THIS WEEK IN PACIFIC MEN'S BASKETBALL
PORTLAND BIBLE AT PACIFICGame No. 9 • Home Game No. 5
Mon., Dec. 29, 7 p.m., Stoller Center, Forest Grove
Live Stats & VideoPACIFIC AT PACIFIC LUTHERANGame No. 10 • Away Game No. 3
Fri., Jan. 2, 8 p.m., Olson Auditorium, Tacoma, Wash.
Live Stats & Video |
Live Audio (Matt Richert, Play-By-Play)
PLU Radio: KLAY-AM 1180 (Bob Robertson, Play-By-Play)
PACIFIC AT LINFIELDGame No. 11 • Away Game No. 4
Sat. Jan. 3, 6 p.m., Ted Wilson Gymnasium, McMinnville, Ore.
Live Stats |
Live Video |
Live Audio (Matt Richert, Play-By-Play)
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
PORTLAND BIBLE WILDCATSLocation: Portland, Ore.
Conference: Pacific Coast Athletic Conference (NCCAA Division II)
2014-15 Overall Record: 4-16
2014-15 Conference Record: 0-0
Head Coach: Mike Arnold
All-Time Series: Portland Bible leads 1-0
Last Meeting: Portland Bible won 111-99 at Forest Grove on Nov. 18, 2010
Portland Bible Notes• The Wildcats enter their game with Pacific on a four-game losing streak. Portland Bible lost all four games on their pre-Christmas road trip to Alaska to face the state's Division II teams. The Wildcats fell to Alaska-Anchorage 91-52 and 80-58 and dropped 88-74 and 62-59 decisions to Alaska.
• Guard Bryce Lane is the Wildcats' leading scorer, averaging 17 points per game while shooting 45 percent from the field and 80 percent from the free throw line. He scored 20 points and 13 points in the two games against Alaska.
• Three of Portland Bible's four wins have come against Northwest Conference teams. The Wildcats beat George Fox 83-81 on Dec. 3, downed Linfield 73-70 on Dec. 6 and knocked off Puget Sound 79-77 on Dec. 9.
PACIFIC LUTHERAN LUTESLocation: Tacoma, Wash.
Conference: Northwest (NCAA Division III)
2014-15 Overall Record: 2-7
2014-15 Conference Record: 0-0
Head Coach: Steve Dickerson
All-Time Series: Pacific Lutheran leads 62-33
Last Meeting: Pacific won 54-51 at Tacoma, Wash., on Feb. 14, 2014
Pacific Lutheran Notes• PLU is in the midst of a three-game losing streak and they have dropped six of their last seven. The Lutes dropped both games in the Trinity (Texas) Tournament on Dec. 19 and 20, losing to Schreiner 79-68 and Southwestern (Texas) 53-49. PLU's last victory came on Dec. 7, a 67-46 home victory over UC Santa Cruz.
• Brandon Lester is the Lutes' leading scorer, averaging 13 points per game and is shooting 41.5 percent from three-point range. Bryce Miller is the team's leading rebounder with an average of 7.7 boards per game.
• As a team, PLU is averaging 59 points and 32.2 rebounds per game and shoots 38.7 percent from the field. They are being outscored by an average of 7.7 points per game.
LINFIELD WILDCATSLocation: McMinnville, Ore.
Conference: Northwest (NCAA Division III)
2014-15 Overall Record: 2-7
2014-15 Conference Record: 0-0
Head Coach: Shanan Rosenberg
All-Time Series: Linfield leads 72-30
Last Meeting: Pacific won 81-55 at Forest Grove on Feb. 21, 2014
Linfield Notes• Linfield went into the Christmas break by snapping a five-game losing streak, scoring a 63-59 victory over Cornell (Iowa) on Dec. 22. It was their first victory since Nov. 22 and their first in four home games so far this season.
• Ryan Potter is Linfield's leading scorer, averaging 12.8 points per game and has shot 77.8 percent from the free throw line. Austin Murray and Mason Rodby share top rebounding honors, averaging 3.4 boards per game.
• Linfield enters the week averaging 63 points and 31.7 rebounds per game. Despite having no player average more than 3.4 boards per game, the Wildcats are are out-rebounding opponents by an average of two per game. Linfield is being outscored by 6.9 points per game.
PACIFIC NEWS & NOTES
A Career Day For Ahern: With
Danny Brakebush (So., Portland, Ore.) sitting out the Dec. 23 game against Cornell (Iowa),
Bobby Ahern (Jr., Madras, Ore.) used the opportunity to put together a career afternoon. Ahern was one of three Pacific players to score 12 points in the game, which established a new career high as did his four three-pointers, seven rebounds and four assists. After seeing limited action in his first two seasons with the Boxers, Ahern has flourished as a starter in three games and a relied upon guard in seven of the team's eight games. Ahern enters the week averaging 3.6 points and 2.7 rebounds per game. In addition to his career highs in points, rebounds and assists, Ahern has also established career highs in steals and blocks.
Continuing To Impress: Danny Brakebush continues to improve and continues to be consistent as he works his way towards his first conference season since 2012-13. Brakebush was selected as the NWC Men's Basketball Student-Athlete of the Week for the week of Dec. 8-14 following his 23-point performance to lift the Boxers to a 72-61 win at New Hope Christian on Dec. 16. He finished shooting 9 of 17 from the field and 5 of 9 from three-point range while pulling down six rebounds. Brakebush sat out the Dec. 23 game against Cornell (Iowa). The sophomore is excelling after missing all of the 2013-14 season with a knee injury. He enters the week leading the NWC with an average of 19.2 points per game. He also leads the league in free throws made (37), is tied for fifth in total points (118), ninth in free throw percentage (.804) and 10th in minutes per game (30). In the Dec. 21 NCAA Division III statistics report, Brakebush was ranked 56th in points per game.
Life Of Riley: Riley Grandinetti (Sr., Murray, Utah) is not only doing the job for Pacific in the scoring department, but also in terms of distribution. Grandinetti was one of three players to score 12 points in the victory over Cornell (Iowa) on Dec. 23, connecting on 4 of 8 from the field, all three-pointers. He also had five assists, marking the third time this season that he has had five or more assists this season. Grandinetti enters the week averaging 8.1 points per game and his 15 three-pointers made ties him with
Danny Brakebush for the team lead. Grandinetti's 29 assists ties him for third in the NWC and his assist-to-tunover ratio of 2.2 is tied for seventh. In addition, Grandinetti, who stands 5-foot-10, is tied for fourth in the NWC with five blocks.
Towing The Line: In his return after missing the 2013-14 season with an injury,
Marc Eppinger (Jr., Camas, Wash.) has proven the most potent from the free throw line. Eppinger was one of three players with 12 points against Cornell (Iowa), with eight of those points coming from the charity stripe. Eppinger enters thr week leading the Boxers and ranked third in the NWC with an .853 free throw percentage, having made 29 of 34. His 29 free throws made ranks eighth in the league. Eppinger has seen action in all eight games and has started three at small forward. He is the Boxers' fifth leading scorer, averaging 6.9 points per game, and is fourth in rebounding with an average of 4.6 boards per game.
Notes From The Last Two Games: Pacific posted season lows in both free throws attempted and made in their last two games. The Boxers went 4 for 8 at New Hope Christian and 8 for 10 against Cornell (Iowa)...The game against Cornell (Iowa) saw the first action of the season for junior transfer
Alex Bull (Oakland, Calif.) and freshman
Nate Olowo (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.)...Pacific led for all but four minutes in the victory over Cornell...The Boxers' eight turnovers against Cornell was their fewest their opener against Schreiner on Nov. 15, when they turned the ball over just five times.
Taking Care Of The Ball: Pacific continues to excel of taking care of the ball and making the most of every possession. The Boxers enter the week ranked second in the NWC with an average of 12.1 turnovers per game. Pacific was ranked 78th in the category in the Dec. 21 NCAA Division III stats report. Additionally, the Boxers were ranked 31st nationally in fewest turnovers.
A Low Foul Count: Along with taking care of the ball, Pacific succeeds in not getting fouls called against them. The Boxers lead the NWC in personal fouls, committing an average of 16.5 fouls per game. Pacific was ranked 81st in NCAA Division III in personal fouls per game and 36th in fewest fouls. Pacific has yet to see a player foul out this season after only four disqualifications in 2013-14.
Solid Defense: While Pacific is not scoring a ton of points (eighth in the NWC with 61.2 points per game), the Boxers are not letting their opponents score much either. Pacific enters the week leading the NWC in points allowed, giving up 59.2 points per game. They were also ranked 30th in Division III in scoring defense, having allowed 60 points per game as of Dec. 21. Pacific leads the NWC in opponent three-point percentage at .302 and second in opponent field goal percentage at .410.
Homegrown: The Pacific roster this year features a welcomed rarity in the form of a homegrown player.Â
Michael Garcia (Fr., Forest Grove, Ore.) made the decision to play at Pacific after a standout career at Forest Grove High School. A three-time All-Pacific Conference selection as a point guard, Garcia averaged 14.6 points and 2.2 steals per game as a senior. In his junior campaign, Garcia averaged 18.1 points, 3.4 assists and 2.4 steals contest. "I knew Michael was a very good player, but he has really exceeded my expectations," head coach
Tim Cleary said. "He will go through his growing pains, but he has done a really good job of jumping right in and asserting himself in the system and our program."
One Away From 50: Head coach
Tim Cleary needs one victory to become just the third Pacific men's basketball coach to win 50 or more games. Cleary enters the week with a 49-59 record in four-plus seasons. He entered the 2014-15 season having put together Pacific's first back-to-back winning seasons since the mid 1990s. His 16 victories in 2013-14 are the most for a Pacific basketball team since the 1999-2000 team had 16 wins on their way to a NCAA Division III appearance.
Portland Metro Small College Hoops Podcast: For the third year, Pacific head coach
Tim Cleary will be one of four Portland-area small college coaches featured on a weekly podcast hosted by Greg Crawford. The Portland Metro Small College Hoops Show airs each Sunday night at 9:30 p.m. The show regularly features Cleary, Lewis & Clack coach Dinare Foreman, Concordia (Ore.) coach Brad Barbarick, Multnomah coach Curt Bickley and Clackamas CC coach Clif Wegner. To listen to the podcast, visit
http://bit.ly/1x4RjqG.
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