PLAYER OF THE WEEK ? New Mexico State forward David Fisher, a senior from Dallas, Texas (Arkansas-Fort Smith), averaged 21.0 points and 8.0 rebounds in a pair of wins against rivals New Mexico and UTEP. He had a season-high 24 points on 10-of-11 shooting from the field with a game-high nine rebounds in a 103-72 win over New Mexico. He then added a game-high 18 points and seven rebounds in a two-point victory against the Miners. It was the first time since the 2002-03 season that New Mexico State swept its two rivals at home. It is Fisher’s first career WAC Player of the Week award and first for an Aggie player this year.
Others nominated:
Matt Nelson, Jr., F, Boise State - averaged 18.5 points and 8.0 rebounds in two wins last week. He had a double-double at Cal State Northridge with 21 points and 11 rebounds. For the week, he was 15-of-20 (.750) from the field.
Quinton Hosley, Sr., G/F, Fresno State - averaged 18.0 points and 9.0 rebounds in a split of two games. In the overtime win at Montana State, he scored a season-high 30 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and made 16-of-17 from the free throw line.
Jaycee Carroll, Jr., G, Utah State - averaged 22.5 points and was 20-of-28 (.714) from the field in two wins last week. He scored 27 points against Utah and was 5-of-8 from three-point range.
UTAH STATE WITH 8-GAME WINNING STREAK ? Utah State has the WAC’s longest current winning streak at eight in a row after beating Utah Valley State on Saturday, 69-65. The Aggies lost their first game of the season at Northwestern State but have since reeled off eight straight victories. Utah State returns to action on Saturday when it travels to Brigham Young. The Aggies have won 10 of their last 11 games against teams from the state of Utah.
FAZEKAS FIFTH WAC PLAYER WITH 2,000 POINTS & 1,000 REBOUNDS ? Nevada senior forward Nick Fazekas became the fifth player in WAC history with 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds on Tuesday night. He had 19 points and five rebounds against Saint Mary’s to up his career totals to 2,005 points and and 1,018 rebounds. Fazekas joins Arizona’s Bob Elliott, Utah’s Josh Grant, Utah’s Keith Van Horn and Rice’s Michael Harris as the only players to accomplish this feat.
WAC.TV ? The Western Athletic Conference officially launched WAC.tv prior to the 2006-07 season. WAC.tv, the Internet based media platform of the Western Athletic Conference, will offer nearly all of the conferences home games this season, many of them on an exclusive basis. Go to www.wac.tv to sign up or login.
This Week’s Schedule
December 16 (Saturday)
Sacramento State at Boise State, 7:00 p.m. MT
Pacific at Nevada, 7:00 p.m. PT
Creighton at Fresno State, 7:00 p.m. PT
December 17 (Sunday)
Long Beach State at San Jose State, 3:00 p.m. PT
FAZEKAS LEADS NATION IN REBOUNDING ? Nevada senior forward Nick Fazekas leads the nation in rebounding with 14.1 per game following Monday’s NCAA report. The WAC has boasted the nation’s top rebounder the past three seasons as Louisiana Tech’s Paul Millsap won the title each year. Prior to Millsap, no WAC player had ever won the rebounding title.
FRESNO STATE, NEVADA DROP FIRST GAMES ? Heading into last week, Fresno State and Nevada were the only two undefeated teams left in the WAC, but both lost games. The Bulldogs traveled to UC Santa Barbara on Wednesday and lost, 70-42. Nevada hosted in-state rival UNLV on Saturday night and dropped a 58-49 decision to also snap its 12-game home winning streak. Both teams rebounded with wins as Fresno State won at Montana State in overtime on Saturday night and Nevada beat Saint Mary’s at home last night.
NATIONAL RANKINGS ? Nevada dropped five spots to 25th in the AP poll and two spots to 21st in the ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll. No other teams received votes in either poll.
1,000-POINT SCORERS ? The WAC has five players that have scored more than 1,000 points in their collegiate careers. Those players with points and all-time school ranking: Nevada senior forward Nick Fazekas (2,005-1st); Boise State senior guard Coby Karl (1,357-6th); Utah State junior guard Jaycee Carroll (1,195-23rd); Fresno State senior guard Ja’Vance Coleman (1,108-21st); and New Mexico State senior guard Elijah Ingram (1,078-scored 607 points at St. John’s). New Mexico State’s Tyrone Nelson is next on the list with 917 points.
TEAM LEADERS ? The WAC has seven players that lead their team in two of three statistical categories (points-rebounds-assists). Louisiana Tech’s Chad McKenzie is the only player in the WAC to lead his team in all three categories. Boise State has two players as both Coby Karl and Matt Nelson both lead the team in scoring with 117 points on the season.
Coby Karl, Sr., G, Boise State (14.6 ppg, 3.5 apg)
Matt Nelson, Jr., F, Boise State (14.6 ppg, 8.6 rpg)
Matt Lojeski, Sr., G, Hawai?i (15.4 ppg, 5.3 apg)
Chad McKenzie, Sr., F, La. Tech (11.3 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 3.0 apg)
Nick Fazekas, Sr., F, Nevada (21.4 ppg, 13.1 rpg)
Justin Hawkins, Jr., G/F, New Mexico State (17.6 ppg, 8.2 rpg)
Jaycee Carroll, Jr., G, Utah State (22.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg)
NMSU OWNS WAC’S LONGEST HOME WINNING STREAK ? With Nevada losing to UNLV last week and snapping its 12-game home winning streak, New Mexico State now was the longest home winning streak in the WAC with 10 in a row. The Aggies have won all six games at home this season to go along with its four-game winning streak to end last season. Fresno State has the WAC’s second longest streak at nine in a row. Nevada has longest home winning streak in WAC games only at five straight.
NEVADA TOP TEAM OVER LAST FOUR YEARS ? Since the start of the 2003-04 season, Nevada is 85-23 (.787), the best record of any WAC team during that time. In conference games, Nevada has won 42 games, the most in that same time period.
FAZEKAS NAMED TO WATCH LISTS ? For the second straight year, Nevada forward Nick Fazekas has been named a candidate for both the Wooden Award and Naismith Trophy. Both awards listed 50 players on their early season watch lists.
FAZEKAS NAMED PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR ? In a vote by the WAC’s head coaches and media, Nevada senior forward Nick Fazekas was picked as the league’s preseason Player of the Year. Last season, Fazekas led the WAC in scoring with 21.8 points per game and also pulled down 10.4 rebounds per contest. He helped lead the Wolf Pack to a 27-6 record and a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
HOME SWEET HOME ? The WAC’s nine teams are a combined 25-9 (.735) at home this season. On the road and in neutral site games, the WAC is 17-27 (.386).
NON-CONFERENCE MARK ? The WAC is 42-36 (.538) in non-conference games, including a 41-36 (.532) mark against Division I team. Last year, the WAC was 63-52 (.548) in non-conference games (57-52 against Division I teams). The WAC’s best record ever against non-conference opponents came during the 1974-75 season when it was 73-22 (.768).
NEW MEXICO STATE TO HOST 2007 AND 2008 WAC TOURNAMENTS ? Las Cruces and New Mexico State University will be the host for both the 2007 and 2008 WAC Tournaments. The 2007 tournament will be held March 6-10 and will feature all nine men’s and women’s teams.
WAC ON ESPN ? The WAC has a multi-year contract with ESPN for coverage of WAC football and basketball. Four games have been scheduled so far while others could be added during the season.
BRACKETBUSTERS ? For the fifth year in a row, the WAC has partnered with ESPN and several other top college basketball conferences for BracketBusters, a weekend men’s basketball event matching potential NCAA tournament hopefuls against each other. All nine WAC teams will be involved in this year’s pool of teams. The event will be held February 16-17, and ESPN2 and ESPNU will present 11 games. The match-ups for BracketBusters will be determined by ESPN in conjunction with the conferences about three weeks before the event.
TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Boise State Broncos (4-4, 0-0 WAC)
Won at Cal State Northridge on Saturday to snap a seven-game road losing streak ... four players scored in double figures led by Matt Nelson’s 21 and Coby Karl’s 19 ... Nelson also had a career-high 16 rebounds ... senior G Kenny Wilson was 0-for-2 from the free throw line against Cal State Northridge after making his previous 21 attempts ... senior G Coby Karl has started 76 consecutive games, the second longest current streak in the WAC ... is the only team in the WAC that returns all five starters from last season ... is 23-1 when scoring 80 or more points under head coach Greg Graham ... the Broncos have reached 80 points in two straight games (winning both) ... Boise State is 4-1 when scoring at least 70 points.
Fresno State Bulldogs (8-1, 0-0 WAC)
Its 7-0 start was its best since opening 10-0 during the 1980-81 season ... hosts Creighton on Saturday in a return of last year’s BracketBusters contest ... the Bulldogs are 0-5 versus the Bluejays ... returns home after a three-game road trip (2-1) ... Quinton Hosley’s 30 points in the overtime win at Montana State ties for the most by a WAC player in a game this season ... four players scored in double figures against Montana State, the eighth time in nine games that has happened ... is 8-0 when four players score in double figures ... leads the WAC in scoring margin (+14.6) and scoring defense (61.7 ppg) ... junior G Kevin Bell leads the WAC in assists with 5.3 per game ... Dominic McGuire leads the WAC in blocks with 2.6 per contest.
Hawai?i Rainbow Warriors (4-4, 0-0 WAC)
Has not played since a 61-58 loss against UNLV on Dec. 5 ... resumes action on Dec. 16 when it hosts Northwestern State ... has lost three of its last four games ... has not lost consecutive home games since 1998 ... made just 12-of-21 (.571) free throws in the second half of the loss against UNLV after coming into the game with a team percentage of .766 ... Dominic Waters, Matt Gibson, and Bobby Nash each scored 11 points while Ahmet Gueye had eight points and 11 rebounds against UNLV ... has lost 23 of its last 28 road games dating back to the 2003-04 season ... UH is 4-0 when leading at the half and 0-4 when trailing ... UH has posted seven consecutive winning seasons ... has won seven straight OT games dating back to the 2002-03 season.
Idaho Vandals (1-8, 0-0 WAC)
Keoni Watson scored a game-high 24 points in the loss against Washington State ... is trying to avoid its worst start since going 1-11 in 1976-77 ... Idaho has made at least seven 3-pointers and shot at least 18 in eight of its nine games this season ... junior G Mario Mackey has left the team after averaging 10.0 ppg in seven games ... the Vandals are the only team in the WAC with one player averaging in double figures (Watson-17.9 ppg) ... junior F Darin Nagle and senior F Thomas Preston will be eligible to join the team in mid-December ... has not allowed its opponents to score 100 points in a game for 440 contests, the longest such streak in the WAC ... has made a three-point field goal in 262 consecutive games (since Feb. 27, 1997).
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (2-6, 0-0 WAC)
Beat Southern, 74-66, on Saturday night ... the 74 points were a season-high for the Bulldogs ... senior Chad McKenzie had his second double-double of the year with 14 points and 19 rebounds ... the 19 boards are the most by a WAC player in a game this season ... freshman Kyle Gibson scored a career-high 16 points ... Marcus Elliott (12 points) and Trey McDowell (11 points) also scored in double figures to give the Bulldogs their second game with at least four players in double figures this season ... Tech will face Southern in its next game in Baton Rouge on Saturday night ... is 19-4 in non-conference home games since joining the WAC before the 2001-02 season.
Nevada Wolf Pack (8-1, 0-0 WAC)
Marcelus Kemp scored 20 points in the win over Saint Mary’s, his fourth 20-point game of the season ... was 10-of-14 from three-point range after a 1-15 performance versus UNLV ... has won nine straight regular season games away from home ... was 10-3 on the road last year ... has won 22 of its last 24 games dating back to last season ... Nick Fazekas leads the naion in rebounding (13.1 rpg) ... he has posted a double-double in seven of the nine games this season and has 48 in his career ... Fazekas has scored 20 or more points 52 times in his career and has scored in double figures in 39 straight games ... he has started 80 straight games, the longest such current streak in the WAC ... Nevada has won at least 25 games in each of the past three seasons.
New Mexico State Aggies (6-3, 0-0 WAC)
Had a sellout crowd of 12,533 at the Pan American Center in the game against UTEP, its first sellout in 12 years ... junior Tyrone Nelson, a first-team all-WAC selection last year, made his first appearance of the season against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and scored four points and grabbed three rebounds in 14 minutes ... Justin Hawkins scored 16 points in the win over UTEP, snapping his four-game streak of 20 or more points ... has won five straight after losing three in a row ... senior G Ted Knauber leads the WAC in three-point field goal percentage (.531) ... junior G Fred Peete leads the WAC in steals (1.9 spg) ... the Aggies had 10 more wins in 2005-06 than all of the previous season (6-24), tied for the fifth biggest improvement by any team in the nation.
San Jose State Spartans (1-8, 0-0 WAC)
Led three times by six points in the second half against Portland State but ended up losing, 72-63 ... outrebounded the Vikings, 45-36, and had 18 offensive rebounds but just 13 points on second chances ... Tim Pierce had a team-high 17 points while Menelik Barbary had his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 rebounds ... is 1-8 for the first time since going 1-20 to start the 1994-95 season ... has 10 newcomers on its roster this season ... has posted six victories in each of the past three seasons ... has not scored 100 points in a game since beating Utah State, 101-85, on Jan. 25, 1979 (784 games).
Utah State Aggies (8-1, 0-0 WAC)
Has an eight-game winning streak after its season-opening loss at Northwestern State ... Jaycee Carroll scored 18 points in the win at Utah Valley State, snapping his streak of scoring 20 or more points at seven games ... that streak was the longest by a Utah State player since Greg Grant did it in 1985-86 ... Carroll leads the WAC in free throw percentage (.895) and in scoring (22.7 ppg) ... the Aggies have participated in the postseason in each of the past seven years (5 NCAAs, 2 NITs) ... is one of five teams across the country to win at least 23 games in each of the last seven years joining Duke, Gonzaga, Illinois and Kansas ... is 115-11 at home under Stew Morrill ... has won 41 straight non-conference regular season home games.