United Athletic Conference

PLAYER OF THE WEEK SMU guard/forward Quinton Ross, a senior from Dallas, Texas (Kimball HS), averaged 26.0 points and 6.5 rebounds in a pair of road wins at Rice and Tulsa. Against Rice, he scored 27 points, pulled down nine rebounds and made all 12 of his free throws. In the Mustangs' first ever win at the Reynolds Center in Tulsa, Ross scored 25 points and played 43 minutes in the overtime victory. For the week, he shot 16-of-30 (.533) from the field, 3-of-7 (.429) from three-point range, 17-of-18 (.944) from the line and averaged 2.5 assists, 2.5 steals and 1.0 blocks per game. It was Ross' second WAC player of the week award this year.

Other nominations Other player of the week nominations included:
Renaldo Major, Jr., F, Fresno State - averaged 11.0 points and 4.5 rebounds in a sweep of Hawaii and San Jose State last week. He made 55.6 percent of his field goals in the two games (10-18).
Carl English, Jr., G/F, Hawaii - averaged 23.0 points and 4.5 rebounds in games against Fresno State and Nevada. He tied a career-high with 11 made field goals against the Wolf Pack.
Michael Wilder, Sr., G, Louisiana Tech - averaged 17.5 points and 3.5 assists in two games against Tulsa and Rice. He scored a career-high 26 points versus Rice including 14 of Techs first 17 points. Wilder shot 50 percent in the two games (11-22) after entering the week shooting 25 percent for the season.
Kirk Snyder, So., G, Nevada - averaged 18.0 points and 10.5 rebounds in wins over San Jose State and Hawaii. He recorded two double-doubles with 20 points and 11 rebounds against SJSU and 16 points and 10 rebounds versus Hawaii. Snyder leads the WAC with seven double-doubles on the season.
Michael Harris, So., F, Rice - came off the bench and averaged 21.5 points and 9.5 rebounds in two games. He was 20-of-29 (.690) from the field and added four assists, two steals and two blocks.
Giovanni St. Amant, Fr., G, UTEP - scored 25 points off the bench in UTEPs 85-78 overtime win against Boise State. He also added four rebounds, three assists and a block.

TOP TWO MEET SATURDAY Fresno State travels to Nevada on Saturday night for a contest between the top two teams in the WAC standings. The Bulldogs are 8-1 and in first place, 2.5 games ahead of second place Nevada. Fresno State has won four in a row and nine of its last 10 games, while Nevada has won five of its last six contests. Nevada leads the all-time series, 33-29, after winning both games against Fresno State last year.

BRACKET BUSTER SATURDAY The WAC and four of its teams have partnered with ESPN and several other top college basketball conferences for Bracket Buster Saturday, a new one-day, nine-game mens basketball event matching potential NCAA tournament hopefuls against each other. Bracket Buster Saturday will be played annually beginning with the inaugural event Feb. 22. ESPN and ESPN2 will present five live games highlighted by the only predetermined game for 2003 featuring two teams that have reached the Elite Eight in recent years: Tulsa (2000) at Gonzaga (1999). In addition to those five, there will be four games produced and distributed in the markets of the competing teams. The remaining match-ups for Bracket Buster Saturday will be determined by ESPN in conjunction with the conferences on Sunday, Feb. 2.

Bracket Buster Records
Home Teams W L Pct. Road Teams W L Pct.
Creighton 17 2 .895 Fresno St. 15 3 .833
Kent St. 13 2 .867 UW-Mil. 15 5 .750
Southern Ill. 12 4 .750 Hawaii 11 5 .688
Gonzaga 14 5 .737 Tulsa 11 5 .688
Ill.-Chicago 12 5 .706 Bowling Green 9 7 .563
Western Ky. 11 7 .611 Detroit 10 8 .556
Marshall 9 6 .600 Ball St. 6 10 .375
UCSB 8 9 .471 No. Iowa 5 11 .313
La. Tech 5 9 .357 Illinois St. 1 15 .063

BRACKET BUSTER SATURDAY MATCHUPS TO BE ANNOUNCED ON SUNDAY The nine matchups for the inaugural Bracket Buster Saturday will be announced on ESPN2s College Hoops 2Night on Sunday at 9:30 p.m. (MT).

OKESON LEADS NATION Nevada guard Todd Okeson leads the nation in three-point shooting in this weeks NCAA report. The junior has made 54.7 percent of his three-pointers (41-75). Last year, Tulsas Dante Swanson was the nations leader making 49.0 percent of his treys.

HARRIS NUMBER TWO In this weeks NCAA statistics, Rice sophomore forward Michael Harris is second in the country in field goal percentage. Harris has made 65.6 percent of his field goals (99-151) on the year. He trails only Belmonts Adam Mark (65.7 percent).

DOUBLE LEADERS The WAC features four players that lead their teams in at least two of three categories (points, rebounds and assists). Nevada sophomore forward Kirk Snyder is the only player to lead his team in all three categories with 16.0 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. The other three are:
Bryan Defares, Jr., G, Boise State (14.9 ppg, 3.4 apg)
Antonio Meeking, Sr., F, Louisiana Tech (18.0 ppg, 8.2 rpg)
Brandon Hawkins, Sr., G, San Jose State (12.1 ppg, 2.9 apg)

TOP-SHOOTING OWLS After last weekend, Rice now leads the WAC in all three shooting categories. The Owls are shooting 48.5 percent from the field, 73.4 percent from the free throw line and 40.7 percent from three-point range. Last season, Tulsa finished the season leading the WAC in all three shooting categories to become the second team in WAC history to perform the trifecta.

HOME SWEET HOME The WACs 10 teams are a combined 66-25 (.725) at home so far this season. On the road, its a completely different story as the WAC is 21-50 (.300). In neutral site games, the WAC is 3-0 as Tulsa won both its games back in November and SMU picked up a win in December. Last week, SMU was the WACs only team to win on the road defeating both Rice and Tulsa.

UNDEFEATED HOME TEAMS The WAC has just two teams that are still undefeated at home this season. Fresno State is 12-0 while Hawaii is 10-0. In WAC games only, Fresno State is 6-0, Nevada is 4-0 and Hawaii is 3-0.

HAWAII OWNS LONGEST HOME STREAK Hawaii has the WACs longest home winning streak at 22 in a row, the fourth longest in the nation. The WACs second longest current home winning streak is 12 games by Fresno State, tied for the 11th longest in the country.

ROAD WARRIORS SMU improved to 3-2 in WAC road games last week after beating Rice and Tulsa on the road. Fresno State and Rice also have winning road records (2-1). In all games, only Tulsa (4-2) and Rice (4-3) have winning road records.

1,000-POINT SCORERS The WAC has six players that have scored more than 1,000 points in their collegiate careers: Quinton Ross, G, SMU (1,497); Terrance Green, G, Nevada (1,410); Kevin Johnson, F, Tulsa (1,331); Antonio Meeking, F, Louisiana Tech (1,309); Dante Swanson, G, Tulsa (1,157); and Roy Smallwood, F, UTEP (1,119). Hawaii junior Carl English is 30 points shy of 1,000 in his career.

NATIONAL RANKINGS No WAC teams are ranked in the top 25, but Fresno State is receiving votes in both the ESPN/USA Today and AP polls while Tulsa earned consideration in the coaches poll.

NON-CONFERENCE MARK The WAC is 53-38 (.582) in non-conference games this season, including a 44-38 (.537) mark against Division I teams. Last year, WAC teams were 71-46 (.607) in non-conference games with a 61-44 (.581) mark against Division I teams. The WACs best record ever against non-conference opponents came during the 1974-75 season when it was 73-22 (.768).

2003 WILLIAMS WAC TOURNAMENT The 2003 Williams WAC Tournament will be held March 11-15 at the Donald W. Reynolds Center in Tulsa, Okla. Both the men and women compete during the same week. On the mens side, the seven, eight, nine and ten seeded teams will play on Tuesday, March 11. The remaining eight teams will all play in the quarterfinals on Thursday, March 13 with the top seed competing versus the winner of the Tuesday eight-nine game, the No. 2 seed vs. the winner of the seven-10 game, the No. 3 seed vs. No. 6 and No 4 vs. No. 5. The winners will play in the semifinals on Friday and the championship game will be Saturday night (ESPN2).

WILLIAMS IS TOURNAMENT SPONSOR For the third year in a row, Williams will be the WACs tournament sponsor. Williams moves, manages and markets a variety of energy products, including natural gas, liquid hydrocarbons, petroleum and electricity. Based in Tulsa, Okla., Williams operations span the energy value chain from wellhead to burner tip. Company information is available at www.williams.com.

FRESNO STATE, NEVADA TO HOST FUTURE WAC TOURNAMENTS Earlier last fall, Fresno State was selected to host the 2004 WAC Tournament while Nevada will host the tournament in 2005. In 2004, the tournament will be played in the brand new Save Mart Center on the Fresno State campus. The following year, it will be held in Nevadas Lawlor Events Center.

ESPN/FOX SPORTS NET SCHEDULE The WAC has a multi-year contract with ESPN for coverage of football and basketball. Four games were scheduled for ESPN/ESPN2 (including the mens tournament championship game) while Fox Sports Net will telecast six mens games and four womens games including the womens WAC tournament final.

TEAM NOTES Information on the mens basketball teams in the WAC:

Boise State - Boise State has scored a season-high 78 points in its last two games ... the Broncos are 7-1 in games decided by five points or less ... Boise State leads the WAC in turnover margin (+3.06) ... the Broncos have lost four of their last five games ... Boise State has not scored 100 points since beating U.S. International, 106-82, during the 1985-86 season (486 games).

Fresno State - Fresno State is 15-3 for the fifth time in its history ... the Bulldogs 8-1 conference start is their best ever ... the Bulldogs play its next three games on the road and seven of its last 10 away from home ... Fresno State is 7-1 in games decided by three points or less ... the Bulldogs won three straight games over SMU, Louisiana Tech and Hawaii (Jan. 16-23) by a combined total of four points ... senior guard Damon Jackson has made four game-winning shots this year after scoring a layup with 10 seconds left against Hawaii last Thursday ... Fresno State is 12-0 at home for the fourth time since moving into Selland Arena (1967-68) ... the Bulldogs have gone undefeated at home in a season only twice ... the Bulldogs lead the WAC in scoring defense (63.2 points/game) ... 82.4 percent (84-of-102) of Travis DeManbys field goal attempts have come from behind the three-point line, the highest percentage of any regular starter in the WAC ... Fresno State is 114-20 (.851) at Selland Arena since the 1995-96 season ... this is the final season at Selland Arena for Fresno State as the Bulldogs will play in the Save Mart Center next year.

Hawaii - UH has lost three in a row for the first time since the 2000-01 season ... the Rainbow Warriors have lost four WAC road games, one more than all of last season ... Hawaii has won seven of eight games against Rice (Thursdays opponent) since the Owls joined the WAC ... Mark Campbell leads the WAC in assists with 6.31 per game ... UH leads the WAC in rebounding margin (+6.3) ... Hawaii lost its first game after leading at the half last week when it lost to Fresno State, 56-55, after leading 25-24 at the intermission ... UH is now 10-1 when leading at the half ... UH has won 32 of its last 41 games (.780) ... Hawaii has won 22 straight home games (fourth longest streak in the nation) and 33 of its last 34 in Honolulu ... the streak is four wins shy of tying the school record ... in addition, UH has won 19 straight WAC home games dating back to 2000-01, the longest current streak in the conference.

Louisiana Tech - the Bulldogs have lost five games in a row, the longest current streak in the WAC and the longest by Tech since losing five straight during the 1995-96 season ... Tech has lost its five WAC games by a total of 24 points ... Louisiana Tech plays its next five games at home ... the Bulldogs scored 92 points against Rice, the most they have ever scored in a WAC game ... senior forward Antonio Meeking is the only player in the WAC to rank in the top three in scoring (18.0), rebounding (8.2) and field goal percentage (.511) ... Louisiana Tech is 17-0 at home against non-conference opponents under head coach Keith Richard.

Nevada - the Pack blocked 10 shots against San Jose State last week and now lead the WAC with 4.89 per game ... Nevada has won five of its last six games ... the Pack has won eight straight home games ... Kirk Snyder has scored in double figures in 18 straight games, the longest current streak in the WAC ... Snyder has a WAC-best seven double-doubles on the season after recording two more last week ... junior G Todd Okeson leads the nation in three-point field goal percentage (.547; 41-75), currently the fifth best single-season percentage in WAC history ... Okeson has made 25 of his last 37 treys (.676) ... Nevada is the only team in the WAC to not win a game when trailing at the half (0-5) ... six of the Packs seven losses have come by five or less points ... Nevada is 1-6 in games decided by five points or less.

Rice - Thursdays game against Hawaii is Willis Wilsons 300th ... the Owls 12 wins are two more than all of last season ... Rice has won three consecutive road games for the first time since 1995 ... the Owls made 62.7 percent (32-51) of its field goals in the win against Louisiana Tech, a WAC season-high ... sophomore Michael Harris is second in the nation in field goal percentage (.656) ... Omar-Seli Mance leads the WAC in three-point field goals made per game with 3.38 ... Mance made 7-of-10 treys (.700) last week against SMU, the best percentage by any WAC player this year ... the Owls are 4-3 on the road, one of two teams in the WAC with a winning road record (Tulsa) ... Rice leads the WAC in scoring (78.2 ppg), scoring margin (+7.8), field goal percentage (.485), three-point field goal percentage (.407), free throw percentage (.734), three-point field goals made (7.29/game) and assists (16.82/game) ... junior Yamar Diene has 77 career blocks, five shy of tying the school record.

San Jose State - the Spartans host Tulsa on Thursday and are 0-14 versus the Hurricane ... San Jose State has started the same lineup the last three games, the first consecutive games this season that the Spartans have used the same lineup ... Antonio Lawrence leads the WAC in steals with 2.21 per game ... Lawrence has 31 steals, breaking the schools single-season record ... San Jose State is last in the WAC in free throw percentage (.600) ... SJSU has not scored 100 points in a game since beating Utah State, 101-85, on Jan. 25, 1979 (674 games).

SMU - the Mustangs swept their WAC road trip last week for the first time since beating Fresno State and UTEP on the road, Feb. 17-19, 2000 ... Quinton Ross is the WACs leading scorer with 20.2 points per contests ... Ross has started 76 straight games, the longest current streak in the WAC ... Ross made a WAC-high 12 free throws (12-12) last week against Rice ... the Mustangs improved to 4-0 in overtime games this season after beating Tulsa on Saturday ... the four overtime games and four wins broke school records in a season ... after averaging 4.8 points in his first five contests, freshman Bryan Hopkins is averaging 18.4 points over his last nine games.

UTEP - sophomore forward Thomas Gehrke of Brazil joined the team last week, and in his first game against Boise State, he scored 15 points and blocked a season WAC-high six shots in 23 minutes ... Darius Mattear grabbed a season WAC-high 18 rebounds against Boise State ... Giovanni St. Amants 25 points against Boise State were the second most ever by a freshman at UTEP behind only his 26 point outburst on Jan. 2 against Hawaii ... Justino Victoriano leads the WAC in rebounding with 8.8 per game ... the Miners have lost 19 road games in a row dating back to Feb. 24, 2001, when it won at Rice, 59-52 ... UTEP was the only WAC team to not win a road game last year.

Tulsa - TU is 4-2 on the road, one of two teams in the WAC with a winning road record (Rice) ... the Hurricane play three of its next four on the road ... MTV has been granted access to the team and will produce a documentary that will be shown later this year ... Jason Parker scored 14 of Tulsas final 23 points against SMU including nine in the last 27 seconds of regulation ... Tulsa missed its first 15 three-point field goal attempts against SMU before finishing 8-of-36 ... the 36 attempts were the most by a WAC team this season ... Kevin Johnson had his streak of scoring in double figures come to an end at 16 after scoring eight points against Louisiana Tech last Thursday ... Johnson leads the WAC in blocks with 1.94 per game ... Jason Parker leads the WAC in free throw percentage (.882) ... Tulsa leads the WAC in field goal percentage defense (.408) and steals (8.44/game) ... the current five-member senior class has a record of 96-28 (.774) ... Tulsa has sold out 33 of its 66 games at the Reynolds Center where it has gone 55-11 (.833), the best winning percentage at home of any WAC team in its current arena ... every season that Tulsa has won 20 games, it has either played in the NCAA Tournament or won the NIT Championship.