WHAT’S BRUIN: Men’s Basketball News & Notes 11/30

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

Multimedia: Live Stats / Video / KFOX Radio 

Overall Record: 1-3 (Home 0-2, Road 1-1)

NWC Record: 0-0 (Home 0-0, Road 0-0)

HIGHLIGHTS:

* Coming Up: Bruins Open Conference Play at Top Two Contenders

* Recent Games: Bruins Drop Home Game to Northwest Christian

* Grant Named BAA Athlete of the Week, HM for NWC Honors

* NWC Poll: Bruins Face Uphill Fight after 7th-Place Prediction

* NWC Stats: Grant Among League Leaders in 5 Categories

* Statistician “Biggs” Increases Overall Streak to 721 in a Row

* Coming Up: Bruins Open Conference Play at Top Two Contenders

- Fri., Dec. 2, 8:00 p.m. - at Whitman College (3-1, NWC 0-0), Walla Walla, Wash.

- Sat., Dec. 3, 8:00 pm – at Whitworth University (4-0, NWC 0-0), Spokane, Wash.

NEWBERG, Ore. – A stern challenge to the start of Northwest Conference play awaits the George Fox Bruins this weekend as they visit Whitman College on Friday and defending NWC champion and nationally-ranked Whitworth University Saturday, both games tipping off at 8:00 p.m. following NWC women’s games at 6:00 p.m.

Whitman was picked to finish second in the conference in the pre-season NWC coaches’ poll.  The Missionaries were the only team to defeat Whitworth during the regular season last year.  Whitworth was ranked No. 1 in the nation last year for several weeks and went 28-2 overall while reaching the ‘Elite 8’ of the NCAA Division III National Tournament.  This year, the Pirates are ranked No. 8 in the first D3hoops.com in-season poll of this week after being picked No. 12 in the pre-season poll.

Multimedia: George Fox will provide live audio internet coverage of the eastern Washington games through campus station KFOX.  The links:

George Fox KFOX Radio live audio: http://www.georgefox.edu/offices/asc/kfoxradio/

Whitman live stats: http://www.whitman.edu/athletics/livestats/xlive.htm

Whitman live video: http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/whitman.portal#

Whitworth live stats: http://www.whitworth.edu/Athletics/Teams/Basketball/livestats/xlive.htm

Whitworth live video: http://www.whitworth.edu/Athletics/Teams/Basketball/livefeed.htm

Whitworth live audio: http://www.ksbn.net/

Whitman (3-1, NWC 0-0): The Missionaries from Walla Walla, Wash., were picked to finish 2nd in the NWC coaches’ pre-season poll … Whitman has won its last three games, the last a 68-62 win over Cal Lutheran in a neutral-site game at Pleasant Hill, Calif., as Peter Clark scored 21 points and David Michaels 14 ... Series record (since 1981): George Fox leads 25-18 (16-4 home, 9-14 road) ... The Missionaries swept last year’s series 86-77 in overtime in Newberg on Jan. 15 and 79-58 in Walla Walla on Feb. 11 ... George Fox’s last win was 103-90 in Newberg on Feb. 5, 2010 ... Whitman by the numbers: Scoring (69.5 ppg), Defense (62.5 ppg), FG% (.455), 3-pt FG% (.344), FT% (.626), Reb Avg. (32.0) ... The Missionaries have three double-figure scorers: F David Michaels (17.3 ppg), G Brandon Shaw (12.3 ppg), G Josh Duckworth (10.7 ppg) .... Michaels is the top rebounder (5.5 rpg) ... G LuQuam Thompson is the assists leaders (2.50 apg) ... Coach Eric Bridgeland is in his 4th season at Whitman ... Next game: Dec. 3 vs. Lewis & Clark, 8 p.m.

Whitworth (4-0, NWC 0-0): The Pirates from Spokane, Wash., the defending NWC champions, were picked to finish 1st in the NWC coaches’ pre-season poll … Whitworth has won its first four games, the latest a 58-44 win over Chapman on Nov. 26 in a neutral-site game at Pleasant Hill, Calif., in which Felix Friedt scored 24 points and Jack Loofburrow 11 ... Series record (since 1981): George Fox trails 11-25 (6-12 home, 5-15 road) ... The Pirates have won the last 12 meetings, sweeping last year’s series 81-57 in Newberg on Jan. 14 and 89-66 in Spokane on Feb. 12 ... George Fox’s last win was 77-69 in overtime in Newberg on Dec. 2, 2005 ... Whitworth by the numbers: Scoring (70.8 ppg), Defense (54.2 ppg), FG% (.470), 3-pt FG% (.410), FT% (.750), Reb Avg. (35.8) ... The Pirates have four double-figure scorers: P Felix Friedt (14.0 ppg), G Idris Lasisi (13.3 ppg), G Wade Gebbers (12.5 ppg), and F Jack Loofburrow (10.0 ppg) .... Loofburrow is the top rebounder (6.3 rpg) ... Gebbers is the assists leader (3.50 apg) ... Coach Matt Logie, a former assistant at Lehigh, is 4-0 in his 1st season at Whitworth ... The Pirates host Lewis & Clark Friday before meeting the Bruins ... Next game: Dec. 10 vs. Montana Tech, 7 p.m.

* Recent Games: Bruins Drop Home Game to Northwest Christian

Nov. 26 - Northwest Christian 69, at George Fox 57

A torrid second-half stretch in which they hit 13 of 19 shots enabled Northwest Christian to turn a five-point deficit into a 16-point lead as the visiting Beacons handed the Bruins a 69-57 setback.  There were four ties in the first five minutes of the game, the last at 10-10 before the Bruins broke the tie on a pair of free throws by Jon Adrian at the 13:34 mark.  The Bruins led the rest of the half, eventually building a seven-point lead of 23-16 with 5:19 left in the period after back-to-back layups by Spencer Bolte.  They were still up 42-37 lead with 15:48 to play in the game after a layup by Mike Taylor, but from that point on, the Beacons exploded, out-scoring the Bruins 32-11 and shooting .684 (13-19) over a 14-minute span to take a 69-53 lead.  Sean Atkins led the Bruins with 14 points, and Taylor and A.J. Grant scored 13 apiece.  Grant also led the way on the boards with seven.  Taylor and Adrian handed out three assists each.

* Grant Named BAA Athlete of the Week, HM for NWC Honors

With two fine games as the Bruins went 1-1 during the week, including the game-winning points in an overtime win at Corban, George Fox guard A.J. Grant has been named the Bruin Athletic Association Men’s Athlete of the Week for Nov. 21-27, and also received honorable mention for the NWC Men’s Basketball Student-Athlete of the Week.

Grant, a freshman from Newberg, Ore., scored 15 of his game-high 20 point in the second half and overtime of the Bruins’ 68-64 win at Corban on Nov. 22.  He hit a jumper in the lane with 33 seconds left to break a 64-64 tie, then added two insurance free throws with 17 seconds left.  He finished the game hitting 6-11 field goals (2-5 on three-pointers) and 6-6 free throws, with 4 rebounds, 3 steals, and an assist.  In a 69-57 setback to Northwest Christian on Nov. 26, he scored 13 points on 5-10 field goals (3-5 on threes), with  a game-high 7 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 assists.  For the week, he scored 33 points (16.5 ppg) on 11-21 (.524) from the field, including  5-10 (.500) on threes, and 6-6 (1.000) from the charity line, with 11 rebounds (5.5 rpg), 5 steals, and 3 assists. 

In the latest NWC statistics, Grant leads the league in free throw pct. (1.000, 10-10) and ranks 4th in steals (7, T), 5th in 3-pt field goals (10, T), 9th in assists (11, T), and 16th in scoring (13.0 ppg).

The George Fox 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. 

2011-12 Bruin Athletic Association Men’s Athletes of the Week

Aug. 29-Sept. 4 - Jacob Baker (Soccer)

Sept. 5-11 - Luke Hammer (Soccer)

Sept. 12-18 - Mike Ulstad (Golf)

Sept. 19-25 - Shawn Aldrich (Tennis)

Sept. 26-Oct. 2 - Joseph Pia (Cross Country)

Oct. 3-9 - Chris Lumsden (Golf)

Oct. 10-16 - Luke Hammer (Soccer)

Oct. 17-23 - Aleks Gabrio (Golf)

Oct. 24-30 - Kyle Dreibelbis (Cross Country)

Oct. 31-Nov. 6 - Elliott Davis (Soccer)

Nov. 7-13 - Kyle Dreibelbis (Cross Country)

Nov. 14-20 - Corey Clark (Basketball)

Nov. 21-27 - A.J. Grant (Basketball)

BRUIN BITS:

* 2011-12 Honors

Corey Clark

- Bruin Athletic Association Athlete of the Week - Nov. 14-20

- Northwest Conference Student-Athlete of the Week - Nov. 14-20 (HM)

A.J. Grant

- Bruin Athletic Association Athlete of the Week - Nov. 21-27

- Northwest Conference Student-Athlete of the Week - Nov. 21-27 (HM)

NWC POLL: New-Look Bruins Face Uphill Fight after 7th-Place Prediction

With only one starter returning from last year’s 8-17 team, that was no doubt a major factor in the George Fox Bruins being picked to finish seventh in the Northwest Conference pre-season coaches’ poll.  The Bruins received 24 points in the voting, between Willamette’s 27 and Linfield’s 21.  Two-time defending champion Whitworth received six first-place votes and 67 points, while Whitman was the runner-up with 61 points.

(First-place votes in parenthesis. Points awarded on 9-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis).

* NWC Stats: Grant Among League Leaders in 5 Categories

- In Northwest Conference stats thru games of Nov. 30, George Fox is 1st in blocked shots (3.2, T), 2nd in assists (14.8 apg, T), 3rd in fewest turnovers (12.5 topg), 4th in 3-pt field goals (31, T), 7th in 3-pt pct. (.304), 8th in field goal pct. (.414), free throw pct. (.667), rebounding (30.8 rpg), steals (6.0), 9th in scoring (66.2 ppg) ...

- A.J. Grant is 1st in free throw pct. (1.000, T), 4th in steals (7, T), 5th in 3-pt field goals (10, T), 9th in assists (11, T), 16th in scoring (13.0 ppg) ...

- Mike Taylor is 2nd in blocked shots (6, T), assists (14, T), 23rd in scoring (11.2 ppg) ...

- Sean Atkins is 5th in blocked shots (4, T), 26th in scoring (10.2 ppg, T) …

- Jon Adrian is 7th in 3-pt pct. (.455) ...

- Corey Clark is 1st in assists (15) ...

* Double-Doubles

- Mike Taylor: season 0, career 3

* Triple-Doubles

- Mike Taylor: season 0, career 1 - 18 pts, 15 reb, 11 ast vs. Willamette, 1/25/11 (first GFU triple-double in 18 seasons)

* Statistician “Biggs” Increases Overall Streak to 721 in a Row

With the Bruins’ home game against Northwest Christian on Nov. 26, long-time statistician Mike “Biggs” Wirta extended his streak of George Fox men’s basketball games attended, home and way, to 721 in a row.  His streak of home games worked increased to 641 straight.  He has not missed a Bruin home game 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 (1,132of 2,159 for 52.43%) in the 107-plus seasons of Bruin basketball.

* Head Coach Mark Sundquist

Head coach Mark Sundquist (Seattle Pacific ’87) is 112-168 (.400, 59-63 home, 41-91 road, 12-14 neutral) to date in his 12th 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 …

Sundquist vs. upcoming opponents:

Whitman - 11-11 (8-3 home, 3-8 road)

Whitworth - 5-18 (3-8 home, 2-10 road)