December 22, 2010

WHAT’S BRUIN: Men’s Basketball News & Notes 12/22

Links: Quick Facts / Roster / Schedule & Results / Statistics / Press Releases

Multimedia: Live Stats / Video / KFOX Radio

Overall Record: 2-6 (Home 0-2, Road 2-4, Neutral 0-0)

NWC Record: 1-1, 3rd T (Home 0-0, Road 1-1)

HIGHLIGHTS:

* Coming Up: Three Games in SoCal; La Verne Game Moved to Dec. 29

* Recent Games: Bruins Split NAIA Games at Northwest and Corban

* Wiseley Wins BAA Award, Nominated for NWC Weekly Honors

* NWC Stats: Bruins Take Conference Lead in Blocked Shots

* Career Lists: Wiseley’s 12-13 Week Boosts Lead in All-Time FT Pct.

* Statistician “Biggs” Makes It 700 Straight Games Attended

* Coming Up: Three Games in SoCal; La Verne Game Moved to Dec. 29

- Tue., Dec. 28, 7:30 pm - at La Sierra University (2-7), Riverside, Calif.

- Wed., Dec. 29, 7:30 pm - at University of La Verne (4-4), La Verne, Calif.

- Fri., Dec. 31, 5:00 pm - at Chapman University (9-1), Orange, Calif.

NEWBERG, Ore. – A three-game swing through southern California from Dec. 28-31, including a game against La Verne that has been moved ahead one day, will complete the non-conference portion of the 2010-11 schedule for the George Fox Bruins before Northwest Conference play resumes on Jan. 7.

The Bruins will play the La Sierra Golden Eagles for the first time ever at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 28, the La Verne Leopards on Dec. 29 at 7:30 p.m., and conclude the trip on Dec. 31 at 5:00 p.m. against the Chapman Panthers. The La Verne game was originally scheduled for Dec. 30, but has been moved forward a day to accommodate another ULV opponent, Marietta, who could not play on the 29th.

There will be no KFOX radio webcasts of the Bruin games in California. Fans may follow the games through the links listed below:

La Sierra video - http://www.lsugoldeneagles.com/live.php

La Verne live stats - http://livestats.prestosports.com/laverne/

Chapman live stats - http://livestats.prestosports.com/chapman/

The Bruins, 1-1 in conference play after winning at Willamette on Nov. 30 and losing at Pacific Lutheran on Dec. 4, will be at Lewis & Clark on Jan. 7, then play their first NWC home game on Jan. 8 vs. Pacific.

La Sierra (2-7): The Golden Eagles from Riverside, Calif., are provisional members of the NCAA Division III who are transitioning to the NAIA Division II ... After opening the season with six straight losses, La Sierra won its next two before falling 69-68 at home to Pacific Union in its last game on Dec. 19 ... Series record (since 1965): First meeting ... La Sierra by the numbers: Scoring (63.3), Defense (77.6), Rebounding (33.9), FG% (.396), 3-pt% (.319), FT % (.571) ... The Golden Eagles have two double-figure scorers: G Miles Robbins (13.6), and G Issaac Waters (10.2) ... F Taylor Scharffenberg and 6-10 C Connor Madden are the rebound leaders (4.11) ... G Lavel Picket is the assists leader (3.33) ... Coach Derek Robbins is in his 3rd season at La Sierra ... Next: Dec. 31 at San Diego Christian, 2:00 p.m.

La Verne (4-4): The Leopards from La Verne, Calif., are members of the NCAA Division III and the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference ... La Verne is coming off a 60-57 win at home over Oglethorpe that snapped a three-game losing streak ... Series record (since 1965): George Fox leads 2-1 (1-0 home, 1-0 road, 0-1 neutral) ... La Verne won the last meeting 84-75 on Dec. 20, 2005, at Claremont, Calif. ... The Bruins won 76-74 in Newberg during the 1970-71 season (no date available) and 76-75 at La Verne on Dec. 30, 1998 ... La Verne by the numbers: Scoring (71.8), Defense (73.6), Rebounding (36.0), FG% (.482), 3-pt% (.368), FT % (.654) ... The Leopards have two double-figure scorers: G Trevor Woodland (16.6), and F Austin Napolitano (13.1) ... C Alex Wolpe is the top rebounder (6.1) ... PG John Leggett is the assists leader (3.75) ... Coach Richard Reed is 31-52 to date in his 4th season at La Verne ... Next: Dec. 30 vs. Marietta, 7:30 p.m.

Chapman (10-1): The Panthers from Orange, Calif., are independent members of the NCAA Division III ... Chapman is currently ranked 22nd in the D3hoops.com national poll ... The Panthers are riding an eight-game winning streak since their only loss vs. NAIA power Azusa Pacific, their latest win 78-65 over Whittier on Dec. 21 ... The Panthers play at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Dec. 29 before meeting the Bruins ... Series record (since 1965): George Fox leads 2-1 (1-0 road, 1-1 neutral) ... The Panthers defeated the Bruins 73-45 in the Lee Fulmer Tournament in Redlands, Calif., on Dec. 5 last year ... George Fox won 78-75 in overtime in the Fulmer Tourney on Dec. 6, 2002, and 90-85 at Chapman on Dec. 22, 2005, in their first two meetings ... Chapman by the numbers: Scoring (73.0), Defense (62.4), Rebounding (32.9), FG% (.514), 3-pt% (.354), FT % (.693) ... The Panthers have four double-figure scorers: G Griffin Ramme (16.8), F Justin Riley (15.6), G Max Piner (10.2), and F Ben Ricard (10.1) ... Riley is the top rebounder (7.1) ... PG Brandon Lin is the assists leader (3.45) ... Coach Mike Bokosky is 329-141 to date in his 19th season at Chapman ... Next: Jan. 5 at California Lutheran, 7:30 p.m.

* Recent Games: Bruins Split NAIA Games at Northwest and Corban

Dec. 18 - at Northwest (Wash.) 83, George Fox 57After leading throughout the first half and hanging tough midway through the second, the Bruins were throttled by a 28-6 run by Northwest over the final 11 minutes that gave the Eagles the non-conference win. The Bruins had no answer for the Eagles’ 6-8 and 6-9 inside players, Greg Peters and Greg George, who each posted double-doubles in points and rebounds. Mike Taylor led the Bruins with 19 points, grabbed 8 rebounds, and blocked 3 shots. Stephen Wiseley and Rich Smith each finished with 13 points, and Wiseley handed out 9 assists.

Dec. 20 - George Fox 83, at Corban 75

In a game of extreme streaks, the Bruins built an 18-point lead late in the first half, fell behind by eight midway through the second, then rallied to win by eight over the Warriors in a non-conference game. Stephen Wiseley put the Bruins ahead for good 70-68 with a three from the right wing, and hit 7-8 free throws in the final 5:08 to keep them in front. Wiseley finished with a game-high 24 points, including 10-11 from the line, handed out 8 assists, and made 6 steals. Rich Smith added 18 points, Cole Whitehurst scored 14 while hitting 8-8 from the line, and Mike Taylor tossed in 11. Whitehurst posted his first career double-double by grabbing a game and career-high 12 rebounds.

BRUIN BITS:

* Wiseley Wins BAA Award, Nominated for NWC Weekly Honors

A solid week from the free throw line and in the assists department have earned senior point guard Stephen Wiseley of Kirkland, Wash., the Bruin Athletic Association Men’s Athlete of the Week for Dec. 13-22, and the Bruins’ nomination for NWC Men’s Basketball Student-Athlete of the Week (the conference splits the holiday nominating periods into two, Dec. 13-22 and Dec. 23-Jan. 2, due to the relatively-few games during those times, and will announce the next winner on Dec. 23).

In the Bruins’ 83-57 setback at Northwest on Dec. 18, Wiseley scored 13 points on 4-13 field goals (3-8 on threes) and 2-2 free throws, with a career-high tying 9 assists, 2 steals, and a rebound. In an 83-75 win at Corban on Dec. 20, he had a game-high 24 points on 6-17 field goals (2-6 on threes) and 10-11 free throws, with 8 assists, 6 steals, and 3 rebounds. His three-pointer put the Bruins ahead for good 70-68, and he sank 7-8 from the line in the final 5:08 to keep the Bruins in front. For the week, he scored 37 points (18.5 ppg) on 10-30 field goals (.333), including 5-13 (.385) on three-pointers, and 12-13 free throws (.923), with 17 assists (8.5 apg), 8 steals (4.0 spg), and 4 rebounds (2.0 rpg).

Wiseley currently ranks 2nd in the NWC in assists (5.71), 6th in free throw pct. (.833, T), assist/TO ratio (1.08), 7th in steals (1.57), 9th in scoring (17.0, T), and 12th in 3-pt field goals (1.86).

The Athlete of the Week Award for both men and women is presented throughout the Bruin sports seasons by the Bruin Athletic Association, whose mission is to provide George Fox student-athletes with an outstanding athletic and academic experience and to strengthen the overall competitiveness of the Bruin athletics program. For more information about the organization or to become a member, visit the Bruin Athletic Association website.

* 2010-11 Honors

Cole Whitehurst

- Bruin Athletic Association Athlete of the Week - Nov. 15-21

- Northwest Conference Student-Athlete of the Week - HM, Nov. 15-21

Stephen Wiseley

- Bruin Athletic Association Athlete of the Week - Nov. 22-28; Dec. 13-22

- Northwest Conference Student-Athlete of the Week - HM, Nov. 22-28; HM, Dec. 13-22

Rich Smith

- Bruin Athletic Association Athlete of the Week - Nov. 29-Dec. 5; Dec. 6-12

- Northwest Conference Student-Athlete of the Week - HM, Nov. 29-Dec. 5; HM, Dec. 6-12

* NWC Stats: Bruins Take Conference Lead in Blocked Shots

- Thru games of Dec. 21, George Fox is 1st in blocked shots (3.00), 4th in assist/TO ratio (0.75), 5th in 3-pt field goal pct. defense (.333), assists (11.50, T), steals (7.50), 6th in free throw pct. (.704), 3-pt field goals (5.50), rebounding (35.6), turnover margin (-0.50), 7th in scoring (72.9), field goal pct. defense (.454), 8th in defense (83.9), scoring margin (-11.0), field goal pct. (.408), 3-pt field goal pct. (.272), 9th in rebounding defense (44.6), rebound margin (-9.0) …

- Stephen Wiseley is 2nd in assists (5.71), 6th in free throw pct. (.833, T), assist/TO ratio (1.08), 7th in steals (1.57), 9th in scoring (17.0, T), 12th in 3-pt field goals (1.86)...

- Rich Smith is 3rd in blocked shots (1.00), 6th in rebounding (7.1), 12th in steals (1.25, T), 13th in field goal pct. (.500, T), 14th in scoring (16.3) …

- Mike Taylor is 4th in steals (1.75), 6th in 3-pt field goals (2.25), 9th in scoring (17.0,T), 13th in rebounding (6.1), 15th in 3-pt field goal pct. (.321, T) ...

- Cole Whitehurst is 11th in rebounding (6.3, T), 12th in steals (1.25, T), 21st in scoring (11.9) …

- Davis Martin is 4th in blocked shots (0.88) ...

* Double-Doubles

- Rich Smith: season 1, career 7 - 24 pts, 14 reb at Willamette, 11/30

- Cole Whitehurst: season 1, career 1 - 12 pts, 14 reb at Corban, 12/20

* Career Lists: Wiseley’s 12-13 Week Boosts Lead in All-Time FT Pct.

- Stephen Wiseley: Wiseley went 12-13 from the free throw line in the Bruins’ two games this past week, boosting his career free throw percentage to .876 (120-137), currently the best figure in Bruin history. He led the Northwest Conference and was ninth nationally in free throw shooting last year (.891). Gary Chenault (.870, 195-224, 1976-79) is second in GFU career free throw percentage ...

* Statistician “Biggs” Makes It 700 Straight Games Attended

With the Bruins’ games at Northwest on Dec. 18 and Corban on Dec. 20, long-time statistician Mike “Biggs” Wirta extended his streak of George Fox men’s basketball games attended, home and way, to 700 in a row. His streak was announced during halftime at the Corban game, resulting in a nice round of applause from the crowd. He has also worked 631 straight 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 (1,111 of 2,138 for 51.96%) in the 106-plus seasons of Bruin basketball.

* Head Coach Mark Sundquist

Head coach Mark Sundquist (Seattle Pacific ’87) is 105-154 (.405, 55-56 home, 38-84 road, 12-14 neutral) to date in his 11th 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, 2010. The all-time leader is Mark Vernon (318-218, 1982-2000) … He was the Northwest Conference Coach of the Year in 2004-05 … … He is 0-0 vs. La Sierra, 0-1 (0-1 neutral) vs. La Verne, and 2-1 (1-0 road, 1-1 neutral) vs. Chapman.