UAF men earn automatic bid to NCAAs

Submitted by Dave Geringer
Phone: (907) 474-6807
03/06/05

It took Humboldt State about three and a half minutes to destroy what the University of Alaska Fairbanks men’s basketball team had taken 36 minutes to build in their Great Northwest Athletic Conference game Saturday night.

But the Nanooks, who saw a 10 point lead evaporate in the final three and a half minutes, came back, getting a jump shot from junior forward Justin Bourne (Fairbanks, AK/Lathrop HS) on the final shot of the game to defeat HSU, 84-83, share the GNAC championship, and earn the automatic bid to the NCAA West Regionals on the tie-breaker with Western Washington.

The public is invited to a send-off reception Tuesday morning.

The reception is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. and will take place in the lobby of the Patty Center.

Head Coach Frank Ostanik and Director of Athletics Cory Schwartz will be among the featured speakers.

The fifth-seeded Nanooks will play fourth-seeded Cal State San Bernardino in the first round of the NCAA West Regional Tournament Friday at 4:30 p.m. Alaska Standard Time at Carver Gym at Western Washington University. UAF, which finished as Great Northwest Athletic Conference co-champions and earned the GNAC’s automatic bid, will take a 19-8 record into Friday’s contest. CSUSB was 21-5 overall and 16-4 in league play.