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SALT LAKE CITY – The Westminster College men's basketball team plays at home for the first time this season when they play host to the Westminster Tipoff Classic this weekend.  Westminster will play Northern New Mexico at 7 p.m. on Friday before facing No. 24 Saint Xavier (Ill.) at the same time on Saturday.  Every game of the Tipoff Classic will be played in the Behnken Field House.

Griffin Notebook
Westminster has started the season with three wins in three games.  After picking up two wins over Victoria last week in Canada, the Griffins beat Dixie State on Tuesday in Saint George.  This is the second straight year that Westminster has started 3-0.

Westminster is averaging 83.3 points per game to start the year while shooting 54.5% from the floor.  The Griffins also make 41.9%% of their 3-point attempts and have connected at 78.4% at the foul line.  They collect 28 rebounds per game and hold the opposition to 48.5% shooting.

Ben Walker leads the team in scoring and rebounding.  The senior forward scores 16.7 points per outing while also grabbing 5.3 rebounds.  AJ Reilly adds 15.7 points per game and is shooting 65.2% from the field.  Jake Orchard is third on the team in scoring at 15 points per game.

Game Coverage
Both Westminster games will be broadcast live on the web on Griffins TV.  Dan Clayton will provide the play-by-play on Friday and then Mike Lageschulte returns to the microphone on Saturday.  Lance Barton will be along both nights to provide color commentary.  The pregame show begins at approximately 6:45 p.m.

Live Stats will also be available for both games this weekend.  The feed begins at tipoff and can be followed on your computer or mobile device.  Links for both the Live Stats and Griffins TV can be found at WestminsterGriffins.com on the day of the games.

Promotions
Friday's game is “Nest Night” with students encouraged to show up early to get your brand new Nest T-Shirt at the ticket table.  The new posters will also be available at the door for the first 50 fans.  The Westminster Dance Team will make their inaugural performance at halftime of the game.  Saturday is “Family Night” with admission being discounted $1 for up to five people.  The East High Dance Team will perform at halftime.

Series Notes
Friday will mark the second all-time meeting between Westminster and Northern New Mexico.  The first game was played on Nov. 29, 2008 in the Behnken Field House with the Griffins coming away with a 90-34 victory.

Saturday's game between Westminster and Saint Xavier will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams.

Looking Back
Westminster held an 11-point lead with 2:15 remaining before watch Dixie State rally back to within two points with 16 seconds remaining.  The Griffins would get a crucial stop on the game's final possession and escape with an 84-82 win on the road.  Walker led the Griffins with 22 points and eight rebounds while Orchard added 18 points.

Fast Starters
Since 2005 Westminster has started the year strong during the opening five games of the year.  The Griffins are 26-7 during the first five games of the season over the past six-plus years and only once had a losing record during the span.  They have twice gone 5-0 to start the year with those coming on 2008 and 2010. Last season, Westminster set a school record by starting the year with 11 consecutive victories.

Westminster has a .686 winning percentage all-time in the months of October and November.  They have gone 29-6 in the opening months since 2007 and were a perfect 8-0 last season.  The Griffins have won at least four straight during the fall months on six occasions in 12 years.

Chasing 20
Westminster begins the year looking for a 10th straight 20-win season.  Since the program was reinstated in 1999, Westminster has recorded 20 wins a total of 10 times in 12 years.  They are the only Frontier Conference team to record 20 wins in each of the last six seasons. 

Westminster set a school record with 30 wins during the 2008-09 season and they have averaged 26 wins per year during the current eight-year streak.  The Griffins have an all-time record of 264-114 since reinstatement and only had a losing season (12-15) during the initial campaign of 1999-2000.

Shooting the Lights Out
The 2010-11 Griffins were one of the best shooting teams in the NAIA.  Westminster led the NAIA in free throw percentage by making 76% of their attempts at the charity stripe.  They also ranked third in the nation with a 49.7% field goal percentage.  The Griffins made 35.3% from beyond the arc which was 32nd nationally.

Westminster had a True Shooting Percentage of 60.6% last season. They also had a 55.5% Effective Field Goal Percentage. True shooting percentage is a measure of shooting efficiency that takes into account field goals, 3-point field goals, and free throws. This statistic adjusts for the fact that a 3-point field goal is worth one more point than a 2-point field goal.

Welcome Back Walker
Senior Walker returns this season after taking a redshirt last season with an injury.  Walker was named first team all-Frontier Conference and honorable mention All-American in 2010 for the Griffins. During that season, Walker led the team in scoring at 15.4 points per game while grabbing a team-high 195 rebounds.  His 49 blocked shots set a school single season and career record.

Offensive Orchard
Junior Orchard returns after averaging 16.6 points per game during his first year with the Griffins.  Orchard was second on the team in scoring and was also second in rebounding at 4.9 boards per night.  He led the Frontier Conference and was 12th in the NAIA with a 55.5% field goal percentage while also shooting 83.1% at the foul line.

Orchard scored in double figures 28 times as a sophomore and has reached at least 10 points in 19 straight games.  He had seven games in which he scored at least 20 points and had a career high 35 points against Great Falls on Jan. 27.  Orchard grabbed at least one offensive rebounds in 29-of-30 games played and has 19 straight games with an offensive rebound.

Griffins Picked to Finish Fourth in Frontier
According to a poll of the Frontier Conference men's basketball coaches, the Westminster College men's basketball team is picked to finish fourth in the upcoming season.  That would mark the same finish the team had last year.

The Griffins received 33 points in the poll along with one first-place vote.  Last year's conference tournament champion Montana State-Northern was picked to win the 2011-2012 league title.  Regular season champion Carroll College was second followed by Montana Western.  After Westminster the order was Lewis-Clark State, Rocky Mountain College. Montana Tech and the University of Great Falls tied for seventh. MSU-Northern received five first place votes and Carroll received two.

Orchard and Walker Named Preseason All-Conference
Westminster College had two representatives on the Preseason All-Frontier Conference team that was released earlier this month.  Commissioner Kent Paulson announced that Orchard and Walker both made the five-player team

Orchard was named first team all-conference last season along with being named the newcomer of the year.  He as also named an honorable mention All-American after averaging 16.6 points per game and was 12th nationally with his 55.5% field goal percentage. Orchard could be found third in the Frontier in steals, fourth in scoring, eighth in offensive rebounds and 16th in total rebounds.

Walker sat out last season as a redshirt due to an injury.  In 2009-10, Walker was named honorable mention All-American and first team all-conference with the Griffins.  He averaged 15.4 points per game that season and was second in the NAIA with a 67.7% field goal percentage.  During the season, Walker recorded a school-record 49 blocked shots and ranked 16th nationally.

Home Advantage
The Griffins have been dominate at home since 1999.  During that time, Westminster has compiled a 130-21 (.861) record in home games and have recorded at least 10 home wins nine times.  They have also posted a 73-10 (.880) mark in Frontier Conference home games.

Westminster has been even better at home since opening the Behnken Field House in 2006.  The Griffins have an all-time record of 67-7 (.905) in their current home and only once have they lost more than one home game in a season.  In conference, the Griffins have a 38-4 (.905) all-time record in “The Nest” and twice gone undefeated during league home games.

Looking Ahead
Westminster travels to Las Vegas for the Las Vegas Classic next Friday and Saturday.  On Friday, Westminster will play Cal State San Marcos.  They will then play No. 4 Concordia (Calif.) on Saturday.