ELLENSBURG, Wash. – Central Washington men's basketball (9-11, 5-6 GNAC) travels to Alaska this week. The Wildcats play Alaska Fairbanks (8-10, 3-7 GNAC) on Thursday, February 2^nd at 8 p.m. and face Alaska Anchorage (9-10, 3-7 GNAC) on Saturday, February 4^th at 8:30 p.m.
 
QUOTING HEAD COACH BRANDON RINTA
"This trip is what makes being in the GNAC a unique experience. Winning on the road is always hard and it doesn't get any harder than Fairbanks and Anchorage."
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Wildcats went 1-1 at home this weekend, beating Seattle Pacific 69-62, then falling 69-70 to Montana-State Billings.

Despite being down 10-15 early on, Samaad Hector nailed a three to help the 'Cats regain the lead 23-19 with 10:41 remaining in the first half. Camron McNeil converted from deep putting the Wildcats up 8. Brock Gilbert ended the half in style with a circus layup giving CWU the 39-32 lead at the break.

Poor shooting hurt the Crimson and Black, in the second half, they shot 41% from the floor and only made two threes. Despite the offensive struggles, the 'Cats had a chance to win at the end, but Matt Poquette's 20-foot jumper rattled in and out.  

Camron McNeil led four double-digit scorers with 21 points making five threes, Hector had 16 and seven rebounds, Gilbert added 14 to go with eight assists, and Matt Poquette chipped in 11.
 
SCOUTING THE NANOOKS
Alaska Fairbanks is currently ranked 9^th in the GNAC standings with a record of 8-10 overall and 3-7 in conference play. Fairbanks beat their rivals Alaska Anchorage 89-79 last Saturday.

The Nanooks shot 59% from the floor in the first half to take the 40-34 lead into the break. Anchorage utilized the three ball in the second half hitting five more than Fairbanks, but the Nanooks went 18-19 from the charity stripe to take the 89-79 home victory.

Abdullahi Mohamed leads Fairbanks offensively averaging 13.1 points per game, not far behind him is Tyler Mrus averaging 12.6 ppg. Jaycson Bereal Jr. Is ranked ninth in rebounding in the GNAC hauling in 5.2 boards per game. Bryan Nguyen leads the team from beyond the arc shooting 43.9%

The Nanooks lead the GNAC in field goal percentage defense, holding teams to 40.6% from the floor. From beyond the arc, Fairbanks is second in the GNAC holding opponents to 32.7%.  UAF excels on the glass earning them the best conference rebounding margin at +5.5.
 
SCOUTING THE SEAWOLVES
Alaska Anchorage is currently 8^th in the GNAC with a 9-10 overall record and 3-7 in GNAC play. The Seawolves dropped two games last week, 73-100 against Saint Martin's and 79-89 to Alaska Fairbanks. Anchorage will face Northwest Nazarene on Thursday before hosting the Wildcats on Saturday.

Fairbanks jumped out to an early 28-16 lead, but the Seawolves chipped away as Caleb Larsen converted a four-point play and AJ Garrity swished two from deep bringing the deficit to 34-40 at the half. Despite a season-high 17 three-pointers, the Seawolves couldn't close out the comeback.

Dathan Satchell and Storms Sawyer lead Alaska Anchorage offensively, both averaging 10.1 points per game. Storms also leads the team in rebounding, averaging 4.5 a contest. AJ Garrity leads the team from beyond the arc shooting 52.2%

The Seawolves are 2^nd in scoring margin in the GNAC with +9.4 and lead the conference in assists averaging 17.1 per game.
 
HISTORY
In their previous matchup this season, Central Washington beat Alaska Fairbanks 78-66. Historically, the 'Cats have the edge with 26 wins and 14 losses. The Wildcats fell to the Seawolves 72-90 on January 5^th. Alaska Anchorage has an overall 23-18 record against CWU.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Central Washington returns home next week to face Northwest Nazarene (8-11, 5-6 GNAC) in Nicholson Pavilion. The Wildcats host the Nighthawks Saturday, February 11^th at 6:15 p.m.