NAMPA, Idaho - The Northwest Nazarene University men's and women's basketball teams are both ranked in the NCAA D.II West Regional Polls released this afternoon, with the women's team ranked fifth and the men's team ranked tenth.
The Lady Crusaders fell one spot from the opening poll last week after dividing a pair of home games last weekend against the University of Alaska Fairbanks (W,91-56) and the University of Alaska Anchorage (L,65-66).
The men swept a pair of GNAC games at home last weekend, defeating Alaska Fairbanks 86-70 and Alaska Anchorage 79-74, finding themselves in the regional poll for the first time this season.
Both teams will travel for a rare pair of road doubleheaders, as each team faces Western Washington University on Thursday night in Bellingham, Wash., and will then play at Seattle Pacific University on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off times at WWU are 5:15 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., while the SPU games tip-off at 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. All times are Pacific Time.
On the men's side, Seattle Pacific is the top-ranked GNAC team at 16-2 overall and 7-0 in GNAC play, with Western Washington in second-place at 19-3 overall and 6-2 in league games. SPU and WWU are also 1-2 in the West Regional Poll.
This weekend's opponents switch places on the women's side, with Western Washington leading the GNAC and sitting second in the West Regional Poll with a 17-2 overall, 8-0 GNAC record, while Seattle Pacific is second in the GNAC at 6-1 and third in the West Regional Poll at 15-3 overall.
The regional rankings will eventually determine which five teams will join the GNAC and PacWest regular-season champions and the CCAA post-season tournament champion in the eight-team West Regional playoffs in March.
Follow the Crusaders live on GNAC-TV with free video streaming of all men's and women's games at
www.pennatlantic.com, and follow the men's team live on the radio in the Treasure Valley on AM 950.
Men's West Regional Poll - 1. Seattle Pacific (15-2), 2. Western Washington (16-3), 3. CSU San Bernardino (11-2), 4. Humboldt State (14-4); 5. Dixie State (12-4), 6. Cal Poly Pomona (9-4); 7. BYU-Hawaii (8-4), 8. Alaska Anchorage (7-4); 9. Central Washington (9-5), 10. Northwest Nazarene (8-5). Note : Records are against Division II opponents.
Women's West Regional Poll - 1. UC San Diego (16-1); 2. Western Washington (16-2); 3. Seattle Pacific (12-3); 4. Alaska Anchorage (13-3); 5. Northwest Nazarene (12-4); 6. Cal Poly Pomona (13-4); 7. Humboldt State (14-4); 8. Grand Canyon (12-6); 9. Chico State (11-7); 10. Cal State Monterey Bay (11-5).
Note : Records are against Division II opponents.
