Men's Basketball: Western Oregon Ready For Regular Season to Begin

After three exhibition games, the Wolves will next get nearly two weeks off before action begins again.

Photo: WOUwolves.com

MONMOUTH - Western Oregon shot 71 percent from the floor in the first half, running out to an 18-point margin at the break on their way to a 91-80 exhibition victory over Concordia on Saturday night at the Physical Education Building.

The Wolves shot 59 percent for the game and out-rebounded the Cavaliers 34-21 in their final exhibition tune-up of the fall.

Wait List:

WOU will play their first regular season games at Chico State’s tournament on Nov. 24th-25th, against the host Wildcats and Humboldt State.

Home, Sweet Home:

After two exhibition contests against NCAA Division I schools (Boise State and Portland State), the Wolves took their turn to topple a team playing a rung below them.

The squad also enjoyed playing at home in the Physical Education Building for the first time this year, nailing 9 of 19 three-point attempts.

Jacob Mitchell banged home 25 points, missing only three shots from the floor (10-13) and was 5-for-6 from the free throw line. Travis Kuhns added 18 and had four steals, while Brad Krichevsky had 11 points. Alex Swerzbin dished 12 assists and had just one turnover.

Craig on Concordia game:

“It was a nice break to play against a non-Division I team. We played well together against a team that is not as physical as Boise State or Portland State, but they can shoot the ball very well. Defense will be a point of emphasis with us this year, and I was encouraged with our effort there against Concordia.”

Hurry Up And Wait:

After getting some action under their belts with the three exhibition games, the Wolves will now have to wait until Nov. 24th-25th to get back into play.

The Wolves will then partake in the Mac Martin Invitational at Chico State. The host Wildcats will be first on Friday night (7:30 PM).

Chico State was 10-17 last year, but is expected to be much improved this winter. Already, they fared well in two exhibition games against Division I schools, falling to No. 24 nationally ranked Nevada-Reno 93-77 and to Pacific, 78-53.

Before hosting the Wolves and Central Washington at their own tournament, they will travel to Texas to take on No. 3 nationally ranked Tarleton State (Div. II) and Texas A&M-Commerce.

The Wolves are 1-4 against Chico State all-time, picking up their first win against the Wildcats last season, 97-85.

Former GNAC member Humboldt State is operating out of the California Collegiate Athletic Association, and is picked to win that basketball conference.

The Lumberjacks are also ranked sixth nationally in the Street and Smith’s pre-season poll.

HSU played tough against No. 6 ranked UCLA at Pauley Pavilion last week (87-61), and will play Dominican on Nov. 17 before traveling to Chico.

The Wolves and Lumberjacks are scheduled to hook up on Saturday night (Nov. 25th) at 5:30 PM. HSU leads the all-time series, 29-16, and won both meetings between the two schools last year.

Craig on Chico Tournament:

“Having the break heading into those games will be a good thing for us. We can fine-tune some things that we are working on. Chico State is much improved from a year ago and of course Humboldt State is picked to win the CCAA. Any regional game is very important, so it is good for us to have some extra time to prepare.”

Probable Starters:

F- 24 Jacob Mitchell (6-7, 235, Sr., Olympia, Wash.)

F- 30 Travis Kuhns (6-8, 200, So., Salem, Ore.)

F- 33 Ryan Schmidt (6-7, 210, Jr., Keizer, Ore.)

G- 5 Alex Swerzbin (6-0, 190, Sr., Portland, Ore.)

G- 20 Dominque DeWeese (6-3, 175, Sr., Portland, Ore.)

Bad News:

Stanger and the Wolves took in bad news before the first jump ball had been tossed up for the season.

Junior post Stanley Ratcliff injured his achilles in practice, had surgery, and is out for the year. As a sophomore, the Alaska native averaged 11.5 points a game and 6.0 rebounds a contest last year.

“It is a huge blow to lose Stanley,” Stanger said. “Despite his size (6-3), he was a force inside every night, he always comes to play. It was a big adjustment playing without him, we will have some players slightly out of position until we can figure things out totally.

This is a big opportunity for some other players to step up and pick up the slack.” Ratcliff will receive a medical redshirt, and will return in 2007-08 as a junior.

Second For Stanger:

The 2006-07 season marks the second year with head coach Craig Stanger at the helm. A longtime assistant coach at WOU, Stanger took the reigns last season and the Wolves finished 9-18 overall, and were 4-9 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. T

he Idaho native graduated from Brigham Young University in 1992, and was a highly successful high school coach in Idaho and Utah before joining the Wolves staff as an assistant in 1995.

Who Is Back:

Seven lettermen return for Stanger this winter, including the 2005-06 GNAC Freshman of the Year, Travis Kuhns (6-8, Salem).

Kuhns, who averaged 11.5 points a game in his rookie season, is joined by fellow returning starters Jacob Mitchell (6-7, Sr., Olympia, WA) and Larry Hall (6-2, Sr., Long Beach, CA). Mitchell was the team’s top board man (7.2), while Hall added seven points a contest.

Other letterwinners returning include Dominic DeWeese (6-3, Sr., Portland), Tyler Blok (So., 6-6, Banks), Rob Malone (5-9, Jr., Portland), and Brad Krichevsky (5-9, Jr., Beaverton).

The New Guys:

Stanger secured a solid recruiting class, from which many players will contribute immediately for WOU in 2006-07. Included on the list is Tyner’s possible replacement, Alex Swerzbin (6-0, Sr., Portland) who last played at Hawaii Pacific. Mike McLaughlin (6-6, Fr., Lake Oswego) is a true freshman who was a key player on the Laker’s state championship squad last winter.

Adonal Arrington (6-11, Jr., Clackamas) gives the Wolves height and bulk inside, and Ryan Schmidt (Jr., 6-7, Keizer) gives Stanger another scoring option. Schmidt transferred to WOU from Hawaii, and prior to that he averaged 18.2 points per game at Linn-Benton CC.

The Coaches Speak:

The 2006-07 Great Northwest Athletic Conference coaches poll was released on Oct. 31st, with Central Washington garnering six of the nine first place votes and earning the favorites role. Here is how the coaches vote tallied. (1) Central Washington, (2) Seattle Pacific, (3) Alaska Anchorage, (4) Seattle, (5) Western Washington, (6) Saint Martin’s, (7) Alaska Fairbanks, (8) Northwest Nazarene, (9) Western Oregon.

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