Men's basketball sets field for 2013 Alaska Invitational

April 23, 2013

University Relations

Jamie Foland
907-474-6807

Alaska men's basketball head coach Mick Durham has announced the field for the 2013 Alaska Invitational, which is set to take place Nov. 21-23 at the Patty Center.

Joining the Nanooks in the annual three-day, six-game event will be Emporia State University out of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, Fresno Pacific University from the Pacific West Conference and the University of Mary, which competes in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.

“We're excited for the field and we try to get teams from different regions of the country and we did that this year,” Durham said. “Fresno Pacific brings probably the most talented group in and its style of play is very fast-paced. Then we have a team from the Midwest in Emporia State, which is a nice addition with a rich tradition. Then you add University of Mary from the Rocky Mountain region.”

Alaska completed a major turnaround this past season as it went 16-12 overall, which was 11 wins more than a year ago, while also finishing fourth in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference with a 10-8 record. The Nanooks picked up its first postseason win in eight years and advanced to the semifinal round of the GNAC Championship where they fell to eventual NCAA West Region champion Western Washington.

Durham, who just wrapped up his second season at the helm, was named GNAC Co-Coach of the Year as his team put three members on the All-Conference Team while also receiving five GNAC Player of the Week honors and three GNAC Team of the Week accolades. Outgoing senior guard Dominique Brinson (Juneau, Alaska/Accounting) and junior center Sergej Pucar (Belgrade, Serbia/Business administration) were both named to the All-GNAC Second Team while junior guard Pat Voeut (Bellingham, Wash./Communication) was a Honorable Mention selection.

At last year's Alaska Invitational, the Nanooks captured the team title for the first time ever after going 3-0, with wins over Cal State Monterey Bay, Oklahoma Panhandle State and Colorado Christian. They won the trio of matchups by an average of 14.3 points per win. Voeut was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player while teammates Pucar and junior forward Stefan Tica (Belgrade, Serbia/Business administration) joined him on the All-Tournament Team.

“I'm excited for the tourney,” Durham said. “Last year winning it was a springboard for us on how we played for the rest of the season. You want challenges with different styles of play in the preseason. You learn a lot about your team in three days against good competition. Our success last year was neat to see.”

Emporia State finished 2012-13 with a 13-14 overall record to go with its 8-10 mark in MIAA play to finish eighth. The Hornets fell in the first round of the MIAA Tournament back in March. Three players were honored by the conference as juniors Paul Bunch and Kaleb Wright and senior Chris Sights were tabbed as Honorable Mention All-MIAA picks. Bunch was also selected to the All-Defensive Team.

Fresno Pacific wrapped up last season with a 21-9 record to go with a solid 14-4 mark in PacWest play, to finish second. The Sunbirds are currently in transition into NCAA Division II and were not eligible to compete in PacWest or NCAA post-season. FPU did still enter the National Christian College Athletic Association Championship and finished in fourth with a pair of victories. Juniors John Taylor and Malcolm Griffin both earned First Team All-PacWest honors while senior Antonio Credit was Honorable Mention. Taylor was also named the league's Newcomer of the Year.

Mary went 4-23 last season with a 3-19 record in the NSIC to finish seventh in the North Division and 15th in the 16-team league. UM advanced to the NSIC Tournament but its upset bid over nationally-ranked Winona State fell short in the opening round. Though no player was named to the All-Conference team, a pair of men's basketball players in senior Alex Dorr and junior Mike Johnson was named to the NSIC All-Academic Team.

“Teams are very appreciative to come up to Fairbanks,” Durham said. “Number one, they get three exempt games but they also get the chance to bring their team to Alaska and to see Alaska, which most have never been to. Also, it's a great from a bonding stand point with a road trip over four or five days. We get tremendous interest in the tournament and we ended up with a great, exciting field.”

Game times are set for 5 p.m. for game one and game two for 7 p.m. or 30 minutes following the first game of each session. For more information, visit the Alaska Invitational tournament page. More information, including ticket prices, will be released as it becomes available.