This Week in Alaska Anchorage Women's Basketball...
 
Thu., Jan. 23, 6 pm AST — Carver Gymnasium — Bellingham, Wash.
#5 Alaska Anchorage (18-1, 8-0 GNAC) at Western Washington (11-5, 5-3 GNAC)
&
Sat., Jan. 25, 6 pm AST — SFU West Gymnasium — Burnaby, British Columbia
#5 Alaska Anchorage at Simon Fraser (11-7, 6-2 GNAC [1/23 vs UAF])
 
LIVE VIDEO & STATS: gnac.tv ... alternate live video for both games, Thursday at https://www.youtube.com/user/WWUVikingsAthletics and Saturday at https://www.youtube.com/user/SFUSports
 
SOCIAL MEDIA: Check the @UAAWBB Twitter feed for in-game updates.
 
UAA PROBABLE STARTERS
G—Yazmeen Goo, 5-10, Sr. (10.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 4.1 apg, 2.0 spg, .535 FG, .688 FT)
G—Safiyyah Yasin, 5-6, Sr. (14.2 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.2 apg, 2.3 spg, .441 FG, .397 3FG, .771 FT)
G—Nicole Pinckney, 5-5, So. (5.4 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 1.2 apg)
F—Sala Langi, 5-9, Jr. (6.2 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 1.3 spg, .500 FG, .833 FT)
F—Tennae Voliva, 6-0, Jr. (10.1 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 1.2 apg, 1.0 bpg, 2.1 spg, .497 FG, .646 FT)
 
BORDER BATTLES CONCLUDE ROUND 1: The Seawolves conclude the first half of the GNAC campaign this week with their toughest conference road tests so far, facing 4th-place Western Washington and 2nd-place Simon Fraser ... UAA enters the week with a two-game lead in the GNAC standings over SFU and Northwest Nazarene.
 
SCOUTING REPORT: Western Washington has won four of its last five after a double-OT road loss to Western Oregon on Jan. 2, including an impressive 94-83 road win at Northwest Nazarene last week ... ranked No. 7 in the current D2SIDA West Region poll, the Vikings are led by Anna Schwecke (14.3 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 1.0 bpg, .606 FG, .864 FT) and Emma Duff (10.4 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 1.0 bpg, .500 FG, .340 3FG) ... with a 3-5 record against teams in the national or regional rankings, Simon Fraser has played one of the toughest schedules in the country thus far ... the NCAA's lone Canadian program has won six of its last seven and nine of its last 11 games, with solid victories over WWU (64-60) and at Central Washington (65-59) to its credit ... the Clan are led by Jessica Jones (17.7 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 1.8 apg, .419 FG, .367 3FG, .756 FT) and Tayler Drynan (11.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 4.2 apg, .791 FT).
 
THE SERIES
vs. WWU: UAA leads 26-23 overall; WWU leads 12-10 in Bellingham
Streak: UAA 8
Last: UAA 74-55 (1/31/19 at WWU)
Notes: UAA has won 12 of the last 13 overall and three straight in Bellingham ... the current win streak is UAA's longest vs. WWU ... WWU's last win came by a 71-62 score on Dec. 5, 2015, at Whatcom Community College in Bellingham ... teams have played 22 times since Jan. 2011, including four meetings in the GNAC Tournament finals (all UAA wins) and an NCAA 1st Round game in 2012 ... UAA leads 20-16 in GNAC regular-season meetings (since 2001-02) and 12-4 under head coach Ryan McCarthy ... WWU won the first seven meetings in series history, which began Feb. 13, 1997.
 
vs. SFU: UAA leads 19-8 overall, 6-5 in Burnaby
Streak: UAA 4
Last: UAA 68-63 (2/2/19 at SFU)
Notes: UAA has won 11 of the last 13, although both of SFU's wins have come in stunning form, including an 90-80 NCAA Second Round upset in 2017 against then-No. 2 UAA in Anchorage ... the Clan also pulled a 67-66 stunner in Anchorage against then-No. 1 UAA to close the 2015-16 regular season ... the Seawolves are attempting to equal their longest winning streak against SFU ... UAA leads 13-5 in regular-season meetings since SFU joined the GNAC in the 2010-11 season and 12-5 under head coach Ryan McCarthy ... first meeting was a 65-61 UAA win in Moscow, Idaho, Nov. 28, 1981.
 
STREAKS CONTINUE: The Seawolves stretched their streaks to 13 overall and 27 straight GNAC wins earning a 79-67 road win over Alaska Fairbanks and an 80-33 home blowout of Montana State Billings last week ... at UAF, Jr. C Tennae Voliva had 16 points (7-11 FG) and 5 rebounds as the Seawolves pulled away from a halftime tie to record their 25th straight win in the series ... Jr. G Safiyyah Yasin added 15 points and 4 steals, Jr. F Sala Langi had 12 points (4-4 FG, 4-6 FT) and a career-high 5 steals, and Jr. G/F Lauren Johnson added 8 points (4-4 FG) in the victory ... four days later, Johnson poured in a career-high 16 points (6-8 FG, 2-4 3FG, 2-3 FT) and Jr. PG Stephanie Jackson added 9 points (4-8 FG) and career highs of 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals to power UAA's biggest blowout in 64 all-time meetings vs. MSUB and break a handful of program records, including largest 1st-quarter margin (28-5) and fewest points allowed in a quarter (23-0 in 3rd) ... Jr. PG Yazmeen Goo had 8 points (3-4 FG) and 5 assists to reach 400 career assists, while Voliva had 7 points (3-5 FG), 6 rebounds, 2 assists and no turnovers in just 15 minutes.
 
WINNING WAYS: UAA has broken its own record of 26 straight conference wins (Nov. 30, 2016 to Jan. 18, 2018) and now owns the 2nd- and 3rd-longest strings in GNAC history, behind only Seattle Pacific's amazing 53-game GNAC win streak from 2002-05 ... at 172-16 (.915), the Seawolves have the second-best winning percentage and second-most victories in NCAA Div. II since 2014-15, trailing Ashland (174-15, .921) for those honors ... UAA is a combined 107-8 – including 48-4 on the road – in GNAC regular-season and tournament games over the last six seasons (since Dec. 2014) ... UAA has stretched its Alaska Airlines Center win streak to a record 23 games, suffering its last home loss to Seattle Pacific in the 2018 GNAC Tournament semifinals ... the Seawolves have won 35 consecutive GNAC regular-season home contests, including 10-0 marks the previous three seasons ... UAA has gone a combined 191-16 (.923) in the last 13 seasons on its home courts, including 82-6 (.932) at the Alaska Airlines Center (since 2014-15) ... the Seawolves have won at least 30 games in three of the last four seasons, starting with their NCAA Div. II-record 38 victories in 2015-16 ... last year UAA became the first basketball program to win at least a share of five straight GNAC regular-season titles (four outright, tied in 2018) ... UAA has recorded 25 wins for five straight seasons and produced 15 20-win seasons in 42 years of program history ... the Seawolves have won 57 of their last 59 regular-season games against Div. II non-conference opponents ... UAA has already clinched the program's 14th consecutive winning season and is seeking its 13th NCAA Tournament berth in 14 years ... the Seawolves have won five of the nine GNAC Tournament titles since the event started in 2011.
 
NIFTY NUMBERS: UAA has assumed its familiar position among the NCAA Div. II national stats leaders, ranking among the top 50 in 13 categories ­– 5th in scoring margin (+24.3) and turnover margin (+9.1), 6th in scoring defense (51.8), 7th in steals per game (13.7), 12th in A/T ratio (1.24), 15th in turnovers forced per game (22.7) and 21st in assists per game (16.9) – despite not having a single player among the top 50 in any individual category ... in the GNAC stats, the Seawolves lead in 10 of the 21 categories, and rank second in three others ... the Seawolves are attempting to finish top-10 nationally in steals for the seventh straight season, having led NCAA Div. II for four straight years from 2013-14 to 2016-17.
 
GOO NEWS: An honorable mention All-GNAC selection the past two seasons and a Preseason All-GNAC Team pick this year, Sr. PG Yazmeen Goo has been impressive thus far, helping UAA rank top 10 nationally in steals, turnover margin and scoring defense ... in the GNAC stats, the Bay Area product ranks 3rd in assists (4.2 apg) and A/T ratio (1.9), and 5th in FG% (.539) and steals (2.0 spg), despite logging a modest 22.4 minutes per game in UAA's balanced system ... on UAA's career lists, Goo continues to rise the charts at 5th in assists (394), 10th in assists per game (4.0), 5th in steals (241), 12th in steals per game (2.4), 8th in FTs made (280), 13th in FTs made per game (2.8), 18th in FG% (.488) and 12th in victories (88).
 
YASIN HER LATELY: Another Preseason All-GNAC selection and the GNAC Player of the Week for Jan. 6-12, Sr. G Safiyyah Yasin (suf-FEE-yuh ya-SEEN) is wreaking havoc on opposing defenses, ranking 8th in the GNAC with 14.2 ppg on shooting numbers of .441 FG, .397 3FG and .771 FT ... a key reserve in all 33 games last year, the Diablo Valley (Calif.) College transfer has topped the 20-point plateau three times – including a career-high 25 points in the win over S.F. State – and has scored double figures in 14 of 17 games ... in addition to her scoring, Yasin also holds GNAC ranks of 2nd in steals (2.5 spg, 53rd nationally), 10th in A/T ratio (1.5), 9th in 3FG%, 12th in FT% and 19th in FG% ... on UAA's career lists, she is 10th in FT% (.777), 11th in 3FG% (.379) and 15th in steals per game (2.3).
 
T.V. SHOW: A key reserve in her first season and a half, Jr. F/C Tennae Voliva (t'NAY voh-LEE-vuh) has taken her game to the next level, averaging 10.1 ppg, 8.3 rpg and 1.0 bpg ... in the GNAC stats, she ranks 3rd in rebounding, 4th in steals (2.1), 12th in blocks (0.9) and 13th in FG% (.497), with her 8.3 rpg on pace to be the highest for a Seawolf in the Ryan McCarthy era ... the former East Anchorage HS star earned her fourth double-double with a GNAC career-best 19 points and career-high-tying 12 rebounds in the win over NNU, and also led the Seawolves with 16 points at UAF and 13 points in the win over Northwest Missouri State ... Voliva has established career highs in points (20 vs. S.F. State), rebounds (12, three times), steals (6 at St. Andrews) and blocks (3 vs S.F. State), and she was named the Most Outstanding Player of the D2 West Coast Classic and all-tourney at the Seawolf Hoops Classic ... on UAA's career lists, she stands 15th in both FG% (.492) and blocks (48).
 
PAW PRINTS: Fr. G Rachel Ingram has drained multiple three-pointers in 10 of 19 games thus far, already drawing within a single trey of Jessica Madison's UAA rookie record of 36 in 2012-13) ... the Colorado Springs native ranks 10th in the GNAC with her .385 3FG% ... Ingram has already set the UAA single-game freshman record with seven 3FGs made in the win over Concordia-Portland ... a transfer from Santa Fe (Fla.) College, Jr. G Stephanie Jackson has made an impact in her first season on both sides of the court, ranking 13th in the league with 2.7 assists per game and 10th with 1.7 steals per contest ... Jr. F Sala Langi tallied double figures for the fourth time this season with her 12 points the win at UAF ... one of three Bay Area natives on the roster, Langi was the picture of efficiency last week shooting 7 of 7 from the field and averaging 3.5 steals per game, including a career-high five swipes at UAF ... Jr. G/F Lauren Johnson has seen her minutes and production increase with the turn of the calendar to 2020, averaging 8.2 ppg on 17-of-22 overall (.773) and 5-of-8 3FG shooting in the last five games ... during her current five-game run, the North Dakota State College of Science transfer has tallied career highs of 10 points against Central Washington and 16 points against MSU Billings, while committing just one turnover in 103 minutes.
 
MASTER OF MAYHEM: In his eighth season at UAA and ninth season as a head coach, Ryan McCarthy has ascended to the top of two impressive lists, as the NCAA Div. II active leader in career winning percentage (.822) and the all-time winningest coach in UAA women's basketball history ... since coming north in 2012, McCarthy has led the Seawolf program to unprecedented heights, capturing five straight GNAC regular-season titles (four outright), three GNAC Tournament titles, six straight NCAA Tournament berths, and ascending as high as No. 1 or No. 2 in the national rankings every season from 2014-15 through 2017-18 ... in 2018-19, McCarthy earned his third consecutive GNAC Coach of the Year honor and fourth in the last five seasons ... he was the WBCA NCAA Div. II West Region Coach of the Year three straight times from 2015-17 ... in 2016-17, the Anchorage native led UAA to its third straight top-2 regional seed and its second straight 30-win season (30-2), while recording the first 20-0 league record in GNAC history ... the previous season, McCarthy's crew set an NCAA Div. II record with 38 victories, advancing all the way to the 2016 National Title Game in Indianapolis ... his 2014-15 club claimed what was then the best winning percentage in program history with a 29-2 (.935) mark, sweeping both GNAC titles as well ... McCarthy led UAA to an improvement in overall wins (17, 19, 29, 38) his first four seasons and increased the Seawolves' GNAC victory total in each of his first five campaigns (11, 12, 17, 18, 20) … playing its up-tempo 'Mayhem' style, McCarthy's crews led the nation in steals per game for four straight seasons (2013-14 to 2016-17), while staying among the top 10 in steals each year since ... McCarthy sports head-coaching records of 208-35 (.855) at UAA and 220-48 (.822) overall, having served in an interim capacity at Northwest Nazarene in 2010-11 … McCarthy is assisted by 8th-year associate head coach Shaina Afoa (the 2017-18 WBCA NCAA Div. II National Assistant Coach of the Year), 2nd-year assistant and former Seawolf Sierra Afoa.
 
2019-20 SEAWOLF INDIVIDUAL HONORS
YAZMEEN GOO
Preseason All-GNAC Team (unanimous)
Seawolf Hoops Classic Most Outstanding Player
NICOLE PINCKNEY
D2 West Coast Classic All-Tournament Team
TENNAE VOLIVA
D2 West Coast Classic Most Outstanding Player
Seawolf Hoops Classic All-Tournament Team
SAFIYYAH YASIN
Preseason All-GNAC Team
D2 West Coast Classic All-Tournament Team
Seawolf Hoops Classic All-Tournament Team
GNAC Player of the Week, Jan. 6-12
 
UAA School Records Broken/Tied in 2019-20
TEAM
Game
Most 3FGs Made, Road – 14 at St. Andrews, 10/29 (ties record set at NW Nazarene, 2/16/13)
Most 3FGs Attempted – 40 at St. Andrews, 10/29 (ties record set vs Kuyper College, 1/3/09)
Fewest Points Allowed, 1st Qtr ­– 4 vs Menlo, 12/18 (ties record for fourth time)
Fewest Points Allowed, 3rd Qtr – 0 vs MSU Billings, 1/18 (old record: 2 vs New Hope Christian, 1/6/15)
Fewest Points Allowed in a Qtr ­– 0 vs MSU Billings, 1/18 (ties record established vs New Hope Christian, 11/6/15)
Largest Scoring Margin, 1st Qtr – +23 [28-5] vs MSU Billings, 1/18 (old record: +21 [30-9] at Saint Martin's, 2/23/19)
Misc.
Most Consecutive Wins, Alaska Airlines Center – 23, 11/16/19-current (old record: 16, 11/5/15-2/25/16)
Most Concecutive Conference Wins – 27, 1/3/19-current (old record: 26,  11/30/16-1/18/18)
INDIVIDUAL
Game
Most 3FGs Made, Freshman ­– 7 by Rachel Ingram vs Concordia-Portland, 12/5 (old record: 6 by Jahnna Hajdukovich, 2/5/19 at UAF)