Overall 3-7: Home 1-3, Road 0-2, Neutral 2-2 /
NWC 0-2: Home 0-2, Road 0-0
HIGHLIGHTS:
* Last Week: Bruins Drop NWC Openers at Home to UPS and PLU
* Coming Up: Three-Game Week Includes First Two NWC Road Games
* Szalay Nominated for NWC "Player of the Week"
* Bruins' Starting Five All Scoring in Double Figures
* NCAA, NWC Stats: Bruins Among National Leaders in 3-Pt FG Pct.
THIS WEEK (Previews below):
Tue., Jan. 13, 8:00 pm - vs. Pacific University Boxers (2-6, 0-1), Newberg, Ore. (NWC DH)
Fri., Jan. 16, 8:00 pm - at Lewis & Clark College Pioneers (7-3, 0-1), Portland, Ore. (NWC DH)
Sat., Jan. 17, 8:00 pm - at Linfield College Wildcats (6-4, 1-0), McMinnville, Ore. (NWC DH)
(DH - GFU women's game at 6:00 pm)
LAST WEEK: 0-2 (Click score for link to story):
Jan. 9 - Puget Sound 107, at George Fox 79
Jan. 10 - Pacific Lutheran 76, at George Fox 67
NORTHWEST CONFERENCE: George Fox (3-7, 0-2) seeks its first conference win of the season as it plays a home game Tuesday vs. Pacific before going on the road for the first time in league play to Lewis & Clark and Linfield. For the latest NWC standings and stats, go to www.nwcsports.com.
COACH MARK SUNDQUIST (Seattle Pacific '89) is 23-61 (.274) in his 4th season as a college head coach, all at George Fox. He coached the boys' programs at Woodburn (Ore.) High for two years and at Newberg (Ore.) High for one year before joining the Bruins.
Sundquist vs. upcoming opponents:
Pacific - 0-6 (0-3 home, 0-3 road)
Lewis & Clark - 0-6 (0-3 home, 0-3 road)
Linfield - 0-7 (0-3 home, 0-3 road, 0-1 neutral)
THIS WEEK (Previews):
Tue., Jan. 13, 8:00 pm - vs. Pacific University Boxers (2-6, 0-1), Newberg, Ore. (NWC DH)
All-time series: George Fox trails the series 31-36 since 1966 (21-11 home, 10-25 road) ... Pacific has won the last 8 meetings, including an 80-67 win in Newberg on Jan. 11 and a 76-68 win in Forest Grove, Ore. on Feb. 8 lst year ... The Bruins' last win was 88-63 in Newberg on Jan. 29, 1999 ... Pacific ranks 9th in the NWC in scoring (66.2) and 4th in defense (71.9), and is 2nd in steals (9.50) ... Two Boxers average double figures in points: Joe Van Domelen 15.9, 7th in the NWC) and Erin Gram (11.5, 5th) ... B.J. Anderson leads the league in field goal pct. (.630) and is 4th in rebounding (7.1) ... Gram is 3rd in steals (2.25) and assists (5.00) ... Pacific hosts Linfield Friday, Jan. 16 ...
Fri., Jan. 16, 8:00 pm - at Lewis & Clark College Pioneers (7-3, 0-1), Portland, Ore. (NWC DH)
First NWC road game for the Bruins ... The Pioneers played at Whitman Monday ... All-time series: George Fox trails the series 16-30 since 1965 (7-12 home, 9-18 road) ... The Pioneers have won the last 9 meetings, including a 105-69 win in Portland on Jan. 14 and an 80-49 win in Newberg on Feb. 7 last year ... The Bruins' last win was 88-87 in overtime on Jan. 22, 1999, in Portland ... Lewis & Clark leads the NWC in defense (63.0) and is 2nd in the conference and 4th nationally in 3-pointers per game (12.10) ... The Pioneers are 2nd in the NWC in free throw pct. (.788) and 3rd in 3-point field goal pct. (.376) ... John Mietus averages a double-double (24.7 ppg, 12.0 rpg), leading the NWC in both categories and ranking 9th in points and 8th in rebounds nationally ... Danny Winchester is 4th in the NWC in scoring (18.5) and Ryan Wells is 24th (10.7) ... Winchester has pulled the trigger on 4.40 3-pointers a game, tops in the league ... Lewis & Clark next visits Willamette Saturday, Jan. 17 ...
Sat., Jan. 17, 8:00 pm - at Linfield College Wildcats (6-4, 1-0), McMinnville, Ore. (NWC DH)
Yamhill County rivals ... The Wildcats are at Pacific Friday before hosting the Bruins ... All-time series: The series is tied 34-34 since 1971 (GFU is 18-14 home, 16-19 road, 0-1 neutral) ... Linfield has won the last 7 meetings, sweeping last year 123-91 on Jan. 21 in McMinnville and 90-82 in Newberg on Feb. 18, and this season 105-72 in a neutral-court game on Dec. 30 at the Cactus Jam in Phoenix, Ariz. ... The last win for the Bruins was 102-96 in Newberg on Feb. 12, 2000 ... One team or the other has scored at least 100 points in 10 of the last 11 games (George Fox 3, Linfield 9, both teams twice) ... The Wildcats are 3rd in the NWC in scoring (77.9), 5t in defense (72.2), 2nd in rebounding margin (+2.0), and 3rd in assists (16.20) and steals (8.30) ... Two Wildcats score in double figures: Blake Shelton (15.6, 8th in the NWC) and Chris Lewis (10.8, 21st) ... Sam Krieger is the top rebounder (6.4, 6th) and lead the NWC in blocked shots (1.40) ... Joe Neill is the league leader in steals (2.70) ... Linfield visits Whitman Friday, Jan. 23 ...
BRUIN BITS:
* Szalay Nominated for NWC "Player of the Week"
(Due to the postponement of 4 NWC games to Sunday-Monday due to weather problems in eastern Washington, an NWC Player of the Week will not be announced until Tuesday morning.)
Scott Szalay (So., Everett, Wash. / North Seattle CC) had two good games as the Bruins went 0-2 in their NWC openers, earning a nomination for Northwest Conference "Player of the Week" for Jan. 5-11. In a 107-79 loss to Puget Sound on Friday, he scored only 6 points on 3-7 shooting, but grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds and had 2 assists and 4 blocked shots. In a 76-67 loss to Pacific Lutheran on Saturday, he had 15 points, hitting 6-7 from the field and 3-6 from the line, with 7 rebounds and 2 steals. For the week, in 2 games, he scored 21 points (10.5), hitting 9-14 from the field (.642) and 3-8 from the line (.375), with 20 rebounds (10.0), 2 assists, 4 blocks, and 2 steals. Szalay is among the league leaders in scoring (11.6), rebounding (7.8), field goal pct. (.549), and blocked shots (1.2).
* Bruins Have Five in Double-Figure Scoring:
After 9 games, all 5 George Fox starters are averaging double figures in points. Puget Sound is the only other team in the Northwest Conference with five double-figure scorers. The Bruins' "big five", their scoring averages, and where they rank in the league through Jan. 11: Wing Mark Gayman (Jr., Hillsboro, Ore. / Glencoe HS) - 17.4 (5th), Wing Aaron Schmick (So., Hillsboro, Ore. / Century HS) - 16.1 (6th), Post Scott Szalay (So., Everett, Wash. / North Seattle CC) - 11.6 (14th), Wing Bryan Wadlow (Sr., Albany, Ore. / West Albany HS) - 10.8 (21st), Point guard Ben Melvin (So., Pleasant Hill, Ore. / Pleasant Hill HS) - 10.8 (21st). With 667 of the Bruins' 784 points, that represents 85.1% of all the points scored by the Bruins; the bench averages only 11.7 points per game.
* 100th Year of Bruin Basketball in 2003-04:
The 2003-04 season marks the 100th year for which there are records in which there has been men's basketball at the institution now known as George Fox University. While the school did have basketball on the campus of then-Pacific Academy prior to the 1901-02 season, that is the first year for which there is an official record. There have been two years since then when there was no team: 1903-04, when smallpox forced cancellation of the season, and 1918-19, when an influenza outbreak wiped out the schedule. Insofar as records can be authenticated, the Bruins, counting this season's scores, have a 100-year cumulative record of 966-996-1 (.492).
* Career Lists:
--- Mark Gayman, who entered this season with 582 career points, had 29 in the Bruins' 2 games this past week, giving him 756 for his career. He needs 244 more to become the 31st player in the 100-year history of Bruin basketball to reach 1,000 career points ...
* Personal Highs:
--- Mark Gayman set a new career high for assists (5) vs. Puget Sound on Jan. 9 ...
--- Aaron Schmick set a new career high for free throw pct. (1.000, 6-6) vs. Pacific Lutheran on Jan. 10, and tied his high for assists (6) vs. Puget Sound on Jan. 9 ...
--- Scott Szalay set new career highs for rebounds (13) and blocked shots (4) vs. Puget Sound on Jan. 9 and for field goal pct. (.857, 6-7) vs. Pacific Lutheran on Jan. 10, and tied his high for free throw attempts (6) vs. PLU ...
--- Bryan Wadlow tied his career high 3-pt field goal attempts (6) vs. Puget Sound on Jan. 9 ...
--- Ben Melvin set a new career high for field goal attempts (14) vs. Puget Sound on Jan. 9, and for 3-pt field goal attempts (6) vs. Pacific Lutheran on Jan. 10...
--- Brett Yeager (Sr., Oakridge, Ore. / Oakridge HS) tied his career high for blocked shots (2) vs. Puget Sound on Jan. 9 ...
--- Chris Parker (Fr., Aloha, Ore. / Aloha HS) set new career highs for points (12), field goals (3), free throws (6), and free throw pct. (1.000, 6-6), and tied his high for field goal attempts (4), vs. Puget Sound on Jan. 9 ...
--- Jordan Gama (Fr., Troutdale, Ore. / Corbett HS) set a new career high for assists 2) and tied his high for field goals (1) vs. Puget Sound on Jan. 9 ...
--- Mark Johnson (So., Tonasket, Wash. / Tonasket HS) tied his career highs for points (2) and field goals (1) vs. Puget Sound on Jan. 9, and set a new high for field goal attempts (2) and 3-points attempts (1) vs. Pacific Lutheran on Jan. 10 ...
--- Ryan Rockwood (Fr., Silverlake, Wash. / Toutle Lake HS) set new highs for points (4), field goals (2) and attempts (2), and free throw attempts (1) vs. Puget Sound on Jan. 9 ...
* NCAA Stats (thru Jan. 4): Bruins Among National Leaders in 3-Pt FG Pct.:
Team: 3-Pt FG Pct. - .401 (31st)
* NWC Stats (thru Jan. 11) - Bruins Lead in Assists:
Team:
Scoring Offense - 78.4 (2nd)
Scoring Defense - 84.0 (8th)
Scoring Margin - -5.6 (8th)
Field Goal Pct. - .468 (3rd)
FG Pct. Defense - .447 (6th)
Free Throw Pct. - .643 (7th)
3-Pt FG Made - 6.90 (6th)
3-Pt FG Pct. - .363 (5th)
3-Pt Pct. Defense - .355 (7th)
Rebounding Off. - 38.7 (2nd)
Rebounding Def. - 37.6 (7th)
Rebound Margin - +1.1 (3rd)
Blocked Shots - 3.20 (2nd)
Assists - 19.10 (1st)
Steals - 6.10 (8th)
Turnover Margin - -4.70 (8th)
Ast/TO Ratio - 0.96 (6th)
Individual:
--- Mark Gayman - 2nd in Rebounding (8.4), 5th in Scoring (17.4), 13th in Blocked Shots (0.50, T)
--- Aaron Schmick - 5th in 3-Pt FG (2.70), 6th in Scoring (16.1), Assists (4.20), 12th in 3-Pt FG Pct. (.397), 6th in FT Pct. (.800), 14th in Rebounding (5.0, T)
--- Scott Szalay - 3rd in Blocked Shots (1.20), Rebounding (7.8), 7th in Steals (1.70), 8th in FG Pct. (.549), 14th in Scoring (11.6)
--- Bryan Wadlow - 6th in 3-Pt FG Pct. (.442), 11th in 3-Pt FG (1.90), 13th in Assists (3.10), 17th in Rebounding (4.7), 21st in Scoring (10.8, T)
--- Ben Melvin - 4th in Assists (4.60), 15th in Ast/TO Ratio (1.18), 21st in Scoring (10.8, T)
--- Brett Yeager 7th in Blocked Shots (0.80)
--- Chris Parker - 4th in FT Pct. (.818)
* 2003-04 Honors:
--- Mark Gayman - Northwest Conference "Player of the Week" (Nov. 24-30); Mortgage Market Holiday All-Tournament Team
* The Wirta Streaks:
Mike "Biggs" Wirta, George Fox's statistical guru, raised his string of consecutive Bruin men's basketball games, home and away, to 523 with both Northwest Conference games Jan. 9-10. The last game he missed was Nov. 25, 1985, at Puget Sound. Now in his 33rd season of keeping Bruin statistics, he has also been courtside for 398 straight home games, last missing one in Newberg Dec. 15, 1972, vs. Willamette, when he was in advanced training with the Army at Ft. Jackson in Columbia, S.C. Altogether, he has seen 936 George Fox men's basketball games.