DENVER, COLO. Fresno State forward Larry Abney has been named the Western Athletic Conference men's basketball player of the week.
Abney, a senior from Nyack, N.Y. (Fresno City College), averaged 19.0 points and 24.0 rebounds in a pair of games last week. Against SMU on Thursday, he pulled down 35 rebounds and scored 20 points. The 35 boards broke the single-game WAC record of 27 set by Brigham Young's Scott Warner during the 1970-71 season and equalled by Wyoming's Reginald Slater in 1991. The 35 rebounds is also tied for 18th all-time in NCAA Division I history and are the most in a game since Keith Swagerty of Pacific grabbed 39 boards on Mar. 5, 1965.
On Sunday, he notched his 11th double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds in a 98-93 win over TCU. For the week, he was 12-of-18 (.667) from the field and 14-of-20 (.700) from the line.
Other nominations included: senior forward/center Marquette Alexander, Hawai`i; junior guard Jeryl Sasser, SMU; senior forward Marquise Gainous, TCU; and junior forward Brandon Wolfram, UTEP.