|
Related Material
|
Weekly Release.PDF
|
PLAYER OF THE WEEK Louisiana Tech's Tasha Crain has been named the Western Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Feb. 7. This is the second WAC Player of the Week honor for the junior this season; she also earned the honor of Jan. 3.
Crain, a junior from Kinglsand, Ark., averaged 25.0 points, 6.0 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 steals, while leading Louisiana Tech to wins over Fresno State and Nevada. Crain shot 61 percent (14-of-23) from the field, 60 percent (3-of-5) from the three-point line and 86 percent (19-of-22) from the free throw line for the week. In Louisiana Tech's, 86-76, win over Fresno State, Crain scored 25 points, dished out a season-high nine assists and registered a season-high five steals in 40 minutes of action. She hit 6-of-9 field goals and 12-of-13 free throws in the win.
In Louisiana Tech's 108-72 win over Nevada, Crain scored 25 points, had five rebounds, three assists and two steals in 29 minutes of action. She hit 8-of-14 field goals, 2-of-3 threes and 7-of-9 free throws in the win.
Other nominees included: Cassidy Blaine, Boise State; Amy Parrish, Fresno State; Krystal Frazier, Rice; Amber Jackson, San Jose State and Shalana Taylor, UTEP.
ON TAP THIS WEEK First and second place will battle this week as front-runner Louisiana Tech travels to second-place San Jose State on Feb. 12. SMU, tied for third with Rice, will also take on San Jose State. Rice and Tulsa face each other on Feb. 12 in another battle. Both UTEP and Nevada will try to break losing streaks as the two teams meet on Feb. 12. The Miners have lost three-straight games, while the Wolf Pack has dropped seven-straight games.
BOISE STATE WINS BIG GAMES Boise State had another big WAC win, defeating Tulsa, 87-83 in overtime. The Broncos have two wins this season over teams in the top half of the WAC. Boise States home victory over Louisiana Tech stopped the Lady Techsters WAC record 23-game league winning streak. The only other team beside the Broncos to defeat the Lady Techsters in the WAC is Rice. The Lady Owls defeated Louisiana Tech twice (2002 and 2004). Both wins came in Houston. Louisiana Tech has not lost a home league game since joining the WAC.
ITS ALL IN THE NAME There have been 12 weeks of player of the week honors this season, but only four letters of the 26-letter alphabet are represented. There have been three honorees with names starting with the letter L, Lakiste Barkus of Louisiana Tech, Lauren Neaves of Rice and Lamisha Augustine of San Jose State. There were two winners with names starting with the letter J, including three-time winner Jillian Robbins of Tulsa and Janielle Dodds of SMU. There were also two honorees with names starting with the letter T, Tamika Kursh and Tasha Crain of Louisiana Tech. Crain has earned the honor twice. Finally, two Ambers have garnered player of the week honors, Amber Young of Nevada and Amber Jackson of San Jose State.
TAYLOR RETURNS TO STARTING LINEUP Hawaiis Janevia Taylor returned to the starting lineup for the first time in three weeks when she got the starting nod Saturday night against San Jose State. The sophomore guard had started the first 12 games of the season before suffering an ankle injury that sidelined her in games vs. UTEP (Jan. 20) and Boise State (Jan. 22). She returned to action on the road against Rice and Tulsa, but came off the bench and totaled just 14 points, while playing 10 fewer minutes than her average. Back as a starter against the Spartans, Taylor scored a team-high 16 points, with 14 of those coming in the first half.
REGAL RPI Despite a few setbacks last week, the league still has an overall Rating Percentage Index (RPI) of seven, according to the Womens Basketball Coaches Association. This is the highest RPI for the WAC in five seasons.
Last season half-way through the conference season, the WAC had a WBCA RPI of 13th, while during the 2002-03 season the league was 10th. Since the 1999-00 season, the WAC has not had an RPI lower than 10th.
The WAC has five schools with an RPI under 80, and according to the WBCA has no schools with an RPI higher than 200. Louisiana Tech has an RPI of 23 to lead the WAC, while SMU is currently ranked No. 55, according to the WBCA. Tulsa is ranked 59th, while Rice has an RPI of 66. Hawaii has an RPI of 79.
SPARTANS TAKE SECOND PLACE San Jose State took sole possession of second place this week after a win on the road against travel partner Hawaii. San Jose State has matched last seasons WAC win total of seven. Overall, the Spartans are 14-6. The last time the Spartan finished above .500 in WAC play was during the 2001-02 season when San Jose State finished 12-6 in league play.
Last week, San Jose State broke two lengthy home court winning streaks. The Spartans ended a home winning streak after ending Tulsas nine-game streak. Rice did not lose a WAC game at home last year and had the seventh longest homecourt winning streak in the country. Autry Court has not always been so nice to the Spartans as the team set a school record in 2000 for the fewest points in a half with seven.
JACKSON FIRST IN THE NATION IN FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE San Jose State freshman sensation, Amber Jackson, retains the top spot in the nation in field goal percentage in this weeks NCAA statistics. She leads the nation shooting .691. She is tied for first with Libertys Katie Feenstra. With the graduation of Tatiana and Teoma Taylor and all-WAC selection Cricket Williams, Jackson has emerged as a leader for the Spartans this season. San Diego States Michelle Suman has the WAC record in field goal percentage, shooting .667 during the 1991-92 season.
BREAKING THE TOP 10 There are several WAC teams that have broken the top 10 in this weeks NCAA statistics. San Jose State is eighth in field goal percentage defense (34.5) followed by SMU is close at 13th (35.0). Hawaii is 10th this week in blocked shots per game (6.1 bpg). Tulsa is nearing the top 10, standing 14th (5.9 bpg).
BIG WINNERS This season, the WAC has six schools with at least 13 wins. SMU leads the pack with 16 wins. Four teams have won 14 games, including Tulsa, Louisiana Tech, San Jose State and Rice. Fresno State has 13 wins this season. Last year at this point in the season, four teams had at least 13 wins. Louisiana Tech had 17, while Tulsa had 14. San Jose State and Rice had both won 13 games.
With a 70-62 win over SMU on Feb. 5, Fresno State recorded its 13th victory and matched last years win total. Eight regular season games remain on the schedule, in addition to the WAC Tournament in March. Six members on the roster (two of which are regular starters) are in their first year of Division I basketball.
HITTING THE RED CARPET Freshman center Dana Idlet will represent her family at the 47th Annual Grammy Awards in Hollywood, Calif., this weekend. The event will be broadcast live on the CBS Television Network this Sunday, Feb. 13 at 7:00 p.m. CST. Idlet's father, Ezra, and his musical partner, Keith Grimwood, make up the two-man band, Trout Fishing in America, which has performed for nearly three decades in the United States. Their recent album, Merry Fishes to All, a holiday CD release from Trout Fishing in America, has been nominated for a Grammy Award, according to news announced by the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences. Merry Fishes to All was selected as one of five nominees in the Best Musical Album for Children. Idlet will travel to Houston for Tulsas game against Rice this Saturday and will depart for California at the conclusion of the contest.
FAST-BREAK FRESHMEN Several freshmen have taken the WAC by storm not unlike the sensation caused by Rices Lauren Neaves and Tulsas Jillian Robbins last season. San Jose States Amber Jackson is second in the league in scoring, averaging 16.2 points per game. Jackson is first in the nation in field goal percentage (.691). Fellow freshman Janielle Dodds is fourth in the league in scoring, averaging 14.7 ppg. Dodds is also third in rebounding, averaging 8.4 rpg. UTEPs freshman Shanlana Taylor is third in the league in assists (4.85 apg). Nevada freshman Meghan McGuire is fifth in the league in scoring, averaging 13.3.
HAWAIIS ABELE NEARS MILESTONE Senior Jade Abele will appear in her 100th career game when she suits up against Louisiana Tech on Feb. 10. She has played in 85 straight games and has started 73 consecutive contests. She needs just 30 points to become the 14th player in school history to score 1,000 career points.
WAC AGAINST THE REST The WAC is 61-32 (.656) this season. The WAC has a solid record against several conferences, including an 8-2 record against the Sun Belt Conference. The WAC is undefeated against the ACC (2-0). The ACC has the highest RPI in the country. WAC teams are also 7-2 against the Southland Conference and 5-3 against the Mountain West Conference. The WAC has a 2-4 record against the SEC, the conference with the second-highest RPI, according to the WBCA rankings.
2005 WAC Basketball Tournament Tickets on Sale Tickets for the 2005 WAC Men and Womens Basketball Tournament to be played March 8-12 at the Lawlor Events Center on the campus of the University of Nevada currently are on sale at all WAC athletics ticket offices. The Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority is the tournaments co-sponsor.
Fans may purchase all-session tickets from any WAC institution through January 21 and may purchase them at any time through the University of Nevada athletics ticket office by calling 1-775-348-PACK (7225).
The tournament begins on Tuesday, March 8, with two women and two mens games. It continues with the womens and mens quarterfinals on March 9 and 10 respectively, and and both semifinals on March 11. The championship games will be played on Saturday, March 12.
Tickets are priced at $125 and $95 and include all men and womens games.
WAC VS. RANKED TEAMS WAC teams are 0-5 against ranked teams this season. Fresno State is 0-1 with a loss to No. 18 UCLA at Savemart Center on Dec. 11. Rice is 0-2 against ranked teams with losses to Baylor and Texas Tech, when both teams were both ranked No. 11. SMU also has a loss to No. 23 TCU. Hawaii lost to No. 17 Houston at home.
WAC TO CHANGE IN 2005-06 Over the last year, the WAC issued invitations to Idaho, New Mexico State and Utah State effective July 1, 2005, the same date that Rice, SMU, UTEP and Tulsa are moving to Conference USA.
This season, Idaho is 14-6, 9-2 in the Big West. The Vandals are off to their best conference start in the Big West and the best start in any conference play since the 1985-86 season when Idaho went 9-2 to begin Mountain West Conference play. The Vandals have now won five-straight games. New Mexico State is 7-14, 2-7 in the Sun Belt Conference. The Aggies defeated No. 22 Houston earlier this season. It was the Aggies first-ever win over a ranked team. Utah State is 11-9, passing the win total of all of last season, the Aggies first season. USU is 6-5 in the Big West.
WAC TOURNAMENT TRAVELS TO RENO After one season in Fresno, the WAC Tournament will move to Reno in 2005. The 2005 WAC Tournament will be played at Nevadas Lawlor Events Center, March 8-12. The seven through 10 seeded teams will play on Tuesday, March 8. The remaining six teams will play in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, March 9 with the top seed competing versus the winner of the 8-9 Tuesday game, the No. 2 seed vs. No. 7 or No. 10, etc. The winners will play in the semifinals on Friday and the championship game will be Saturday.
Boise State Broncos (8-12, 3-8 WAC)Boise State defeated Tulsa in overtime, 87-83 on Feb. 5 ... the Broncos were behind by seven at half-time (35-42), tied the game at the end of the second period with the score 75-75, and then outscored the Hurricanes 12 to 8 in the overtime to win the game 87-83 ... this was the Broncos second all-time win over the Golden Hurricane ... Boise State also defeated Tulsa, 70-68, during the 2002-03 season, Jen Wardens first year ... the Broncos are two wins away from passing last seasons overall win total of nine.
Fresno State Bulldogs (13-7, 5-6 WAC)Senior Aritta Lane is currently 99-180 from the field, translating into a shooting percentage of 55-percent ... Kellie Murphy is Fresno States record holder for field goal percentage in a single season, setting the standard at 58.7-percent during the 1984-85 campaign ... Lane ranks second in the conference in that category, behind Amber Jackson of San Jose State (69.1-percent) ... Fresno States recent turnaround can be credited to the strong post play of Lane and Amy Parrish ... the strategy of getting the basketball down low in the paint has not changed; the Bulldogs are simply executing at a higher level ... Lane has recorded three double-doubles while Parrish, who has four double-doubles, has scored in double-figures 11 games in a row and 15 overall.
Hawaii Rainbow Wahine (8-9, 4-6 WAC)This week will mark the third-straight that Hawaii will face the reigning WAC Player of the Week when Hawaii takes on Louisiana Tech and its star guard Tasha Crain, who is the WACs leading scorer averaging 25.0 ppg over the weekend to earn POW honors ... last week the Rainbow Wahine faced San Jose States Lamisha Augustine who finished with 15 points, including the game-winning basket ... two weeks ago, Hawaii traveled to Rice where they faced POW award winner Lauren Neaves ... UH ranks 10th in the nation at 6.1 bpg and average 6.8 bpg in conference contests ... Alofa Toiaivao and Brittany Grice have combined for 87 of the teams 104 blocks with Toiaivao leading the team and 15th in the country at 2.7 bpg and Grice is not far behind at 2.4 bpg, ranking 25th in the nation.
Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters (14-5, 10-1 WAC)Louisiana Tech won its 100th-straight regular season conference game at the Thomas Assembly Center on Feb. 5 against Nevada ... Louisiana Tech has not lost a regular season league game at the TAC since falling to 69-54 to New Orleans on Jan. 30, 1992, over 13 years ago when competing in the Sun Belt Conference ... in that game Louisiana Tech hit only 29 percent (19-65) of its field goals and lost for only the second time ever to the Privateers ... guard Tasha Crain entered into the top 50 in the nation in points per game, averaging 17.7 ppg.
Nevada Wolf Pack (5-16, 1-10 WAC)Nevada looks to snap a seven-game losing streak this week at home against Boise State and UTEP ... the losing streak reached five after losses Fresno State and Louisiana Tech ... the Wolf Pack has three players in the top 10 in free throw percentage ... Nevada is 24th in the nation in free throw percentage (.747) ... freshman Meghan McGuire is fifth in the league in scoring, averaging 13.3 ppg ... for the second time in as many seasons, the Wolf P ack allowed over 100 points to Louisiana Tech.
Rice Owls (14-8, 7-4 WAC)With wins over Boise State and UTEP on the road, Rice has now won four-consecutive road games ... the Lady Owls had four players score double-figure points against Boise State, and three against UTEP ... Lauren Neaves recorded
her sixth double-double of the year with 14 points and 11 rebounds against the Broncos ... after sitting out two games with injuries, Michelle Woods bounced back, notching her third double-double this season with 13 points and 10 rebounds at UTEP ... Rice held Boise State to just 13 first-half points, the fifth-lowest first half points by a Rice opponent in school history ... the Lady Owls also had 13 blocks against BSU, the third most blocks in a game in Rice history ... Neaves and Woods each had five against Boise State, and Neaves added two against the Miners.
San Jose State Spartans (14-6, 7-3 WAC)Senior Lamisha Augustine took one of her most important shots of the season, making a jumper with 25 seconds left in the game to give San Jose State a 56-54 victory over host Hawaii ... the win gave SJSU sole possession of second place in the WAC standings behind Louisiana Tech ... the Spartans also have a five-game winning streak ... the Spartans will face SMU on Feb. 10 and look to avenge a 58-37 loss on Jan. 15, where the team shot just 24.5 percent from the field ... the team then hosts conference leader Louisiana Tech on Feb. 12 ... Amber Jackson retained her first place position in the nation in shooting percentage (.691).
SMU Mustangs (16-5, 7-4 WAC)Junior Sarah Davis is second on SMUs all-time career list for blocked shots ... with 116 career blocks, Davis needs 24 blocks to become SMU's all-time block leader - a title now held by Karlin Kennedy (19996-2000- 139 blocks) ... freshman Janielle Dodds has recorded double-figure scoring marks in all but four games this season ... now fifth on SMU's all-time career list for assists, Kendall Shead comes into Thursdays game with 320 assists and needs eight assists to climb to the fourth spot, currently held by Tomi Hollis (1983-86) with 327 dishes ... Dodds needs to average 14.0 points per game to set a new freshman record for most points in a season, currently held by Carol
Blauvelt (1978-79) with 406 points ... she has 308 points ... Davis has tallied at least one block in all but five games this season.
UTEP Miners (8-12, 3-5 WAC)UTEP will play five of its final seven games on the road, beginning with Fresno State and Nevada this week, a trip the Miners swept last season ... UTEP is 0-4 in WAC road games this year and has dropped six of eight since the Fresno-Reno road trip ... UTEP is the only WAC school with five players scoring at least 8.0 ppg ... the Miners are also the only school with nine players shooting at least .700 from the line ... Shalana Taylor is five assists shy of setting the UTEP freshman single-season record and three shy of becoming the seventh player at UTEP to dish out 100 in a season ... Taylor set career-highs with 12 and 14 points against Tulsa and Rice last week.
Tulsa Golden Hurricane (14-7, 6-5 WAC)Despite dropping both games last week at UTEP and Boise State and falling to fifth in the conference standings, Tulsa ranks third in the Rating Percentage Indexs (RPI) among WAC teams in three different RPI publications ... Tulsa is third at No. 56 in the Real Time RPI, third in the CollegeRPI.com at No. 59, and is third in the WBCA/Summerville RPI at No. 59 ... sophomore Jillian Robbins scored 20 points against Boise State and moved past senior Becky Heidotten for ninth-place on the schools career scoring list with 727 points ... Heidotten trails Robbins by just three points with 724 ... Robbins is 13 points shy of catching former Golden Hurricane player, Felicia Caldwell (1983-85), who currently ranks eighth with 740 points.