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SALT LAKE CITY – The Westminster College men's basketball team will serve as host of the Westminster Tipoff Classic this Friday and Saturday in the Behnken Field House. After Montana Western and Western State (Colo.) open the event on Friday at 5 p.m. MDT, Westminster (2-0) faces Azusa Pacific (Calif.) at 7 p.m. MDT. Saturday's action sees Montana Western (3-1) plays Azusa Pacific at 5 p.m. MDT, and the Griffins face Western State at 7 p.m. MDT.

FOLLOW THE ACTION
All four games will be streamed live on Griffins TV and have live stats available. The two Westminster games will also be carried on Comcast 6 in northern Utah with Mike Lageschulte providing the play-by-play and Lance Barton as an analyst. Links for all of the live features can be found in the calendar section of WestminsterGriffins.com. Updates will also be provided on the Westminster Facebook and Twitter feeds.

GRIFFIN NOTES
Westminster enters the weekend at home with a 2-0 record after claiming wins at the Calgary Cup earlier this month. The Griffins defeated Mount Royal (Alb.), 76-63, in the season-opener and then took a 74-73 win against Alberta the next night. They dropped a 79-66 decision to Calgary (Alb.) in an exhibition game to complete the trip to Canada.

For the season, the Griffins are shooting 45.9 percent from the field and averaging 75 points per game. They have connected on 9-of-29 (31.0%) from beyond the arc while making 60.4 percent from the foul line. Westminster has notched 20 assists with 28 turnovers and has been out-rebounded 54-41 during the first two games.

On the defensive end, Westminster is giving up 68 points per game and limiting the opposition to 42.3 percent shooting. In two games, Griffin opponents are making 35.7 percent from beyond the arc and 65.3 percent at the foul line. Westminster has forced 47 turnovers and they have 27 steals and six blocked shots.

Seniors Tallon Robertson and Blake Skidmore are the top two scorers on the team as they are averaging 42.5 points per game between them. Robertson had back-to-back 20-point games in Canada and also leads the team with 14 rebounds. Skidmore went for 19 and 23 in the two games and is second with 11 boards. Jordan Pryor is averaging nine points per game off the bench.

NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS
Westminster has been very successful in non-conference play during Adam Hiatt's tenure as head coach. Last season, Westminster compiled a 12-2 record in non-conference games. One of those losses came against eighth-ranked Westmont (Calif.) with the other coming in the quarterfinals of the Frontier Conference tournament. Over the past three season, the Griffins are 28-7 in non-conference games for a .800 winning percentage.

FAST STARTERS
The Griffins have a history of getting seasons off to a fast start. In the 14 seasons since the program was reinstated, Westminster is 14-1 in season openers and they have won 12 straight. They have also been stellar in games through the end of November. Since 1999, the Griffins have gone 91-36 (.717) through the end of November. They are 27-3 (.900) over the past four seasons during the opening month plus, including an 8-1 mark last season.

RUN THROUGH ROBERTSON
Senior Tallon Robertson looks to be the focal point of the Griffin offense this season. The forward scored 20 points in the opener with Mount Royal and then came back for 23 points in the win over Alberta. It was the first time in his Griffin career that he had back-to-back 20-point nights and the first time any Westminster player had done that since Jake Orchard had three straight during the 2011-12 season. Robertson had two 20-point games during the entire 2012-13 season.

Robertson also is leading the team with 14 rebounds, including five on the offensive end. He is shooting 68 percent from the field and 75 percent at the foul line. Robertson made the game-winning basket in the Griffins 74-63 win over Alberta on Oct. 11.

SKIDMORE A STARTER
Blake Skidmore's transition to the starting lineup this season is off to a blazing start. The senior scored 19 points in the opener versus Mount Royal before finishing with 23 points in the win over Alberta. He currently ranks second on the team with 42 points and he is shooting 51.6 percent from the field and 44.4 percent from beyond the arc.

Skidmore is also second on the team with 11 rebounds and he grabbed three of those on the offensive end. He leads the squad with seven steals and he matched a career-high with five in the win over Mount Royal.

SCORING OFF THE BENCH
Sophomore Jordan Pryor has made a solid contribution off the bench to start the season. After scoring eight points with a pair of threes in the opener, Pryor finished with 10 points and another two triples against Alberta. He is averaging 16 minutes per night off the bench and is third on the team in scoring. Pryor is shooting 75 percent from the field and is 4-of-5 (.800) from beyond the arc.

CLOSING IN ON 50
Head Coach Adam Hiatt enters the Tipoff Classic just five wins shy of 50 during his two-plus years as head coach of the Griffins. After starting 2-0, Hiatt now has a career record of 45-19 for a .703 winning percentage. Howard Richardson, Tom Steinke, and Tommy Connor all surpassed 50 wins as head coach at Westminster during their careers. Steinke, a member of the Westminster Hall of Fame, set the school record by earing win No. 50 in just the 69th game he coached. Hiatt would have to start the season 7-0 to match that record for fastest head coach to 50 wins in school history.

LOOKING AHEAD
Westminster will take next week off before traveling to Caldwell, Idaho for the Golden Rule Shootout on Nov. 15-16. The Griffins will play College of Idaho and Eastern Oregon at the tournament.