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Feb. 22, 2004

BELLINGHAM, Wash. -

UPDATE: Coming off a pair of crucial victories, the Western Washington University men's basketball team plays its final road game of the regular season this week, visiting Seattle Pacific in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference contest Sat., Feb. 28.

The Vikings, No.10 in the NCAA Division II West Region rankings for the second consecutive time last week, are 16-8 overall and sit third in the GNAC at 10-5 after winning at archrival Central Washington, 84-80, on Feb. 19; then traveling to Saint Martin's and running past the Saints, 111-90, on Feb. 21.

It was the second time this season the Vikings had swept both ends of a GNAC road trip. No other school in the conference has done so more than once.

Western has three regular-season games remaining, as it hosts Alaska Fairbanks and Alaska Anchorage on Mar. 4 and Mar. 6. Victories in all three games would probably, but not certainly, get the Vikings one of eight West Region berths in the NCAA Division II National Tournament. Winning two of the three would put Western on the bubble.

Seattle Pacific enters 13-11 overall, and fourth in the GNAC at 9-6. The Falcons, who have won their last four games, are led by junior center Jason Chivers, who leads the conference in rebounding at 11.3 per game and is scoring at a 15.8 clip.

The Vikings lead the GNAC in scoring at 88.0 points a game. They have reached 100 points five times, their second-highest total in the last 10 years, and are within striking distance of school single-season records for 3-pointers made and 3-point percentage.

Two sophomores share Western's scoring lead as guard Ryan Diggs, who earned GNAC co-Player of the Week honors for his performance last week, and forward Grant Dykstra are each averaging 15.5 points a game. Diggs, who also contributes 3.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.7 steals, ranking eighth in the GNAC in steals and assists, has been on a tear recently. He is averaging 22.4 points, 5.2 assists, and 2.2 steals in the last five games, and had a career-high 11 assists in the triumph over Saint Martin's.

Dykstra also leads Western in rebounds (6.3), ranking seventh in the GNAC in that category, and steals (1.8), which is sixth in the conference. He had a total of 45 points, 18 rebounds and eight assists in the two victories last week. Dykstra ranks seventh among league leaders in 3-point makes (2.1) and ninth in free throw percentage (77.8, 49-of-63).

Senior guard Jason Burrell, who missed the Saint Martin's game with a groin injury, ending a streak of 42 consecutive starts, is averaging 13.6 points and leads Western in assists (4.7, sixth in the GNAC). Burrell is shooting 54.7 percent (88-of-161) from the field and a team-best 88.4 percent (122-of-138), ranking second in the conference in the latter category and in free throws made per game (5.3).

Also scoring in double figures is junior forward Craig Roosendaal, who contributes 12.2 points and 3.4 rebounds. Roosendaal is Western's leading 3-point threat, going 63-of-137 (46.0) and ranking second in the GNAC in 3-pointers made and sixth in 3-point percentage.

Completing the starting lineup is junior center Rod Picou, who contributes 6.9 points and 4.6 rebounds. He had 12 points and eight rebounds at Saint Martin's.

Off the bench, freshman forward Grant Assink, who had season-highs of 19 points and nine rebounds on 6-of-6 field-goal shooting at Saint Martin's, averages 7.1 points and 3.6 rebounds and is shooting 61.3 percent (68-of-111) from the field. Sophomore guard Kyle Jackson averages 6.2 points and 2.0 assists, freshman center Lukas Henne averages 5.5 points and a team-best 1.0 blocks (tied for seventh in GNAC), and senior guard Stefan Dickason contributes 4.1 points.

The Vikings shot a season-high 57.7 percent (15-of-27) from 3-point range at Saint Martin's. For the season, Western is hitting on 40.6 percent of its treys, going 206-of-507, third in the GNAC. That's just short of the school record of 41.5 percent set in 1986-87, the inaugural year of the 3-point shot. The 206 makes are only 24 short of the school best of 230 set in 1997-98, a season when the Vikings launched 646 attempts, hitting 35.6 percent.

Western is second in the conference in both offensive rebounding (14.17) and 3-point makes (8.58).

UPCOMING GAMES:

Feb. 28 (Sat.) at Seattle Pacific*@ (Seattle - 7 p.m.)
Mar.  4 (Thu.) ALASKA ANCHORAGE* (CARVER GYM - 7 P.M.)
Mar.  6 (Sat.) ALASKA FAIRBANKS*@ (CARVER GYM - 7 P.M.)
*Great Northwest Athletic Conference counter
@broadcast on KBAI Radio (930 AM - Bellingham) and internet (wwuvikings.com)

THREE-DOT NOTES: Through the first 15 games, Diggs was shooting 37.3 percent (76-of-204) from the field, but in the last nine contests, he is hitting 53.1 percent (65-of-121) ... The Vikings are just 1-3 this season in games decided by 1-4 points ... The 111 points against Saint Martin's were the most Western has ever scored in a conference game, although the Vikings spent more than a decade in the 1980s and early 1990s without having a formal conference affiliation ... Western's next home win will be its 400th at Carver Gym. The Vikings are 11-2 at home this season ... Burrell became the 18th player in school history to score 1,000 career points on Feb. 7 at Humboldt State. He currently ranks 16th with 1,014 and needs 10 points to move into 15th and 12 to move into 14th ... Four of Western's losses this season have been to teams currently ranked among the Top 25 nationally, those being to No.1 Tarleton State TX, No.8 Cal State San Bernardino and No.9 Humboldt State (twice) ... Roosendaal missed two games earlier this season with a foot injury ... Only Dykstra has started all 24 games this season, and he now has a streak of 51 consecutive starts ... The Vikings have scored 100 or more points five times, but have given up triple digits a school-record four times. Twice both teams have reached the century mark, with the 107-100 victory over Western Baptist being the first time in school history the feat had been accomplished in regulation time.

The loss to Humboldt State on Jan. 8 was just the third time in school history that Western had scored 100 or more points and lost, all three going to double overtime ... The Vikings have reached the century mark 97 times in their history ... Western's back-to-back overtime games against Pacific Lutheran and Humboldt State were the first for the Vikings since the 1997-98 season. The two overtimes versus Humboldt State were the most for Western since that same campaign when the Vikings suffered a 112-104 triple overtime loss to Brigham Young-Hawaii after beating Hawaii Pacific, 102-97, in double overtime two days earlier.

Burrell, who earned GNAC Player of the Week honors for Jan. 25-31, was named MVP of the WWU/Chuck Randall Thanksgiving Classic, and Diggs also was an all-tourney pick. The Vikings won the tourney for the second straight year, and for the third time in the six-year history of the event ... In 2002-03, Diggs (10.1) and Dykstra (11.6) became the school's first freshman duo to each average double-figures in scoring in the same season.

Picou was an honorable mention Coast Conference all-star last year at Skyline CC, averaging 10.5 points and 6.5 rebounds, and Roosendaal was the MVP of the NWAACC Northern Division while attending Edmonds CC, averaging 17.5 points in 55.0 percent field goal shooting and 6.4 rebounds ... James Laurence joined the Vikings' team at the conclusion of the football season. This is the second straight year that Western has had a gridiron player on its roster. Last season, all-star wide receiver Greg Dykstra played in 10 games.

ONE, TWO, THREEE: An important factor in Western's outstanding offensive output has been efficient use of the 3-point shot. The Vikings are shooting 40.6 percent from 3-point range, having connected on 206-of-507 attempts. That percentage is just short of the school record of 41.5 percent set in 1986-87, the first year of the 3-point shot. But that squad took just 347 treys in a 35-game season, 160 less than have already been launched this year. Western's current pace of 8.6 3-pointers made per game would also be a school best and the Vikings need 24 more to tie the record of 230 made threes in 1997-98 (646 attempts).

GNAC PRESEASON COACHES POLL: Western was sixth in the GNAC Preseason Coaches Poll. Humboldt State was the unanimous choice to win the championship, receiving all 10 first-place votes. The Lumberjacks, who were picked to win the NCAA Division II national title by at least two sports publications, were league co-champions the last two seasons, tying with Alaska Fairbanks last year and Western and Seattle Pacific two years ago. Alaska Fairbanks edged Western Oregon by one point for second place, with Central Washington fourth and Alaska Anchorage fifth.

COACH JACKSON: Brad Jackson is in his 19th year and is the winningest coach in school history, both in total wins (352-208) and winning percentage (.629). He ranks among the top 30 active NCAA II coaches in victories. Three years ago, Jackson directed Western to a 27-4 record and the semifinals of the NCAA II National Championship, being named NABC/NCAA II West Region, Northwest small college and Pacific West Conference Coach of the Year. Five times named district/region Coach of the Year, Jackson has directed Western to 14 post-season playoff appearances, including district/region/conference championships and national tournament appearances in 1988, 1994 and 2001. He has had seven 20-win campaigns (1986-90, 1993-94, 2000-01, 2001-02).

LAST SEASON: Western finished 16-11 overall and tied for fourth in the GNAC at 10-8. The Vikings failed to reach the NCAA II West Regional, but were 4-2 against West Regional qualifiers.

RADIO BROADCASTS: Twelve Western games are being broadcast this season on KBAI Radio (930 AM) with Doug Lange handling the play-by-play, and either Jason Stiles or Mark Scholten providing the color commentary. They also can be heard on the internet at www.wwuvikings.com.

ON THE WEB: For up-to-date statistics, box scores of every game, records, stories, etc., see the Western Athletic web page at www.wwuvikings.com. Up-to-date league standings and statistics can be found on the Great Northwest Athletic Conference web page at www.gnacsports.com.

PROBABLE WESTERN STARTERS & TOP RESERVES:

G Jason Burrell***, 6-1, Sr., Ontario, CA(13.6 ppg,4.7 apg,4.4 rpg,.547 FG Pct.,.884 FT Pct.)
G Ryan Diggs*, 6-2, So., Victorville, CA/Silverado (15.5 ppg, 4.0 apg)
C Rod Picou, 6-6, T-Jr., Oakland, CA/Castlemont/Skyline CC (6.9 ppg, 4.6 rpg)
F Craig Roosendaal, 6-7, T-Jr., Shoreline, WA/King's/Edmonds CC (12.2 ppg, .460 3-pt. pct.)
F Grant Dykstra*, 6-4, So., Everson, WA/Lynden Christian (15.5 ppg, 6.3 rpg)

C Grant Assink, 6-9, Fr., Lynden, WA (7.1 ppg, 3.6 rpg, .613 FG Pct., .818 FT Pct.)
G Kyle Jackson*, 5-10, So., Bellingham, WA/Sehome (6.2 ppg, .436 3-pt. pct.)
F Lukas Henne, 6-6, Fr., Bremerton, WA/Central Kitsap (5.5 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 1.0 bpg)
G Stefan Dickason***, 6-1, Sr., Kent, WA/Kentridge (4.1 ppg)
*letters

OPPONENT SKETCH:

SEATTLE PACIFIC UNIVERSITY: The Falcons (13-11, 9-6 GNAC, 7-3 home, 6-8 road) have won their last four games. They are led by honorable mention all-GNAC 6-9 junior center Jason Chivers (15.8 ppg, 11.3 rpg, 1.9 bpg, .534 FG Pct., .770 FT Pct.), the only returning starter from last year's 16-11 team (snapped string of five straight regional appearances), much-improved 6-2 junior guard Jordan Lee (16.0 ppg, .496 3-pt. pct., 62-125; .807 FT Pct.), who bloomed on a fall trip to Australia where he averaged 23.2 points, and 6-4 redshirt forward Dustin Bremerman (11.8 ppg, 4.8 rpg). Also back for second-year coach Jeff Hironaka (29-22, served 11 years as assistant) are 6-7 sophomore forward Jeff Knudson (7.7 ppg, .458 3-pt. pct., 44-96), 6-1 sophomore guard Tony Binetti (8.2 ppg, 4.7 apg) and 6-7 sophomore forward Mike Bushmaker (4.4 ppg, .582 FG Pct.). A transfer making a major contribution is 6-2 junior guard Ralph Steele (10.0 ppg, .904 FT Pct.) from Citrus College. SPU is averaging 82.6 points a game, shooting 39.6 percent from 3-point range and 77.8 percent at the free throw line. Western trails 62-42 in the series, but won last meeting, 80-73, at Bellingham on Jan. 31.

GAME SUMMARIES:

Feb. 19 - WESTERN 84, Central Washington 80 at Ellensburg, WA

Diggs and Dykstra tied for game-high honors with 24 points each as Western defeated Central Washington, 84-80, in a GNAC game at Nicholson Pavilion. The Vikings completed just the fourth series sweep over their arch rival since 1964-65. Diggs and Dykstra were both 10-of-21 from the floor. Diggs, who had 16 points in the second half, also had seven assists and seven rebounds. Dykstra, who grabbed 11 rebounds, had 15 points and eight rebounds in the first half. Central, which had a five-game winning streak snapped, fell to 8-14 overall and 5-8 in league play. The Wildcats were led by guard Chris Lynn with 17 points, 14 in the first half. Down by five points, 75-70, with 4:06 left in the game, the Vikings scored nine of the next 11 points, six by Diggs, who put Western ahead for good, 79-78, on a 12-foot jumper at 1:36. Dykstra then made a steal which led to a slam dunk by Henne. After a Central miss, Henne grabbed the rebound and hit two free throws with 21 seconds left to put the game out of reach, 83-78. Henne came off the bench to finish with 11 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots. Western led by 10 points, 14-4, after the first six minutes, limiting the Wildcats to just one field goal during that span. Central bounced back with a 21-8 run to take a 25-22 lead with 8:10 left in the first half. They were ahead by that same margin over three minutes later, but the Vikings closed the period with a 12-7 burst for a 41-39 halftime lead. Central opened the second half with an 11-1 run over a four-minute span for its biggest lead of seven points, 50-43. The Wildcats got 15 points from guard Scott Freymond and forward Mike Connor had 12 points and grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds.

Feb. 21 - WESTERN 111, Saint Martin's 90 at Lacey, WA

Assink came off the bench to score 19 points, going 6-of-6 from the field, and grabbed a game-high nine rebounds as Western defeated Saint Martin's, 111-90, in a GNAC game at the SMC Pavilion. The Vikings, who hit 10-of-13 3-point shots in the second half, got 21 points each from Dykstra and Roosendaal. The 111 points were a season high and the most by the Vikings in a GNAC contest. Saint Martin's fell to 8-15 overall and 4-10 in league action, losing for the eighth time in its last nine games. Forward Niko Nunogawa led the Saints with a game-high 24 points, and guard Brandon Hartley had 22. Diggs had 15 points and a career-high 11 assists for Western. In all, the Vikings hit 15-of-27 3-pointers, the 15 makes being two short of the school record. Roosendaal connected on five threes and Dysktra and Diggs hit three each. Western held a 15-point lead, 65-50, with 16:30 left in the game, but the Saints scored 11 straight points to cut the deficit to four, 65-61, with 14:07 remaining. A minute later, the Vikings went on a 14-6 run to put their lead at 14, 83-69, with 9:10 remaining and Saint Martin's never got closer than nine after that. Trailing 35-33 with 6:34 left in the first half, Western scored 14 straight points over the next two minutes to lead 47-35, and held a 55-41 advantage at halftime. The Vikings, who shot 55.6 percent from the floor (40-of-72) and had a 45-30 rebound advantage, had six players score in double figures. Picou had 12 points and eight rebounds, and Dickason contributed 10 points.

VIKINGS BY THE NUMBERS

Leading at the half, 14-3
Trailing at the half, 1-4
Tied at the half, 1-1

In Overtime, 1-1

Shooting 50% or better, 5-1
Shooting 40-49.9%, 9-4
Shooting less than 40%, 2-3

Opponent shoots 50% or better, 6-7
Opponent shoots 40-49.9%, 5-1
Opponent shoots less than 40%, 5-0

WWU outrebounds opponent, 11-2
Opponent outrebounds WWU, 4-6
Teams are tied in rebounds, 1-0

Makes 0-4 three-pointers, 3-0
Makes 5-7 three-pointers, 5-2
Makes 8 or more three-pointers, 8-6

WWU shoots more FTs	10-1
Opponent shoots more FTs	5-5
Teams shoot same number of FTs	1-2

WWU bench outscores opponent bench, 10-2
Opponent bench outscores WWU bench, 6-5
Benches score same number of points, 0-1

WWU commits fewer TOs than Opp., 10-4
Opponents commit fewer TOs than WWU, 4-4
Teams commit same amount of TOs, 2-0

WWU commits 15 or fewer TOs, 10-4
WWU commits more than 15 TOs, 6-4

Opponent ranked in Top 25 Coaches Poll, 0-3

Scoring less than 50 points, 0-0
Scoring 50-59 points, 0-0
Scoring 60-69 points, 0-0
Scoring 70-79 points, 2-3
Scoring 80-89 points, 7-2
Scoring 90-99 points, 3-2
Scoring 100 points or more, 4-1

Allowing 50 points or less, 0-0
Allowing 50-59 points, 0-0
Allowing 60-69 points, 4-0
Allowing 70-79 points, 6-2
Allowing 80-89 points, 4-1
Allowing 90-99 points, 1-2
Allowing 100 points or more, 1-3

Game is decided by 1-4 points, 1-3
Game is decided by 5-10 points, 7-2
Game is decided by 11 or more points, 8-3

Playing a day game, 0-1
Playing a night game, 16-7

In November, 4-0
In December, 3-4
In January, 6-1
In February, 3-3
In March, 0-0

On Sunday, 0-0
On Monday, 3-0
On Tuesday, 0-0
On Wednesday, 1-1
On Thursday, 4-2
On Friday, 1-1
On Saturday, 7-4