FLAGSTAFF, Arizona (AP) – Shane Birkar sits in the front row of the Great Hall as a thunderstorm rolls over the San Francisco Peaks in Flagstaff to the northern Arizona campus.
The wall of windows on the north side of the room provides a perfect view of the lightning strikes and the approaching rain through the pine trees.
The building in which the auditorium is located, the new $47 million Student High Performance Center, gives Birkar something he didn’t have four years ago as a coach for Northern Arizona: a state-of-the-art facility to show potential basketball recruits.
“It really changed the rules of the game,” Borkar said. “When we compete with a (similar) school, nobody has a better facility than us. I don’t say it to brag or say anything negative about another school, but nobody has that now.”
The Performance Center, which opened in April, may be the missing piece Burcar needs to get NAU back on track. The Lumberjacks haven’t attended an NCAA tournament since 2000 and have had a number-one win in five of the past seven seasons.
Birkar was appointed interim coach in 2019, when Jack Murphy left to train at his alma mater, Arizona. The Lumberjacks won 16 games in the first season of Burcar, which earned him the permanent job, but he couldn’t keep up with that pace.
The Northern Arizona region suffered an epidemiologically altered 2020-21 season — as did many other programs — winning six games and going 9-16 last year with one of the youngest teams in the Division I.
Lumberjacks could be ready to turn a corner toward a better future.
This year’s team is bringing back all five starters, bringing with them a year of experience.
Junior guard Galen Cohn averaged 18.8 points last season after moving from Virginia Tech and is expected to take on a leadership role. Nik Mains, a 6-foot-8 forward stretch, chose to come back rather than hit the transfer gate after averaging 11.5 points last year. Junior striker Keith Haymon is also back for his fourth season in Flagstaff after averaging 9.8 points a year ago.
Birkar plunged into the transfer gate to land South Dakota guard Xavier Fuller, Grand Canyon guard Liam Lloyd — son of Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd — and Connecticut State central guard Trenton McLaughlin.
Northern Arizona has also added freshmen CJ Ford, Oakland Fort, Preston Kilbert and Jack Wistrcill, all of whom should make an impact on the program this season and beyond.
“The track is definitely going up the rankings,” Borkar said. “I would say if we don’t win it all, we will definitely have a goodbye in the first round of the Big Sky Tournament. I don’t think this is a far-fetched dream at all.”
A new performance center could continue to fill the talent pipeline.
Northern Arizona coaches could always sell the school’s picturesque campus, but the facilities weren’t up to par. The Lumberjacks play most of their home games early in the season at Rolle Center, which is shared with several sports and PE classes, and the massive Walkup Skydome once the football season is over.
The three-story 72,000-square-foot performance center contains two full basketball courts with a video screen in between, huge training and weight rooms, academic and nutrition centers, and multiple meeting rooms.
It also has a room with a view.
“The kind of building sells itself,” Borkar said. “We’ve seen it with our camps this year, high school coaches coming in, ‘Okay, they’re serious about winning. “You can see pictures of her, but when you get here and you touch her and you walk on her, it’s a whole different deal.”
Burcar has a great view of the program and not just from the back window of the hall.
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