The Lowdown: No. 8 Northwestern College at No. 24 Friends University

Location: Garvey Center

When: Saturday, Oct. 25 @ 1 pm

Broadcast

Live Stats

Tickets

Flying with the Falcons: The No. 24-ranked Friends University Falcons lose KCAC Co-Offensive Player of the Year and NAIA All-American KJ Spiller, but return an All-KCAC trio of Randy Woolf, Jr., Cahlese Lee and Ringo Deng from a squad that posted its best season in six years. Friends finished second in the KCAC at 18-4 and recorded its most wins (24) since the 2018-19 season. Read the full season preview HERE!

Scouting the Raiders: The Northwestern College Raiders are ranked No. 8 in the NAIA Preseason Top 25 Coaches' poll and are coming off a 27-6 season and a second place finish in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) with a 16-4 conference mark. The Raiders advanced to the Round of 16 of the NAIA National Tournament before falling to fourth-seeded Georgetown College.

The Raiders lose leading scorer Alex Van Kalsbeek (21.8 ppg) from last season, but return Jesse Van Kalsbeek, who was right behind with 20.5 ppg and a team-leading 9.1 rebounds while shooting 38.9 percent from three-point distance. Northwestern also welcomes back its two top three-point shooters from last year in Jalen Langsy and Kaleb Booth.  Langsy averaged 17.5 ppg and shot 45.3 percent from beyond the arc on a team-high 111 three-pointers, while Booth led the team in overall three-point percentage at 58.1 percent.

The Series: The only matchup on record was won by the Falcons, 94-90 on the road in Orange City, Iowa during the 2018-19 season.    

High Expectations: The Falcons are coming off their most wins in six years and a runner-up finish in the KCAC. After being picked ninth and 10^th in the KCAC Preseason polls a year ago, the Falcons were selected to finish second in the KCAC in both polls while receiving multiple first-place votes in each survey.

Top of the League: The Falcons' most wins in six years resulted in elite recognition last year within the KCAC, highlighted by head coach Phil McClintock being named the KCAC Coach of the Year and KJ Spiller being selected as KCAC Co-Player of the Year. Randy Woolf, Jr., Cahlese Lee and Ringo Deng also earned all-conference recognition. Read the full release HERE!

Breakthrough Season: The Falcons found their stride in head coach Phil McClintock's second season at the helm last year, securing their most wins (24) since the 2018-19 season along with the team's first NAIA Postseason win since 2013-14 and a second-place KCAC finish that saw the team in the hunt for the regular season title until the final day of the regular season.

Promo Depot: We are proud to have Promo Depot as a sponsor of Friends University Athletics this season!  Click HERE for more info on the services Promo Depot can offer!

Kansas Army National Guard: We are thrilled to have the Kansas Army National Guard on board with us this year as an official sponsor! Click HERE to visit their website.

Falcons by the Numbers (2024-25)

Overall record: 24-8

KCAC: 18-4 

Home: 10-5

Road: 11-3

Neutral: 3-0 

When scoring:                                              

Under 50 points: 0-0 

50-59 points: 0-2 

60-69 points: 1-3

70-79 points: 8-3 

80-89 points: 8-0 

90+ points: 7-0 

When allowing: 

Under 50 points: 

50-59 points: 3-0 

60-69 points: 8-1

70-79 points: 9-3

80-89 points: 4-4

90+ points: 0-0 

When leading at halftime: 17-1 

When trailing at halftime: 5-6

When tied at halftime: 2-1 

When committing fewer turnovers: 12-3

When committing more turnovers: 10-5

When turnovers are tied: 2-0 

When leading in field-goal percentage: 21-3

When trailing in field-goal percentage: 3-5

When field-goal percentage is tied: 0-0 

When leading in three-point percentage: 17-1

When trailing in three-point percentage: 7-6

When three-point percentage is tied: 0-1

When leading in rebounding: 19-1 

When trailing in rebounding: 5-7 

When rebounding is tied: 0-0 

When leading in assists: 18-1 

When trailing in assists: 5-7

When assists are tied: 1-0 

In OT: 0-0 

The Coaches: 

Phil McClintock is in his third season as head coach of the Friends University men's basketball program and has already rebuilt the Falcons into a national contender.  Last season was the true breakout, as McClintock guided the Falcons to their most wins (24) in six years, the program's first NAIA National Tournament victory since 2013-14 and a second-place finish in the KCAC that saw the program fighting for the top spot until the final day of the regular season.

McClintock brought a stark familiarity of the KCAC to Friends, highlighted by an eight-year tenure as Associate Men's Basketball Head Coach at Ottawa University. 

At Ottawa, McClintock served as the recruiting coordinator and was responsible for film breakdown and scouting reports. 

2019-20 was a breakout season, as McClintock brought in six of the team's top 10 players that produced a school-record 28 victories, a regular season KCAC championship and an NAIA Sweet 16 appearance (tournament ended early due to COVID-19). 

In addition to his basketball coaching experience at Ottawa, McClintock has also been the Braves Men's and Women's Golf head coach for the past four seasons. 

McClintock's first basketball head coaching position came at Salem high school, where he spent three seasons and guided the team in the 2014-15 campaign to their first winning record in eight years. 

A strong developer of young players, McClintock has served as a Camp Coach at the KU Bill Self Basketball Camps every year since 2012. His responsibilities at the camp include running drills, coaching teams and developing player skills. 

His first career coaching job was a two-year tenure as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at William Woods University from 2010-12. 

McClintock also played collegiately at Ottawa and enjoyed immense success, earning two NAIA All-America honors, a pair of All-KCAC nods while finishing his career as the all-time leader in blocked shots and top five all-time in scoring, rebounding and steals.

An Ottawa University Hall of Fame inductee in 2021, he helped the Braves to two conference titles and a pair of NAIA Sweet 16 berths. 

A 2009 graduate of Ottawa University in Physical Education and Health, McClintock then earned his Master of Education in Athletics/Activities Administration from William Woods University in 2012. 

McClintock and his wife Kirsten have three boys, Lawson (15), Jackson (11), and Bodie (three).  

Colton Kooima is in his first season as head coach of the Northwestern College men's basketball program. He also had assistant coaching stops at Northwestern and Vanguard (Calif.) before serving as the lead assistant coach at NCAA D-II member Augustana (S.D.). last season.

Collegiately, Kooima was a two-time NAIA All-American at Northwestern and the GPAC Player of the Year in the 2017-18 season. He was recently inducted into the Northwestern Athletics Hall of Fame in 2023. 

Up Next: The Falcons will hit the road and play another 2024-25 NAIA Round of 16 qualifier in Baker University next Thursday night (Oct. 30) at 7:30 pm in Baldwin City, Kan.