Week two of WAC action will see eight of the nine WAC teams facing each other. San Jose State will take the week off of WAC action to take on North Dakota State and South Dakota State at home. Louisiana Tech and New Mexico State will make the long trip to Fresno State and Hawai'i. The Lady Techsters, Bulldogs and Rainbow Wahine are all undefeated in league play this season. Boise State, Nevada and Utah State are all looking for their first WAC wins. One team will get its first win as Boise State hosts the Aggies and the Vandals.
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XBOX LIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK ?“ Louisiana Tech?™s Ty Moore has been named the Xbox Live Western Athletic Conference Women?™s Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Jan. 9. This is the second Player of the Week honor of the season for the junior and the Lady Techsters third of the season.
Moore, a junior from Shreveport, La., averaged 16.0 points, 11.0 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 2.0 blocks per game, leading Louisiana Tech to a pair of WAC wins over Boise State and Idaho. Moore hit 60 percent (12-for-20) of her field goals and 73 percent (8-for-11) of her free throws for the week, while also pulling down 14 offensive rebounds in two games. In a 75-61 win over Boise State, Moore registered a double-double with 16 points, 10 rebounds and five blocked shots against the Broncos. Two nights later, Moore scored 16 points, added 12 rebounds and 3.0 steals in the 75-68 win over Idaho. With Louisiana Tech leading 66-63 with less than two minutes remaining, Moore pulled down her seventh offensive rebound and scored to give Tech a 68-63 lead. On Tech?™ s next possession, Moore pulled down her eighth offensive rebound and pass the ball out to Aarica Ray-Boyd who hit a three-pointer to seal the win.
Other nominees included: Janevia Taylor of Hawai'i scored 20 points in a win over Nevada … Leilani Mitchell of Idaho averaged 24.5 points as the Vandals split games last week … Lamisha Augustine of San Jose State scored 32 points as the Spartans won two WAC games last week … Sherrell Neal of New Mexico State averaged 12.0 points and 8.5 rebounds as the Aggies went 1-1 in the first week of conference play ... Jessica Freeman of Utah State averaged nine points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.5 blocks as the Aggies dropped its first two WAC games.
PLAY UP ?“ The WAC?™s marketing campaign, the Play Up Tour, will be hitting women?™s basketball games throughout the season. At least one game from each school will be singled out as the game of the week.
TUNE IN ?“ All 10 games this week can be viewed on wac.tv. On the wacsports.com web site there is a LIVE VIDEO link to each game. The games this week can be viewed for free.
DID YOU KNOW??? ?“ Idaho and Nevada have competed against each other in four different conferences, including the WAC. The others were the Mountain West, the Big Sky and the Big West.
STARTING STRONG ?“ Louisiana Tech has won 15-straight conference openers dating back to the 1990-91 season (five with the WAC and 10 with the Sun Belt). With two home wins last week, Louisiana Tech has won 105-straight conference games at home (last loss to New Orleans in 1991-92).
HIGH POWERED-OFFENSE ?“ San Jose State senior forward Lamisha Augustine is on her way to becoming the 11th player in San Jose State history to score 1,000 points in her career. She currently has 917 points, after scoring 177 so far in 2005-06. Augustine is not the only Spartan producing offensively. Augustine and sophomore forward Amber Jackson have scored in double figures a combined 19 times, while the rest of the team have scored in double figures a combined nine times.
VANDALS AMONG NCAA LEADERS ?“ Idaho?™s Leilani Mitchell moved up to second in the nation in steals, averaging 4.2 spg. Mitchell is also 11th in assists per game (6.3). Mitchell?™s teammate Emily Faurholt is 19th in the country in points per game (19.9 ppg), while Mitchell is 28th averaging 19.2 ppg.
WAC PLAYERS AMONG NATION?™S LEADERS ?“ San Jose State?™s Amber Jackson is 15th in the nation in field goal percentage (.600) and 29th in rebounds per game (9.9 rpg). Boise State?™s Nadia Begay is up to eighth in the nation in three-point field goals per game (3.0), while Louisiana Tech?™s Aarica Ray-Boyd is 20th (2.8).
ESPN TO CELEBRATE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF NCAA WOMEN?™S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP ?“ Beginning Monday, Jan. 9, through the National Championship game on April 4, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU will count down the 25 most memorable moments from the NCAA Women?™s Basketball Tournament?™s 25-year history. A 30-second vignette will air during 25 women?™s basketball telecasts in ranking order, starting with No. 25 during the Big 12/Big Ten Challenge featuring Oklahoma at Ohio State on January 9 at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
Moments ranked 24-11 will continue to be announced during regular-season women?™s basketball coverage through Selection Monday on March 13.
The moments and rankings were determined by an industry-wide blue ribbon panel consisting of notable players, coaches, journalists and executives from the NCAA and WBCA.
One of the featured moments:
Final Four (Norfolk, Va.) ?”1982
The Lady Techsters win the first-ever NCAA title, beating Cheyney, 76-62. Janice Lawrence is named first-ever Most Outstanding Player as a sophomore.
NEVADA TO HOST 2006 TOURNAMENT ?“ For the second consecutive year, Nevada?™s Lawlor Events Center (11,200) will host the WAC Basketball Tournament. The dates for this year?™s tournament are March 7-11. The 2007 and 2008 tournaments will be held in Las Cruces, N.M.
IDAHO SETS WAC RECORD ?“ Idaho set a WAC and Idaho record with 40 three-point field goal attempts against Oklahoma State. Idaho was 10-of-40 (.250) in the game.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ?“ The 2005-06 season marks the 18th year of women?™s basketball at Utah State, and just the third since the program was restarted prior to the 2003-04 season. The women?™s hoops program at USU had been disbanded following the 1987 season due to budget cuts. USU is playing its inaugural season in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) after playing its first two seasons in the Big West Conference.
HAWAI'I PLOWS THROUGH DECEMBER ?“ Hawai'i went a perfect 6-0 in the month of December, including a pair of road wins in its first non-conference road games in a dozen years. It marked just the third time in the last 14 seasons that UH went undefeated in the month heading toward conference play. The last time UH last went undefeated in December was 2000.
AGAINST THE BEST ?“ The WAC won its first game against a ranked team when Louisiana Tech defeated No. 25 Mississippi. Louisiana Tech is 1-1 against ranked teams with a loss to No. 1 Tennessee. New Mexico State is 0-2 with two losses to New Mexico. Fresno State is 0-2 against ranked teams with Pac-10 losses to then- No. 13 Stanford and No. 10 Arizona State. Hawai'i has one loss to a ranked team with a loss to then-No. 22 USC.
THE STREAK CONTINUES ?“ With its 79-74 win over Nevada, UH improved to 10-2 and matched its best start since the 2001- 02 campaign. UH has won eight straight, the longest such streak under second-year head coach Jim Bolla and its longest streak since the 2000 WAC season. The Rainbow Wahine will look for its ninth straight win versus Louisiana Tech, a feat they have not accomplished since winning a school-record 19 straight during the 1997-98 season. In addition, UH has won its first three road games, a first in five years. UH won its first five road games during the 2000-01 campaign.
WAC JOINS NCAA CELEBRATION OF WOMEN?™S CHAMPIONSHIPS ?“ The Western Athletic Conference has joined the NCAA national office in celebrating the 2005-06 season as the 25th anniversary of NCAA Women?™s Championships.
The NCAA is encouraging the more that 1,020 member colleges, universities and conferences to recognize the 2005-06 season as the 25th anniversary of women?™s championships. Recognition can include special campus activities, banners and signage, promotional events, program inserts, the naming of anniversary teams, and special awards. Activation kits were provided to all NCAA Division I, II and III colleges and universities in an effort to assist with the initiatives on their campuses.
FAURHOLT CANDIDATE FOR SENIOR AWARD ?“ Idaho?™s Emily Faurholt was announced as a candidate for the 2005-06 Bayer Advantage?® Senior CLASS Award, the nation?™s premier tribute to college seniors. The award, now in its fifth year, is presented annually to the nation?™s senior player-of-the-year for NCAA Division I men?™s and women?™s basketball.
Faurholt, a senior from Kennewick, Wash., is one of Idaho?™s top returning players after averaging 23.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game during the 2004-05 season. Her points-per-game average ranked second in the nation. Faurholt made history as the ninth-quickest player to reach 1,000-career points, reaching the plateau in just her 43rd Division I game, and ended the season on nine all-time records lists at UI.
This season, Faurholt is averaging 20.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. She is shooting the ball at a 50-percent clip both in field goals (26-of-52) and 3-point field goals (7-of-14) and is 23-of-25 (.920) from the free-throw line. Faurholt is the only representative from the WAC.
FIRST AND SECOND ROUND SITES SET ?“ For the second-straight season, there will be pre-determined sites for the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament. Last season, Fresno State was one of the chosen sites. This season is the 25th anniversary of the women?™s basketball tournament. The Final Four travels to Boston, Mass., for its silver anniversary. On April 4-6, Harvard University and Northeastern University will host the Final Four. All games will be played at the FleetCenter, home of the Boston Celtics.
Boise State Broncos (8-6, 0-2 WAC)
Boise State looks for its first WAC win of the season this week at home against Utah State and Nevada ... all three teams are looking for their first WAC wins ... Boise State has lost three-straight, while the Wolf Pack has lost two-straight and the Aggies have lost six-straight games ... Nadia Begay is eighth in the nation in three-point field goals per game, averaging 3.0 per game ... Jessica Thompson?™s 13 field goals made in a game ties the WAC high this season ... Thompson had 13 field goals against Washington State on Dec. 4.
Fresno State Bulldogs (9-4, 1-0 WAC)
When Fresno State defeated Utah State 60-58 in the WAC opener, it represented the first time in almost two years the team won a game by less than three points ... the Bulldogs defeated Boise State, 77-75, in overtime on Feb. 14, 2004 in Boise ... it was the club?™s first win by less than three points under the guidance of head coach Adrian Wiggins ... Fresno State has won back-to-back games in the month of January for the first time since 1999, when the Bulldogs recorded consecutive wins over Nevada, Cal Poly and San Jose State (Jan. 2-9). However, Nevada and Cal Poly were not members of the WAC during that season.
Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine (10-2, 1-0 WAC)
Hawai'i knows how to close out games ... the Rainbow Wahine are a perfect 9-0 when leading with five minutes left ... the wins have not come easily ... Hawai'i has been involved in a number of close games and are 4-0 in contests decided by five points or less, including its last win, a 79-74 decision at Nevada ...Hawai'i is one win shy of the program?™s 500th victory ... the Rainbow Wahine hold an all-time mark of 499-310 (.617) in their 32nd year of existence ... Hawai'i has recorded a winning record in 20 of its previous 31 seasons.
Idaho Vandals (5-8, 1-1 WAC)
The Vandals currently hold a streak of 98 consecutive games with two or more three-point field goals made. Idaho?™s last game without a made three-pointer was Nov. 25, 2002 against Idaho State ... during the streak, the Vandals have made 639 three-pointers for an average of 6.5 made per game ... the Vandals hold a record of 33-4 when leading at halftime since the 2003-04 season, including a 5-1 record this season ... four of Idaho?™s seven losses have come by a combined eight points ... Emily Faurholt is currently second on the Idaho records list for career free throws made with 403 ... Leilani Mitchell is third on the list with 377 free throws made.
Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters (10-3, 2-0 WAC)
In Tech?™s 75-61 win over Boise State, Ty Moore scored 16 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked three shots ... Moore scored 16 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and registered a career-high three steals in a 75-68 win over Idaho ... Louisiana Tech has won 15-straight conference openers dating back to the 1990-91 season (four with the WAC and 10 with the Sun Belt) ... Louisiana Tech has won 105-straight conference games at home (last loss to New Orleans in 1991-92) ... Louisiana Tech guard Tasha Williams is the only Division I player in the country to have registered double figures in four different statistical categories in her career (points, rebounds, assists and steals).
Nevada Wolf Pack (3-10, 0-2 WAC)
Meghan McGuire?™s 28 points against Hawai'i on Jan. 5 was the most in a league game so far this season ... she mad 11 field goals in the loss to the Rainbow Wahine, shooting .524 also a league high in WAC games ... McGuire?™s four steals against Hawai'i was is tied for the fourth most in the league this season ... she is tied with teammate Traci Graham who had four against San Jose State on Jan. 7 ... this week, the Wolf Pack look for their first league wins of the season on the road at Boise State and Idaho.
New Mexico State Aggies (4-9, 1-1 WAC)
The Aggies have won four of its last seven games after losing its first six games of the season ... Boise State won its first WAC game against Boise State on Jan. 7 ... Sherrell Neal led the Aggies against the Broncos ... she had 18 points and seven rebounds, while Irma Kmitaite had 15 points and senior forward Jenean Ford tallied 15 points and nine rebounds ... freshman center Niki Holt had the best game of her young career, putting up 10 rebounds and three blocks ... her two points came on a pair of key free throws late in overtime to help seal the victory ... New Mexico State travels to Fresno State and Hawai?™i Thursday and Saturday for a pair of WAC contests.
San Jose State Spartans (5-6, 2-0 WAC)
Amber Jackson has five double-doubles in 2005 ... she scored one in each of the first three games of the season ... she had 26 points and 12 rebounds in their 69-61 defeat of Gonzaga, 15 points and 17 rebounds in the 76-62 defeat of Cal State Northridge, and 21 points and 14 rebounds in their 68-62 loss to Portland State ... her fourth one came when she scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the Spartans?™ 78- 66 defeat of Colorado State and her fifth one came against Santa Clara when she scored 23 points and pulled down 10 rebounds.
Utah State Aggies (1-11, 0-2 WAC)
Utah State is riding a six-game losing streak and sits at 1-11 overall ... the start is its worst since going a similar 1-11 to start the 2003-04 season, which marked its first season back after the program was disbanded due to budget cuts following the 1987 season ... the Aggies finished the 2003-04 season with a 5-22 mark, while they were 14-14 last season, with a 5-6 record after 11 games ... Utah State is 0-5 on the road this season ... the Aggies haven?™t won on the road in their last eight tries dating back to last season... their last road win was at Pacific (77-75) on Feb. 12, 2005... USU?™s scoring margin on the road this season is -17.6, while its home scoring margin is -1.7.