Men's Basketball / Seattle Pacific University -- Falcons Hoping To Take Success One Step Further -- Spu Hungry For Another Trip To Playoffs

Emile Shephard paused at the question. Shephard, a 6-foot-8 senior All-America candidate for Seattle Pacific University, is known for typical big-guy stuff - scoring, rebounding and blocking shots.

"I guess my dribbling," he said, when asked what was his best facet of the game. "Not a lot of big guys at this level can do that."

However, Shephard may not get the opportunity to display those dribbling skills - mainly because he will usually be on the low post, busy doing those other things.

The Seattle Pacific men's basketball team finished 20-9 last season, won the Pacific West Conference championship and reached the round of 16 in the NCAA Division II tournament. This season's expectations are similar.

"We're thinking Elite Eight," senior point guard Warren King said. "At least one step further. We're experienced, know what it takes and we came so close last year."

The Falcons, 1-0 after a win over Central Washington last Saturday, host the Vitamilk Tip-Off Classic this weekend at Brougham Pavilion. The Falcons play Fort Lewis (Colo.) at 7:30 tonight, while Western Washington and Missouri Western will square off at 5:30 p.m.

Shephard's all-around abilities will be a vital cog in the Falcons' tournament quest.

"He needs to be more aggressive to score, to be a real presence on the court every night," SPU Coach Ken Bone said of Shephard, who averaged 12.9 points, 7.2 rebounds and a school-record 2.2 blocked shots as a junior.

Shephard, from Tigard, Ore., had 21 points and 11 rebounds in the season-opener. "That's one game," Bone said. "He has 26 to go, but Emile's capable of those type of games."

The Falcons, ranked 14th by Sports Illustrated and 16th in the NCAA Division II preseason poll, will rely on King to distribute the ball to Shephard and junior forward Brady Deal.

"Warren has a great assist-to-turnover ratio," Bone said. "Plus, it's up to him to initiate our defense. If he works hard, others will follow."

King, from Kentridge High School, averaged 9.4 points and 4.5 assists last season. He expects to be making plenty of passes to Shephard and Deal, who was a high-school rival of King's at Kent-Meridian.

"I'm confident that when I get the ball to them, they'll score," King said. "And I can make the tough pass because they both have great hands."

Deal, 6-6, is SPU's career field-goal percentage leader at 64 percent. He plays bigger than his size.

"I feel Brady can't be stopped at this level," Shephard said. "He's the power. I'm more of the finesse."

A key outside threat will be senior guard Josh Behrens, who led the team in scoring during an offseason European tour. He averaged 11.2 points last season and tallied 21 against Central Washington.

"He's really been a leader with his work ethic," Bone said.

Leadership is something Shephard and King hope to provide - despite their quiet nature.

"I have to make sure everyone has the right attitude and state of mind," King said. "I used to leave that up to the coaching staff."

The coaching staff must also overcome the loss of senior forward Dan Selby, who tore his right anterior cruciate ligament in an intrasquad scrimmage last week and is out for the season. Selby was SPU's third-leading scorer last season.

"We were lagging for a while," Shephard said.

However, the Falcons are deep at forward, with Geoff Ping, a three-point specialist, and Jeff McBroom, a former league MVP at Kentwood, filling Selby's shoes.

As for Shephard, he admitted to no personal statistical goals. "Just team goals," he said. "Improve on last year."

And maybe the chance to handle the rock.

Notes

-- The biggest Falcons? A pair of redshirt freshman. Bruce Zabukovec, a 6-10 center from Shorecrest High School, who missed last season with knee troubles. Chuck Carter, 6-9, redshirted to gain experience after playing in high school for tiny Temple Baptist Academy in Lacey - a school which had an enrollment of 39 from kindergarten through high school. Carter dominated at that level, once grabbing 42 rebounds in a game against Sea-Tac Baptist. His nickname from his teammates, which included a sixth-grader: "Chuck-quille."

-- The Kent connection - King, Deal and McBroom - each attended one of the three high schools in Kent. King led Kentridge to the Class AAA state title his senior year - knocking off Deal and Kent-Meridian in the semifinals.

-- Ben Scheffler, from Seattle's Roosevelt High School, returns after suffering a broken foot last season. The 6-2 sophomore started at the end of his freshman year; now he is coming off the bench in the early going. He scored seven points in the season opener.

-- The Falcons have reached the NCAA Division II tournament the previous two seasons, their first appearances since 1977. SPU beat Cal State Los Angeles in a first-round West Regional game last March before losing 74-68 to Cal-Riverside. The West Regional was played on Riverside's home court.

----------------------------------------------------------------- SPU men's basketball roster. . . Player Pos Ht. Wgt. Yr. Hometown (high school). . Geoff Smith G 5-11 163 So. Cashmere (Cashmere). . Bruce Zabukovec C 6-10 215 Fr. Seattle (Shorecrest). . Josh Behrens G 6-2 185 Sr. Battle Ground (Battle Ground). . Warren King G 5-10 160 Sr. Renton (Kentridge). . Dirk Been G 6-3 170 So. Spring Green, Wis.(Sauk Prairie). . Eric McCauley G 5-11 178 Fr. N. Las Vegas (Green Valley). . Ben Scheffler G 6-3 170 So. Seattle (Roosevelt). . Geoff Ping F 6-4 185 Jr. Des Moines (Christian Faith). . Jeff McBroom F 6-5 210 Fr. Kent (Kentwood). . Emile Shephard F 6-8 230 Sr. Tigard, Ore. (Tigard). . Dan Selby # F 6-5 188 Sr. Vancouver (Hudson's Bay). . Brady Deal F-C 6-6 225 Jr. Kent (Kent-Meridian). . Chuck Carter C 6-9 258 Fr. Olympia (Temple Baptist). . Kent Channing F 6-6 215 Sr. Snohomish (Snohomish). . Kory Leadon F 6-7 200 Fr. Yakima (West Valley). . .

# Out for season with injury.