Dec. 28, 2007

Alaska vs. Christian Brothers Game Notes

ANCHORAGE, AK- Tonight's matchup marks the second time that Alaska has lined up against the Christian Brothers. Their second meeting comes almost five years to the day of their first contest, when the Nanooks defeated the Buccaneers, 76-63, in the Glacier Classic on Dec. 30, 2002. Both meetings between the two teams have come here in Anchorage.

• While this marks Alaska's first season playing in the AT&T Jamboree, the Nanooks are used to making the six-hour trip south to Anchorage for tournament play. Alaska boasts a 7-1 record at the Glacier Classic tournament over the past four years, including a perfect 4-0 record when the tournament was hosted by Alaska Anchorage.

• Mike Titus' 15-point effort against UC Irvine brings the senior co-captain to a total of 569 points for his four-year career. Titus needs just six points tonight to move into the school's top 50 all-time scorers list.

• Alaska took home sixth place at this year's BP Top of the World Classic touranment, held in Fairbanks on Nov. 15-18. The Nanooks went 1-2 for the tournament, including a shock 62-60 win over Division I Oregon State.

• Alaska needed just 55 seconds to trim down a seven-point second half deficit against Oregon State. Down 53-46 with just over six minutes to go, the Nanooks went off on a 10-0 run that pushed them into the lead by the time the clock hit 5:20.

• Serbian sharpshooter Mladen Begojevic solidified his reputation as one of the Nanooks most potent scoring threats, leading the team in points in each of the last four games. The junior currently leads the team in scoring, averaging 14.4 points per game, as well as shooting, having made 55.4 percent of his attempts, including an impressive 14-for-25 shooting (56.0 percent) from behind the arc.

• Kevin Atkins, who played in just 11 games last year, has been a revelation for the Nanooks this season. The Long Beach native has pulled in three double-doubles for the Nanooks this season, his last coming against UC San Diego on Dec. 6 (17 pts, 10 rbs). Atkins leads the team in rebounding, grabbing 9.1 boards per game: third-best in the conference. The sophomore trails only Begojevic in scoring as well, putting 13.1 ppg on the scoreboard for the Nanooks.

• The AT&T Jamboree will be Alaska's final tune-up before beginning their Great Northwest Athletic Conference's competition schedule on Jan. 3 against Saint Martin's.