ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Central Washington University men's basketball team (11-12, 5-7 GNAC) looks to remain in playoff contention with three weeks remaining in the regular season with two big matchups this week against Montana State Billings (20-6, 9-4 GNAC) on Thursday, and Seattle Pacific (12-8, 7-6 GNAC) on Saturday.
 

INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
 
Thursday, Feb. 12
Central Washington vs Montana State Billings
7:30 p.m.
Nicholson Arena
Ellensburg, Wash.
WATCH: HERE
LIVE STATS: HERE
TICKETS: HERE
 
Saturday, Feb. 14
Central Washington vs Seattle Pacific
7:15 p.m.
Nicholson Arena
Ellensburg, Wash.
WATCH: HERE
LIVE STATS: HERE
TICKETS: HERE
 
 
LAST WEEKEND:

Central wrapped up its Alaska road trip with a pair of competitive games but came up short in both, first falling 77-70 at Alaska Anchorage on Feb. 5, before dropping an 89-81 contest at Alaska Fairbanks on Feb. 7. Against the Seawolves, the Wildcats jumped out early with a 6-0 lead and stayed within striking distance most of the night, trailing just 35-31 at halftime. CWU briefly cut the deficit to one midway through the second half and later pulled within three in the final 90 seconds, but Anchorage answered each push and sealed the game at the free-throw line. Two days later in Fairbanks, the Wildcats again battled throughout, scoring 41 first-half points and trading baskets in a fast-paced contest. CWU remained within a possession multiple times in the second half, yet the Nanooks consistently countered late runs and used timely shooting down the stretch to hold off the Wildcats in another tight conference matchup.
 
Individually, the Wildcats saw strong offensive production across the weekend. Chae Haynes led the Wildcats in Fairbanks with 23 points and a dominant 12-rebound double-double while also going 9-of-10 from the free-throw line after scoring 16 points and grabbing six boards at Anchorage. Jordan Clark led the offense in the first game with 16 points and six assists and added 15 points in just 18 minutes against the Nanooks, while Bradley Swillie contributed 18 points and five rebounds in Fairbanks and six assists in Anchorage. Eli Williams added 12 points on efficient shooting versus the Seawolves, and Calvin Sisk chipped in eight points with two blocks in that contest.

 
SCOUTING THE YELLOWJACKETS:
 
Since its 85-72 home loss to CWU on Jan. 17, Montana State Billings has rebounded well, going 5-1 over its next six games. The Yellowjackets opened the stretch with a convincing 90-72 win at Alaska Fairbanks followed by a 84-70 loss at Alaska Anchorage. MSUB responded with back-to-back road wins in Lacey, Wash. and Monmouth, Ore., beating Saint Martin's 77-71 and Western Oregon 84-74, before returning home to protect Alterowitz Gymnasium with a 91-87 win over Western Washington and an 89-67 victory against Simon Fraser.
 
Montana State Billings is led offensively by guard Mason Landdeck, who leads the Yellowjackets with 463 points and 19.3 points per game while also serving as the primary playmaker with a team-leading 119 assists and an .823 free-throw percentage. Miles Gurske provides a strong secondary scoring option at 14.9 points per game and contributes across the stat sheet with 5.0 rebounds per game and a team-best 50 steals. Off the bench, Brandon Tchouya adds 12.7 points and 5.5 rebounds per game on an efficient .556 shooting clip, while interior presence Croix Cox shoots a remarkable .661 from the field and leads the team on the glass at 5.8 rebounds per game along with 18 blocks. Jonas La Tour stretches the floor as the top three-point shooter with .408 from beyond the arc, and Jakob Milling anchors the defense with a team-high 28 blocks and 5.2 rebounds per contest.

 
SCOUTING THE FALCONS:

Since defeating Central 66-63 on Jan. 15, Seattle Pacific has gone 4-3 over its next seven games. The Falcons immediately suffered a one-point home loss to Northwest Nazarene (72-71), then dropped a defensive battle at Alaska Anchorage (54-50) before splitting the Alaska trip with an 82-75 win at Alaska Fairbanks. After returning for a homestand, SPU fell in another close contest at Western Oregon (50-49) but rebounded with a 76-72 road victory at Saint Martin's and has since won back-to-back home games over Simon Fraser (81-70) and Western Washington (78-76).
 
Seattle Pacific features a balanced scoring lineup led by Trace Evans and Julian Mora, who average 13.7 and 13.5 points per game, respectively, with Evans also pulling down 5.3 rebounds per contest and adding 54 assists and 19 steals. Mora is the Falcons' primary perimeter threat, knocking down 51 three-pointers for 38.6 percent while shooting an outstanding 91.7 percent from the free-throw line. Grant Coleman serves as one of the GNAC's top shooters at 48.7 percent from three, while Theo McMillan orchestrates the offense with a team-high 114 assists and 6.8 rebounds per game while adding 9.4 points per night.

 
UP NEXT:
 
The Wildcats will head back out on the road for their final road trip of the regular season, taking on Western Oregon on Thursday, Feb. 19, and then No. 21 Saint Martin's in Lacey, Wash. on Saturday, Feb. 21.