES: Pacific leads 2-0
AGAINST CLEARY: Pacific leads 2-0
LAST MEETING: Pacific won 63-61 at College Place, Wash., on Dec. 15, 2011
PACIFIC NEWS & NOTES
BRAKEBUSH BREAKS OUT: After keeping a fairly quiet profile in the Boxers' first two counting games of the season,
Danny Brakebush (Fr., Portland, Ore.) posted a pair of breakout games off the bench to lead the Boxers in their two games in Hawaii. Brakebush averaged 21.5 points in the Surf's Up Classic, connecting on 60 percent of his shots from the field (15-25) and 52.9 percent from three-point range (9-17). He scored 18 points in Friday's victory over Whittier with all of his points coming on six three-pointers. He then posted a Pacific season-high 25 points against Cal Lutheran on Saturday, hitting 9 of 12 from the field, 3 of 4 from three-point range and 4 of 6 from the free throw line. He also hit two key free throws with four seconds left to seal the victory for the Boxers. Brakebush, a 2012 Oregon 6A All-State First Team selection, leads the Boxers in scoring and is ranked seventh in the NWC with an average of 14.2 points per game. He ranks second for the Boxers and fifth in the NWC with his .559 field goal percentage. He leads the team and is ranked 10th in the NWC with a .478 three-point percentage.
STEADY ON THE BLOCKS: With the increased point presence across the board for the Boxers, the contributions of
Dustin Bowser (Sr., Bellingham, Wash.) have paid big dividends. Bowser averaged 11.5 points and 9.5 rebounds in the two games at the Surf's Up Classic and made an amazing 76.9 percent of his shots (10-13). Bowser posted Pacific's first double-double of the season Friday, finishing with 12 points and 14 rebounds in the victory over Whittier, connecting on 6 of 7 shots from the field. He then added 11 points on 4 of 6 shooting in Saturday's win over Cal Lutheran. Bowser enters the week leading the Boxers and ranking second in the NWC with his .609 field goal percentage (14-23) and ranks third in the league with his average of 7.8 rebounds per game. He also ranks second in the NWC with 23 defensive rebounds and is tied for third with seven steals and four blocks.
WESTER KEEPS PACE: Colin Wester's (Sr., Sherwood, Ore.) role as one of the Boxers' floor leaders continues to be important for the team's success. Wester played more a supporting role instead of lead scorer for the Boxers in Hawaii, averaging 9.5 points in the two games while pulling down 17 rebounds and dishing out eight assists. Wester scored the majority of his points in Friday's win over Whittier, scoring 13 to go along with nine rebounds and two assists. Wester scored just six points against Cal Lutheran, but finished up with eight rebounds and six assists. Wester is in his fourth year as a starter and was a Honorable Mention All-NWC selection last year. He enters the week ranked fourth in the NWC with 126 minutes played and is tied for fourth with 52 points. He is tied for ninth in the league in rebounding with six per game and is tied for sixth with his 13 assists.
ATHLETIC POST PRESENCE: The presence of
Daniel Zitani (Jr., Oakland, Calif.) has provided the Boxers with an athletic post presence that Pacific has not seen in the position in some time. With the ability to not only post up, but be versatile in handling the ball, Zitani has earned his way into the starting lineup in the Boxers' last three games and is averaging seven points and five rebounds per game. He enters the week tied for third in the NWC with 10 offensive rebounds and seventh with his three blocks. Zitani just missed a double-double in Friday's win over Whittier, scoring eight points to go along with nine rebounds, two blocks and three steals. Seven of his rebounds came on the offensive glass.
CHUCKIN' IT AROUND: While he has not been in the starting lineup for the last three games, the importance of
Charles Mosley (Sr., Hillsboro, Ore.) to the Boxers has not diminished. The senior has flourished off the bench, averaging 8.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in the two Hawaii games. Mosley posted a double-double of 10 points and 15 rebounds, which included eight offensive boards, in Friday's win over Whittier. He added seven points in Saturday's win over Cal Lutheran. Mosley is one of three Pacific players to rank in the NWC's top-10 in rebounding, ranking seventh with his average of seven per game. He leads the conference with 11 offensive rebounds. In addition, Mosley ranks in a tie for ninth with 107 minutes played this season.
CHAIRMEN OF THE BOARDS: With the increased height the Boxers have on the front line, their ability to rebound has enhanced. Pacific enters the week ranked fourth in the NWC with an average of 37.8 rebounds per game and their rebounding margin of +7.8 is second best in the league. The Boxers are outrebounding opponents by an average of 10.3 boards per game and have yet to be outrebounded by an opponent this season. Three Pacific players rank in the conference's top-10 in rebounding average.
Dustin Bowser ranks third with his average of 7.8 rebounds per game.
Charles Mosley ranks seventh with seven rebounds per game and
Colin Wester is ninth with six rebounds per game. In terms of offensive rebounding, Pacific owns a 54-38 margin over their four opponents. Mosley is tied for first in the NWC with his 11 offensive rebounds while
Daniel Zitani is tied for third with 10. Bowser is tied for eighth with eight offensive boards.
STAYING ON TARGET: Pacific has made relatively few shot attempts as compared to their NWC opponents, but they are making the most of their opportunities. The Boxers enter the week ranked second in the NWC with a .460 field goal percentage despite ranking sixth in the league with an average of 56 attempts per game.
Dustin Bowser ranks as one of the most accurate individual shooters in the league, ranking second with a .609 field goal percentage (14-23).
Danny Brakebush ranks fifth in the league, shooting 55.9 percent (19-34).
A RECORD SHOOTING NIGHT: It wasn't until after the Nov. 17 home game against La Verne was in the books that anyone realized how well Pacific shot in their home opener. The Boxers finished shooting a single game record 69.2 percent from the field, connecting on 27 of 39 shots. That performance surpassed the record 68.9 percent set against Whitman back on Jan. 24, 1987. Pacific made 13 of 22 in the first half (59.1 percent), but ended up nearly perfect in the second half as the Boxers shot 82.4 percent (14-17). The Boxers also finished the night going 5 of 9 from three-point range.
ALL HOME GAMES TO BE VIDEO STREAMED: For the first time, Pacific will provide a live video stream of all 10 home men's basketball games as well as all 10 home women's basketball games. The stream can be accessed by visiting goboxers.com/webcasts. The stream for non-conference games will be provided without play-by-play audio. Matt Richert will return to the microphone to play descriptions for the Boxers' Northwest Conference contests this season.
CLEARY APPEARING ON WEEKLY SMALL COLLEGE HOOPS PODCAST: Head Coach
Tim Cleary will be one of five coaches to be regularly featured on a new Portland small college basketball podcast hosted by Comcast SportsNet NW hoops analyst Greg Crawford. The Portland Metro Small College Hoops podcast runs live every Sunday night at 8:30 p.m. the live stream and archived podcasts can be accessed at
www.blogtalkradio.com/smallcollegehoops.
PACIFIC PICKED EIGHTH IN NWC PRESEASON POLL: Northwest Conference coaches have picked Pacific to finish eighth in the league this season according to results of the annual coaches poll, released on Monday. The Boxers received 20 of a possible 80 votes in the poll, finishing seven points of ahead of Willamette, who was selected ninth. Linfield was selected seventh with 22 points while George Fox is four points ahead of the Boxers, picked to finish sixth. Whitworth was picked to win their fourth consecutive NWC title, gaining seven first place votes and a total of 70 points. Whitman is selected to finish second with 54 points, including two first place votes.
