Men’s Basketball Hosts Eastern Washington Saturday Night

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – The Northern Arizona men’s basketball team stands in fifth place in the Big Sky standings with a half game lead over Portland State and a 1.5-game lead over Idaho State and Eastern Washington for a Big Sky postseason berth. The Lumberjacks host Eastern Washington Saturday with a chance to clinch a postseason berth.

Tipoff is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. The game can be seen live on Fox Sports Arizona, Fox College Sports Pacific and Universityhouse (Dish Network Channel 9411). Fans can also watch the game on Big Sky TV and can listen in Flagstaff on the Lumberjack Radio Network on KAFF AM 930.

NAU, which can clinch with a win over Eastern Washington and a Portland State loss, is making a push to qualify for the Big Sky Tournament after missing the postseason last season. The Lumberjacks have never not qualified in two consecutive seasons under Mike Adras, advancing to postseason in eight of his 10 previous season. NAU is seeking its 19th Big Sky Championship appearance. The last time NAU failed to reach postseason in two consecutive seasons was the 1995 and 1996 campaigns. The Lumberjacks have played in 11 of the last 13 Big Sky Tournaments since those back-to-back seasons.

Senior Nick Larson will play his final home game on Saturday against Eastern Washington. He has seen action in 113 career games, tied for the eight-best total in school history with Kyle Landry, with 42 career starts. Larson helped NAU tie for the Big Sky regular season title as a freshman and make two Big Sky Tournament Championship game appearances. He has scored 378 points in his career and grabbed 352 rebounds. He has reset his single-game career-high for rebounds in each of the last two games, grabbing 12 boards at Idaho State and 15 against Portland State.

NAU leads the all-time series 32-21 and leads 18-7 in Flagstaff. The Lumberjacks have won six of the last seven meetings with the loss coming in Cheney last season 54-50. Mike Adras owns a 12-12 career mark against the Eagles.