February 11, 2010

MBSK: WHAT’S BRUIN - Bruins Hit the Road in Continuing Quest for NWC Tourney Spot

* Upcoming Games

- Fri., Feb. 12, 6:00 pm - at Willamette University (NWC), Salem, Ore.

- Sat., Feb. 13, 6:00 pm - at Linfield College (NWC), McMinnville, Ore.

NEWBERG, Ore. - Continuing their quest to play in the Northwest Conference Tournament for only the second time ever, the George Fox University Bruins face a tough road test this weekend with games against the Willamette University Bearcats in Salem, Ore., on Friday and the Linfield College Wildcats in McMinnville, Ore., on Saturday.

This is the second week of the conference's experiment with reversed game times, so the Bruin men will play at 6:00 p.m. both nights, followed by the women's games at 8:00 p.m.   George Fox campus radio station KFOX webcasts will be available for all four of this weekend's games at the following link:

KFOX Radio: http://www.georgefox.edu/offices/asc/kfoxradio/

For live stats and/or live video streaming, visit the Willamette or Linfield sports websites:

Willamette: http://www.willamette.edu/athletics/

Linfield: http://www.linfield.edu/sports/

George Fox is 10-11 overall and 7-5 and in third place in the conference, half a game ahead of Lewis & Clark College (77-6) and one game behind Linfield (8-4).  Pacific Lutheran University (6-6) is also in the running, while Whitworth University (12-0) has clinched no worse than a tie for the league title.  The top four teams in the final standings make the NWC Tournament.  The only previous appearance by the Bruins in the NWC Tournament was Feb. 25, 1998, when they lost at Lewis & Clark 91-77 (George Fox joined the conference in 1995).

The Bruins split two games this past Homecoming weekend, out-gunning the Whitman Missionaries 103-90 on Friday before becoming the latest victim of the steam-rolling Whitworth Pirates, who have now won 17 in a row, 98-88 on Saturday.  Stephen Wiseley scored 26 points, including 10-12 from the free throw line, and Alex Stockner added 25 on 8-9 from the field and 8-8 from the line, to pace the Bruins in the Whitman win.  Evan Atwater chipped in with 13, and Rich Smith had his fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds as the Bruins burned the nets for a .571 shooting pct. (32-56).  Smith led the Bruins with 19 points against Whitworth, while Stockner added 15 and Wiseley and Atwater 11 apiece.

Willamette (3-11, NWC 0-5, 9th7-15, NWC 4-9, 8th): The Bearcats from Salem, Ore., were picked to finish tied for 7th with George Fox in the pre-season NWC coaches' poll, George Fox 1st ... Willamette has won three in a row and four of its last six, including an 80-73 win at Lewis & Clark on Tuesday in which Cameron Mitchell led the way with 23 points and 9 rebounds, Taylor Mounts added 16 points, and Ryan Meehan scored 15 ... Series record (since 1967): George Fox trails 32-42 (19-13 home, 13-29 away) ... The Bruins won this year's first meeting 87-74 in Newberg on Jan. 15 ... The Bearcats' last win in the series was 87-82 in Newberg on Feb. 20 last year ... Willamette is 2nd in the NWC in rebounding (41.0), blocked shots (3.23), 3rd in scoring (82.3, 14th nationally), steals (7.77), 4th in field goal pct. (.443), 6th in free throw pct. (.708), 9th in defense (88.3) ... P Cameron Mitchell is 1st in scoring (21.4, 23rd nationally), rebounding (12.1, 5th nationally), field goal pct. (.592, 38th nationally), 3rd in blocked shots (1.27) ... P Taylor Mounts is 12th in scoring (14.0), 2nd in free throw pct. (.868, 34th nationally), 5th in blocked shots (0.82), 6th in rebounding (6.9) ... G Marcus Holmes is 29th in scoring (10.2), 8th in assists (2.50) ... G Robbie Kunke is 2nd in assists (6.11, 11th nationally), 8th in steals (1.58) ... G Ryan Meehan is 19th in scoring (11.5) ... G Terrell Malley is 27th in scoring (10.4) ... Coach Kip Ioane is 7-15 to date in his first season at Willamette ... Next game: Feb. 19 at Pacific Lutheran, 8 p.m.

Linfield (6-6, NWC 4-0, 1st T 10-10, NWC 8-4, 2nd): The Wildcats from McMinnville, Ore., were picked to finish tied for 2nd in the pre-season NWC coaches' poll, George Fox tied for 7th ... After winning 9 of 11, the Wildcats have lost their last two, both at home, including a 105-93 setback to Willamette on Feb. 6 in their last outing.  Cody Tesoro scored 36 points in that loss,hitting 8-12 three-pointers, while Kris Rainwater scored 19 and Drew Schroeder 10 ... Series record (since 1972): George Fox leads 41-40 (23-16 home, 18-23 away, 0-1 neutral) ... The Wildcats have won the last two meetings, including an 84-80 win in Newberg on Jan. 16 this season ... The Bruins' last win in the series was 71-67 in Newberg on Jan. 17 last year ... Linfield is 1st in the NWC in blocked shots (3.25), 2nd in field goal pct. (.469), 3-pt field goal pct. defense (.333), 3rd in field goal pct. defense (.443), 5th in defense (78.2), 6th in scoring (76.0), 9th in free throw pct. (.675) ... G Cody Tesoro in 2nd in scoring (18.1), 10th in 3-pt field goals (1.70), 12th in assists (2.45), steals (1.25), 13th in free throw pct. (.774) ... F Kris Rainwater is 1st in blocked shots (1.70), 3rd in field goal pct. (.561) ... C K.C. Wiser has missed several games due to injury and does not qualify for NWC stats, but has averaged 18.2 ppg, 7.8 rpg, and shot .583 from the field when he has played ... Coach Larry Doty is 298-271 to date in his 23rd season at Linfield ... Linfield visits Pacific Friday before meeting the Bruins ... Next game: Feb. 19 vs. Whitman, 8 p.m.

BRUIN BITS:

* Stockner Repeats as BAA Athlete of the Week, HM for NWC Honors

Making a living at the free throw line in the Bruins' two Homecoming weekend games, Alex Stockner has repeated as the Bruin Athletic Association Men's Athlete of the Week for Feb. 1-7 and again received honorable mention for Northwest Conference Men's Basketball Student-Athlete of the Week as the Bruins went 1-1.

In a 103-90 win over Whitman on Feb. 5, Stockner scored 25 points on 8-9 field goals (1-1 on threes) and 8-8 free throws, with 5 rebounds and 3 steals.  In a 98-88 loss to league-leading Whitworth on Feb. 6, he scored 15 points on 3-6 field goals and 9-12 free throws, with 8 rebounds and an assist.  For the week, he totaled 40 points (20.0 ppg) on 11-15 field goals (.733), including 1-3 (.333) on threes, and 17-20 free throws (.850), with 13 rebounds (6.5 rpg), 3 steals, and an assist.

Stockner, a senior forward from Monmouth, Ore., has been named BAA Athlete of the Week and received honorable mention for NWC honors five times this season.  He ranks 4th in the NWC in field goal pct. (.541), free throw pct. (.830), 8th in rebounding (5.7), and 10th in scoring (14.9).

* 2009-10 Honors

Stephen Wiseley

- Bruin Athletic Association Athlete of the Week - Nov. 16-22; Jan. 11-17

- Northwest Conference Student-Athlete of the Week - HM, Nov. 16-22; HM, Jan. 11-17

Alex Stockner

- Bruin Athletic Association Athlete of the Week - Nov. 23-29; Dec. 7-13; Dec. 28-Jan. 3; Jan. 25-31; Feb. 1-7

- Northwest Conference Student-Athlete of the Week - HM, Nov. 23-29; HM, Dec. 7-13; HM, Dec. 28-Jan. 3; HM, Jan. 25-31; HM, Feb. 1-7

Evan Atwater

- Bruin Athletic Association Athlete of the Week - Nov. 30-Dec. 6; Jan. 18-24

- Northwest Conference Student-Athlete of the Week - HM, Nov. 30-Dec. 6; HM, Jan. 18-24

Jack Martin

- Bruin Athletic Association Athlete of the Week - Jan. 4-10

- Northwest Conference Student-Athlete of the Week - HM, Jan. 4-10

* NCAA Stats (thru Feb. 7): Wiseley Among Leaders in FT Pct., Assists

 - George Fox is 20th in assists (16.5), 22nd in 3-pt field goal pct. (.391), 24th in 3-pt field goals (8.3), 28th in free throw pct. (.748) ...

- Stephen Wiseley is 10th in free throw pct. (.902), 36th in assists (5.1) ...

* NWC Stats (thru Feb. 9): Bruins Maintain Lead in 3-Point FG, FT Pct.

- George Fox is 1st in free throw pct. (.748), 3-pt field goal pct. (.391), 3-pt field goal pct. defense (.326), 2nd in assists (16.48), 3rd in field goal pct. (.458), assist/TO ratio (1.05), rebounding defense (36.0), 4th in 3-pt field goals (8.33), 5th in scoring (76.8), scoring margin (-2.3), blocked shots (2.33), rebounding margin (-1.8), field goal pct. defense (.468), 6th in defense (79.1), 7th in rebounding (34.2), 8th in steals (6.29), turnover margin (-2.19) ...

- Alex Stockner is 4th in field goal pct. (.541), free throw pct. (.830), 8th in rebounding (5.7), 10th in scoring (14.9) ...

- Stephen Wiseley is 1st in free throw pct. (.902), 3rd in assists (5.10), 6th in assist/TO ratio (1.36), 7th in steals (1.70), 9th in 3-pt field goals (1.80), 10th in 3pt field goal pct. (.371), 18th in scoring (12.1) ...

- Rich Smith is 5th in rebounding (7.5), 13th in blocked shots (0.47), 15th in scoring (13.0), field goal pct. (.464) ...

- Evan Atwater is 3rd in free throw pct. (.857), 4th in 3-pt field goal pct. (.402), 11th in 3-pt field goals (1.67), 21st in scoring (11.4, T) ...

- Dan Lingenfelder is 5th in 3-pt field goal pct. (.400, T), 8th in blocked shots (0.60) ...

- Travis Toedtemeier is 15th in 3-pt field goal pct. (.367) ...

* Double-Doubles

- Rich Smith: season 3, career 3 - 13 pts, 15 reb vs. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, 11/20; 13 pts, 11 reb vs. Menlo at Redlands, Calif., 12/3; 23 pts, 12 reb at Whitman, 1/8; 12 pts, 11 reb vs. Whitman, 2/5

- Alex Stockner: season 1, career 1 - 26 pts, 14 reb vs. Puget Sound, 1/2

* Career Lists: Atwater Climbs to 29th on Career Points List

- Evan Atwater:  With 24 points in the Bruins' last two games, Atwater raised his career points total to 1,032 and passed Kurt Ronnow (1,013, 1988-92), Curtis Kimbrough (1,023, 1983-87), Rolly Hartley (1,026, 1953-56), and Larry Jury (1,027, 1983-85) for 29th on the all-time scoring list.  Ahead are Dave Altender (1,049, 1965-69), Howard Crow (1,090, 1957-61), and Dan Newman (1,092, 1986-88).  He became the 34th player in the Bruins' 106-year history to reach 1,000 points with his first goal of the game at Puget Sound on Jan. 29.

* Statistician "Biggs" Closes in on 1,100 Games

With the Bruins' two games vs. Whitman and Whitworth this past weekend, long-time statistican Mike "Biggs" Wirta stretched his streak of Bruin men's basketball games attended, home and away, to 686 in a row.  He has worked 628 straight men's home games, not missing one since 1972 when he was in military service. In all, he has seen over half of all games ever played by the George Fox men's team (1,097 of 2,124 for 51.65%) in the 106 seasons of Bruin basketball.

* Head Coach Mark Sundquist

Head coach Mark Sundquist (Seattle Pacific '87) is 100-145 (.408, 54-54 home, 34-77 road, 12-14 neutral) to date in his 10th season at George Fox ... He became the second-winningest coach in Bruin history, breaking a tie with Lorin Miller (99-72, 1970-76), when he picked up his 100th coaching win in a 103-90 victory over Whitman at home on Feb. 5.  The all-time leader is Mark Vernon (318-218, 1982-2000) ... He was the Northwest Conference Coach of the Year in 2004-05 ... Against Willamette, he is 5-14 (4-6 home, 1-8 away) ... Against Linfield, he is 7-13 (5-5 home, 2-7 away, 0-1 neutral) ...