SALT LAKE CITY – The Westminster men's basketball team opens Frontier Conference play this week with a pair of home games in the Behnken Field House. The conference opener is slated for Thursday against Carroll (Mont.) before No. 18 Rocky Mountain (Mont.) comes to town on Saturday. Both games will tip at 7:30 p.m. MT.
 
On the Web: Both games this week will be carried live on Griffins TV with Mike Lageschulte (play-by-play) and Lance Barton (analyst) calling the action. Griffins TV is available online and on mobile devices and Roku players through the Livestream app. There will also be live stats available for all of the games with links for all of the live features available on the Westminster athletics web site.
 
Griffin Fast Break: Westminster opens league play at 7-6 on the season and riding a five-game winning streak. The Griffins have won seven of their past eight outings with the lone loss coming against then-No. 3 Cal State San Marcos on Nov. 29. They are averaging 93 points per game during the winning streak while holding the opposition to 70.4 points.
 
Offense Notebook: The Griffins take a scoring average of 78.15 points per game into the action and they rank 40th in the NAIA in scoring average. They have scored at least 80 points in a game six times and twice they topped 100 points in a game. The team shoots 46.1 percent from the field – 30th in the NAIA – and they sit 24th in the country by making 37.3 percent from beyond the arc. The Griffins average 15.77 assists per contest with a 1.06 assist-to-turnover ratio.
 
Defense Notebook: Westminster is holding the opposition to 72.08 points per game and allowing just 44.6 percent shooting from the field. Opponents make 34 percent from beyond the arc while committing 17 turnovers per game. The Griffins place 23rd in the nation at 9.0 steals per game while recording 2.38 blocks per night.
 
Leaders: Three Griffins are averaging double figures in points on the year with Kenny Woodard leading the way at 13.31 per game. Jordan Pryor puts up 13.23 per night with Quincy Bair adding 12. Nick Jenson is tops on the squad with 91 rebounds and his 7.0 rebounds per game place 47th in the NAIA. Woodard has a team-best 36 assists and Colton Moon is 13th in the NAIA with 29 steals. Casey Evans has blocked a team-leading 11 opponent shots.
 
Looking Back: Westminster completed a sweep at the Tom Byron Classic last week. They picked up wins over Victoria (Canada), 81-80 in overtime, and Saskatchewan, 69-68. Pryor made a three with under three seconds to play to cap an 18-point night against Victoria. The Griffins were then led by 24 points from Woodard in the win against Saskatchewan.
 
Frontier Favorites: In a poll of the Frontier Conference coaches, Westminster was selected as the favorite to win the conference title this season. They received four first-place votes and finished with 42 total points to take the top spot. Defending regular season and tournament champion Rocky Mountain (Mont.) was picked to finish second after receiving 41 points and two first-place votes. Montana State-Northern and Montana Western each received one first-place vote.
 
Home Dominance: Westminster has been tough to beat in the Behnken Field House since it opened in 2006. While the Griffins have always been good at home, going 168-33 (.836) since the program was reinstated in 1999, they have compiled a 103-18 (.851) mark in their current home. The Griffins are 4-3 in the Behnken Field House this season and they have won five straight Frontier Conference home games.
 
Bombs Away: The Griffins have been taking advantage of the 3-point line this season, ranking 23rd in the NAIA by making 8.0 triples per game. They shoot 37.3 percent from beyond the arc to rank 24th in the nation. The team scores 30.7 percent of their total points from deep while making at least seven treys in a game 10 times. Pryor leads the team by making 2.77 threes per game – 20th in the nation – and he is 32nd nationally by shooting 44.4 percent from three.
 
Inside the Metrics: Westminster has been trending upward in its offensive efficiency during their five-game winning streak. They enter league play averaging 105.1 points per 100 possession while averaging 74 possessions per night. At the defensive end, Westminster is allowing 97 points per 100 possessions. Nick Jenson grabs 25.6 percent of available defensive rebounds while on the floor with William Walker getting 15.5 percent of available offensive boards.
 
Performance from Pryor: Jordan Pryor was named preseason all-conference after being selected as the Frontier Sixth-Man of the Year last season. Pryor is currently scoring 13.23 points per game and making 2.77 threes per outing and he made at least one three in 15 straight games dating back to last season. He has scored in double figures nine times on the year and had a career-high 27 points with six threes against Concordia-Alberta on Dec. 19.
 
Spark off the Bench: After a slow start to the season, Kenny Woodard has come on lately and currently leads the team in scoring at 13.23 points per game. He has scored in double figures 10 times this season and had a career-high 24 points against Saskatchewan on Dec. 30. Woodard also leads the team with 36 assists and he has 12 steals on the year. He ranks third in the NAIA by making 89.2 percent at the foul line.
 
Balance from Bair: Quincy Bair has been the most all-around player for the Griffins this season and he currently ranks in the Frontier top 20 in six statistical categories. The junior is scoring 12 points per game and he has been in double figures nine times this season. He is shooting 49.1 percent from the floor and getting 2.15 assists and 1.23 steals per game with a 1.56 assist-to-turnover ratio. Bair is making 44 percent from beyond the arc and 72.5 percent at the foul line while leading the team in scoring two times.
 
Crashing Jenson: Nick Jenson is averaging 8.8 points per game this season and he leads all Griffins with 91 rebounds. His 7.0 rebounds per game is third in the Frontier Conference and he is 36th in the nation by pulling 5.08 defensive boards per game while also getting 1.92 offensive rebounds per night. Jenson is shooting 59.3 percent from the floor on the year and has recorded two double-doubles. He ranks 10th in school history with 98 offensive rebounds and is currently 12th all-time with 276 total rebounds.
 
Shoot the Moon: Colton Moon plays his senior season among the top 10 in school history in six statistical categories. He currently sits fifth in school history in made threes (127) and attempted threes (328). Moon ranks seventh all-time with 203 assists and his 136 career steals rank fourth in school history. This season, Moon is 13th in the country with 29 steals and 12th by averaging 2.23 steals per game. He is on pace to become the school's all-time steals leader before the end of the regular season.
 
Bench Scoring: William Walker has given the team an inside presence off the bench this season while scoring 8.5 points per game. The sophomore has scored in double figures four times in the year while also leading the team with three double-doubles. Walker has grabbed 73 rebounds – 29 offensive – while shooting 48.1 percent from the field.
 
Eyes on Evans: Casey Evans has transitioned into the starting lineup this season and is currently averaging 9.5 points per game. The sophomore shoots 56.1 percent from the field and he has made 10 threes while shooting 47.6 percent from deep. He has scored in double figures eight times while grabbing 4.3 rebounds per night. Evans leads the team with 11 blocked shots and he has 20 assists and 16 steals.
 
Follow the Griffins: Fans are encouraged to follow the Westminster men's basketball team on their Instagram and Twitter feeds for fun behind the scenes information from the team. You can also get all of the latest news about the Griffins through the Westminster Athletics social media outlets. You can find all of the social media information at WestminsterGriffins.com.
 
Looking Ahead: Westminster takes to the road next weekend for a Frontier Conference game at Montana Western on Jan. 17. The action from Straugh Gymnasium will tipoff at 4 p.m. MT in Dillon, Mont.