ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Central Washington University men's basketball team travels to Northwest Nazarene University for a Saturday road matchup. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:00 pm MT ($:00 pm PT).

QUOTABLE
"I feel lucky we are getting to play this weekend given everything that has transpired in the last week," CWU Head Coach Brandon Rinta said. "NNU is the best defensive team in the conference. They return almost everyone off their team that made it to the third round of the national tournament last year.
 
SCOUTING NORTHWEST NAZARENE
The Nighthawks are 3-4 on the season with a 1-1 record in GNAC play. The last outing for Northwest Nazarene came on December 7, when they captured a 71-64 victory over the College of Idaho.
 
Both GNAC games the Nighthawks have played needed overtime. They won the first against Montana State Billings, 68-67, before falling to Seattle Pacific by the same score.
 
NNU is averaging 71.57 points per game, led by Gabriel Murphy's 12.1 scoring average. The 6-foot-9 forward has tallied at least 10 points in all but one game this season. Murphy has already recorded five double-doubles, as he has recorded 10 rebounds in all but one game as well. He is shooting 57.9 percent from the field and has swatted 13 shots.
 
George Reidy (11.0) and Christian Rose (10.4) are also averaging a double-digit scoring effort. The Nighthawks are shooting 39.5 percent from the floor and 31.6 percent from beyond the arc. 
 
Opponents are shooting 39.3 percent against the Nighthawks, including a mark of 35.1 percent from deep.
 
LAST TIME OUT
 Xavier Smith's 26 points led the Central Washington University men's basketball team to a 107-88 victory over Bushnell University.
 
Smith finished 9-for-17 from the field and 7-for-9 from the free throw line. He also recorded a team-high seven rebounds. David Thompson finished with 23 points. Matt Poquette chipped in 19, shooting 7-for-9 from the field and 5-for-5 at the charity stripe. Poquette also recorded six rebounds, two of which came on the offensive glass. The Crimson and Black scored 58 points in the paint, 24 points off turnovers, 21 fast break points, and 14 second chance points. Central's reserves combined for 26 points.
 
The Wildcats (7-2) utilized a strong second half to regain control of the contest and eclipse 100 points. Central held the Beacons to just 34 points in the back end to establish a 19-point differential. The Crimson and Black recorded a 24-for-28 mark at the free throw line, while also shooting over 50 percent from the floor.
 
SCHEDULE NOTE
This contest was originally scheduled for February 5, 2022. Central's games against Western Washington (Dec. 30) and Simon Fraser (Jan. 1) were postponed. 
 
December 30's game against Western Washington is now scheduled for Tuesday (Feb. 8) at 7:00 pm in Ellensburg.
 
A make-up date for the game against Simon Fraser has not been announced.