PLAYER OF THE WEEK ? Boise State’s Tasha has been named the Western Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 25. This is the first WAC Player of the Week honor this season for the sophomore.
Harris, a guard from Longmont, Colo. (Sklyline) started both games for Boise State at point guard last week when it competed at the “Duel In The Desert” in Las Vegas, Nev. where the Broncos went 1-1. The sophomore scored a season-high 21 points to lead the Broncos to an upset of host UNLV 76-63 in the opener then followed that with 12 points in a loss against No. 13 Purdue in the tournament championship game. She shot 55.6 percent (5-of-9) from the floor against the Lady Rebels and went 10-of-14 (71.4 pct.) from the free throw line as Boise State defeated their first Mountain West school in two years. Last week, Harris shot 44.4 percent from the floor, 33.3 percent from three-point range, and 77.8 percent from the charity stripe. She averaged 16.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 24 minutes of action per game.
Other nominees included: Brittani Green of Fresno State had nine rebounds and eight points in a win on the road against Arizona ... Shan Moore of Louisiana Tech scored 16 points with three rebounds and assists as the Lady Techsters defeated Rice ... Alisha Hicks of San Jose State scored 27 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists, five steals and one block in a pair of losses in the Dakotas ... Jenny Gross of Utah State scored a career-high 17 points in a win against Portland as the Aggies went 1-1 week.
THIS WEEK IN THE WAC ? This week, Louisiana Tech has another tough test taking on No. 6 LSU at the Katrina Relief Basketball Classic in New Orleans. All proceeds from the game go to the LSU Operation Rebound to benefit the Friends of New Orleans Recreation Department (NORD) and the New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity. For more information, visit www.LSUOperationrebound.com.
Utah State will travel to Ames, Iowa for the Iowa State Classic Dec. 29-30, taking on host Iowa State and Colgate. Idaho will play at the Montana Tournament, while the Rainbow Wahine will host the Hawai?i Invitational. Fresno State will travel to Malibu to take on Pepperdine, while San Jose State looks for its first win against Pacific and Santa Clara.
FANTASTIC FRESHMEN ? Idaho freshman post Katie Madison is off to a tremendous start this season. Against Eastern Washington on Nov. 29, Madison scored a WAC-high 35 points in the win. Madison is first in the WAC in scoring (20.1) and rebounding (9.6). She is also leading the WAC in field goal percentage, shooting .549.
San Jose State’s Brittany Helm is also having a strong freshman campaign. Helm is fifth in the WAC in scoring, averaging 14.8 points per game. Helm is also tied for third in the WAC in steals, averaging 2.40 spg.
GREAT GUARD PLAY?Fresno State’s trio of guards has been leading the way for the Bulldogs through the first month of the season. Senior Chantella Perera leads the team in scoring, averaging 15.9 points per game, as well as pulling in 5.5 rebounds per game. The top single-game points mark does not belong to Perera, however, but rather to Junior Tierre Wilson, who poured in 26 in a loss to Santa Clara on the road in December.Rounding out the group, senior Paige Diggs has seen an enhanced role this season, moving into the starting lineup and playing well as the Bulldogs have moved to playing primarily three guards.
LA TECH GETS TRANSFER FROM BAYLOR ? Former West Monroe High School standout Whitney Jones enrolled at Louisiana Tech and will join the Lady Techster basketball family, according to head coach Chris Long Monday.
Jones, a 5-foot-5 guard who originally signed with the Baylor Bears and played in eight games this season before suffering a stress fracture, will have three years of eligibility remaining and will be eligible to begin practicing as soon as she is cleared physically. She will be eligible to play Nov. 15.
ON THE TUBE ? Fresno State has three big home matches coming up. Following this weekend against San Francisco, the Bulldogs will host the Lions of Loyola Marymount on Dec. 21, marking the return of the team to the visual airwaves, as that game will be carried on Comcast Channel 14. Then, on Jan. 2, Fresno State women’s basketball will make their national television debut, playing Stanford at 7 p.m., a game that will be carried live on CSTV.
VANDALS LOSE KEY COMPONENT ? Idaho senior Karly Felton will miss the remainder of her senior season after tearing her ACL in her left knee. The injury occurred Nov. 24 in the Vandals’ game against Colorado State at the Coors Rocky Mountain Invitational tournament. Felton could use a medical redshirt this season and still have one year of eligibility left if she chooses.
MARSHALL LEAVING FRESNO STATE ? Senior guard Jasmine Marshall announced today that she is leaving the program due to family reasons. Marshall recently married former Bulldog football star and current Carolina Panther Richard Marshall, and has decided to move to the East Coast to live with her husband.
NEW MEXICO STATE TO HOST 2007 TOURNAMENT ? The 2007 WAC Basketball Tournament will be held March 6-10 in Las Cruces, N.M., at the Pan American Center and will be hosted by New Mexico State. The