After being picked fifth in the conference preseason poll despite their NCAA Tournament run a year ago, Northwest Nazarene men's basketball has defied expectations and achieved their highest-ever finish at second place in the GNAC standings, and will take that two-seed into this week's GNAC Tournament.

The Nighthawks are arguably the hottest team heading into the tournament, having won their last four games and seven of their last eight contests. NNU finishes the regular season with a 10-5 conference mark and 12-8 overall record.

NNU will have to wait until Wednesday to find out their quarterfinal opponent, as they will face the winner of the first-round matchup between seven-seed Simon Fraser and 10-seed Alaska Fairbanks. The Nighthawks will then play either SFU/UAF on Thursday at 5:15 p.m. Pacific at Royal Brougham Pavilion in Seattle.

Saint Martin's finished the regular season with an 11-6 conference record, 18-8 overall, to earn the No. 1 seed in the GNAC's Points Rating System with a 3.62, just edging out NNU at 3.60 for the regular-season title. Alaska Anchorage finished No. 3 with a rating of 3.37, followed by Montana State Billings at 3.26 and Central Washington at 3.25.

Two first-round games will open the tournament on Wednesday. No. 8 Western Washington and No. 9 Western Oregon will square off at 4:30 p.m. in Lacey, while No. 7 Simon Fraser and No. 10 Alaska will play at the same time in Seattle.

The quarterfinals commence on Thursday at 5:15 p.m., with No. 4 Montana State Billings taking on No. 5 Central Washington in Lacey while No. 2 seed Northwest Nazarene will play the Simon Fraser/Alaska winner. At 7:30 p.m., Saint Martin's will play the Western Washington/Western Oregon winner in Lacey while No. 3 Alaska Anchorage and No. 6 Seattle Pacific will square off in Seattle.

The semifinal games will be played at 5:15 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. in Marcus Pavilion with the championship game taking place on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. All games at the GNAC Basketball Championships will be streamed live at GNAC.tv.

Tickets for the GNAC Basketball Championships went on sale Sunday. Single-session tickets will be available for $13 for general admission seats and $18 for reserved seats. General admission tickets for seniors 60 and older, high school and college students and children between 6 and 12 years of age are $8. Children five and under are admitted free.

Tournament passes for all games, regardless of venue, will be available for $48 for general admission seats and $65 for reserved seats. General admission tournament passes for seniors 60 and older, high school and college students and children between 6 and 12 years of age are $30.

County health and safety protocols will be in place for fans attending tournament contests at Seattle Pacific (King County) and Saint Martin's (Thurston County). At both venues, all fans attending the tournament are required to wear facemasks regardless of vaccination status.
 

GNAC MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS SCHEDULE
Wednesday, Mar. 2 - First Round
No. 8 Western Washington vs. No. 9 Western Oregon (at Lacey), 4:30 p.m.
No. 7 Simon Fraser vs. No. 10 Alaska (at Seattle), 4:30 p.m.

Thursday, Mar. 3 - Quarterfinals
No. 4 Montana State Billings vs. No. 5 Central Washington (at Lacey), 5:15 p.m.
No. 2 Northwest Nazarene vs. Simon Fraser or Alaska (at Seattle), 5:15 p.m.
No. 1 Saint Martin's vs. Western Washington or Western Oregon (at Lacey), 7:30 p.m.
No. 3 Alaska Anchorage vs. No. 6 Seattle Pacific (at Seattle), 7:30 p.m.

Friday, Mar. 4 - Semifinals
Semifinal Game 1, 5:15 p.m.
Semifinal Game 2, 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, Mar. 5 - Championship
Championship Game, 7:30 p.m.