WAC TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Boise State Broncos (7-4, 0-0 WAC)
Boise State has concluded their pre-Christmas schedule going 7-4 overall ... They will take a break for finals this week followed by a short Christmas vacation after that ... They will return to action for their final non-conference game of the season on Dec. 29 when they travel to instate rival Idaho State, a 2007 NCAA Tournament team ... Last week Boise State lost a heartbreaking game on a buzzer beater at Arizona by the score of 62-61 ... The Broncos then rebounded for a commanding 87-60 victory at home over Sacramento State on Saturday ... Tasha Harris and Jessica Thompson continue to lead Boise State in scoring averaging 17.5 and 15.5 points per game.
Fresno State Bulldogs (2-8, 0-0 WAC)
The 43 point win over Cal-State Bakersfield was the largest margin of victory for a Bulldog team since an 86-38 win over Cal-State Northridge on December 20, 1996 ... The win is the third biggest win in the last 16 years ... In 1991 the Bulldogs defeated Cal Poly by 46 points ... Tierre Wilson passed the 1,000 point mark for her career in her 10 point performance against Bakersfield ... Wilson now has 1,002 for her career and needs 150 to break into the top 10 career leaders for points ... The first ever meeting with CSUB provided a game of firsts for the Bulldogs ... For the first time this season Fresno State shot 50 percent or greater from the field in its win over Bakersfield ... The Dogs shot 52.2 percent and held CSUB to 34.5 percent shooting ... The 93 points was the most points scored in a game since a 93-84 win over UC Irvine on November 18, 2005.
Hawai?i Rainbow Wahine (4-5, 0-0 WAC)
Senior forward Tanya Smith was named to her second All-Tournament team of the season after Monday’s Island Imaging Paradise Classic finale ... Smith averaged 10.6 points and 10 rebounds per game over the three-game classic ... Senior guard Saundra Cariaga helped pace the Rainbow Wahine over the three-game classic ... Cariaga averaged a team-high 35.7 minutes per game and led the team with 10.7 points per game ... UH will play on the road for the first time this season ... After hosting three home tournaments, the Rainbow Wahine will play at the Women of Troy Basketball Classic on Thursday and Friday ... If they face host USC on Friday, it will be their first true road game of the year ... This will be the only road non-conference game of the year for UH.
Idaho Vandals (0-10, 0-0 WAC)
Katie Madison leads the team with an 11.6 scoring average and a 6.8 rebounding average, including four offensive boards per game ... Sara Dennehy, last year’s second leading scorer, returned to the starting lineup last week and scored nine points with five rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal ... Idaho is averaging 3.6 blocked shots per game this season, and they’re coming from all over the court. Nine of the team’s 13 players have blocked at least one shot.
La Tech Lady Techsters (4-6, 0-0 WAC)
Tech played its past four games in nine days ... The team went 0-3 last week, falling to Louisiana-Monroe (71-50), Mississippi State (63-50), and 8th-ranked LSU (76-45) ... All three games were played in Ruston ... JoKeirra Sneed led the Lady Techsters in both scoring and rebounding last week, averaging 12.0 points and 8.7 rebounds through the three games ... Shanavia Dowdell also averaged double digits at 10.7 points per game last week ... Dowdell also recorded 7.7 rebounds per game last week ... Louisiana Tech will play its final game before the holiday break on Dec. 20, as the team will travel to Little Rock to take on UALR.
Nevada Wolf Pack (7-3, 0-0 WAC)
Nevada has tied its best start through 10 games in program history ... The 1979-80 and 2002-03 teams each also started the season 7-3 through its first 10 games of the season ... Nevada had five players score in double-figures on Sunday (Cherlanda Franklin 14 points, Shavon Moore 11 points and Mikail Price, Johnna Ward and Dellena Criner each scored 10 points) ... Nevada scored a season-high 82 points in the win over CS Fullerton -- the 82 points were the most points the Pack has scored in a game since Nevada scored 84 points against Eastern Michigan on December 1, 2002 ... Nevada’s victory Sunday afternoon was head coach Kim Gervasoni’s 48th career win with the Pack ... She is just two wins away from 50 career victories and would become just the second coach in Nevada history to recorded at least 50 career wins with Nevada.
New Mexico State Aggies (7-2, 0-0 WAC)
New Mexico State can pick up its 300th victory all-time in the Pan American Center Tuesday with a win over Lamar. Louisiana Tech is the only other school in the WAC with more than 300 victories in their current home arena ... Aggie opponents are shooting just 35 percent against NMSU this season and only 19.6 percent from 3-point land ... Sherell Neal, Anikia Jawara and Madison Spence are all scoring in double figures this season ... NMSU is 5-1 at home this year.
San Jose Spartans (1-9, 0-0 WAC)
Brittany Imaku recorded seven assists or more in a game for the fourth time this season against Washington State ... She had seven assists in the game and added three points, two rebounds and a steal ... San Jose State was 12-of-28 from three-point range against Washington State ... Natalie White was 6-of-15, while Emily Nichols was 5-of-9. Nichols scored a season-best 15 points, all from three-point range ... San Jose State hosts Big 12 opponent Kansas this Wednesday evening at The Event Center ... It will be the first time since the 1997-98 season that the Spartans have played and hosted a team from the Big 12 ... That year, San Jose State opened the season by hosting Baylor on November 16, 1997.
Utah State Aggies (2-7, 0-0 WAC)
Utah State women’s basketball fell, 70-38, at Utah on Saturday as junior guard Danyelle Snelgro scored a season-high 17 points ... USU has five players shooting .444 percent or better from behind the three-point arc this season as the team leads the WAC with a .370 percent ...USU also dropped a 49-71 decision to Montana State this past week ... The team also have seven players shooting .600 percent of better from the free throw line, also leading the WAC with a .775 percentage ... Utah State women’s basketball returns home for the first time in three weeks and opens up a three-game homestand, hosting Montana State on Monday, Dec. 17. Tip is set for 7 p.m. in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum ...The Aggies continue their three-game homestand, battling Saint Mary’s at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 22 in the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.
WAC NOTES
FRESNO STATE’S ROSS NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Fresno State’s Jaleesa Ross has been named the Western Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 10-16. Ross, a freshman from Pinole, Calif. (Pinole Valley HS), led the Bulldogs in scoring last week, helping the team to a 1-1 record. The 5-8 guard scored a team-high 17 points against Saint Mary’s before dropping in a career high 19 points in a 93-50 win over Cal-State Bakersfield. Ross connected on 6-of-14 shots, including five threes against Saint Mary’s. She also added eight rebounds with an assist and a steal in the effort. Against Cal-State Bakersfield, Ross hit 7-of-14 shots from the field, including five makes from long range. She also pulled down a game-high nine rebounds with four steals, three assists, and two blocks. On the week, Ross averaged 18.0 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.5 steals and 1.0 blocks. She also tallied 10 three-point field goals through the two games.
Other nominees included: Boise State guard Tasha Harris led the Broncos to a 1-1 mark last week, averaging 17.0 points with a 58.8 percent field goal mark ... Nevada guard Dellena Criner scored in double figures for the eighth consecutive game while leading Nevada to a win over Cal State Fullerton ... New Mexico State forward Sherell Neal collected her 28th career double-double in a win over Wichita State ... San Jose State junior Natalie White scored a career-high 25 points in an overtime loss at Washington State.
NEVADA ON VERGE OF HISTORY
With an 82-57 win at home over Cal State Fullerton on Dec. 16, Nevada has tied its best start through 10 games in program history. The 1979-80 and 2002-03 teams each also started the season 7-3 through its first 10 games of the season. To break the mark, Nevada will have to defeat UNLV at home on Dec. 28.
BOISE STATE SO CLOSE TO A THIRD PAC-10 WIN
Boise State came within two points of picking up its third win over a Pac-10 team this season. The Broncos, who have already defeated both Washington and Washington State this season, lost a 62-61 heartbreaking decision on a buzzer beater Dec. 12 in Tucson, Ariz. The Broncos led for morst of the game before the Wildcats rallied to win in the closing seconds. Tasha Harris and Jackie Lee each recorded 15 points to lead the Broncos in scoring as Boise State had its three game winning streak snapped in heartbreaking fashion. Following a Boise State turnover, with 9.9 seconds to play and the Broncos up one. Lee stole the Wildcats inbound pass along the baseline. As she gained control of the ball in the right corner she tried to call a timeout but was denied by the officials and was called for stepping on the baseline instead, giving the ball back to Arizona. On the next possession Arizona was able to get the ball inbounded to Whisonant who race the length of the floor. She drove the left wing into the post where she missed a layup with one second showing on the clock. Ify Ibekwe rebounded the ball then put it up off the glass and into the net as the buzzer sounded giving the Wildcats the one point victory over the Broncos.
NEW MEXICO STATE READY FOR WIN NUMBER 300 IN PAN AMERICAN CENTER
New Mexico State can pick up its 300th all-time victory in the Pan American Center Dec. 18 with a win over Lamar. Louisiana Tech is the only other school in the WAC with more than 300 victories in their current home arena.
DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE
Louisiana Tech senior JoKeirra Sneed leads the WAC with six double-doubles this season. Sneed has recorded her six double-doubles in just 10 games so far this season. Hawai?i’s Tanya Smith has five double-doubles in only nine games, while LTU’s Shanavia Dowdell and New Mexico State’s Sherell Neal each have three. Twelve other WAC players have at least one double-double.
CLUTCH PERFORMANCE
In its 62-61 road victory over SEC foe Alabama, Louisiana Tech trailed by five points with less than 50 seconds to play before scoring the final six points of the game to pull off the win. Nastassja Levingston registered a four-point play with 43 seconds left before Shanavia Dowdell hit a layup with 8.7 seconds to play to seal the victory.
DO I HEAR 30
Only two players in the WAC have reached the 30-point plateau this season. Boise State junior Tasha Harris reached the threshold on Nov. 30 against Portland on the road. Nevada guard Dellena Criner is the only other WAC player to reach the mark, scoring 32 in a win over Idaho State at home on Dec. 2. Criner also leads the league with four 20-point performances this season.
IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
Teams from the WAC rank 50th or better in seven team statistical categories and in five individual categories through Dec. 10. Nevada holds the highest national mark in the WAC, ranking fifth in the country in steals per game at 14.1. Utah State is one of the top free throw shooting teams in the nation, ranking 13th in the country with a 77.5 percent team clip from the charity stripe. Fresno State ranks 17th in the nation from beyond the arc, averaging 7.3 threes per game. Individually, Hawai?i’s Tanya Smith holds the highest individual national mark in the WAC, ranking 17th in rebounds per game at 10.6.
FRESNO’S SUPER SLATE
Fresno State has not made things easy on itself. The Bulldogs have played five of their 10 games against teams that made it to last season’s NCAA Tournament. One of the games that Fresno State has played not against a 2007 NCAA Tournament team was on Dec. 1 against Utah--a team that went to last year’s WNIT and who is currently receiving votes in the Top-25.
NEVADA WINS NUGGET CLASSIC
Dellena Criner scored a career-high 32 points while freshman Johnna Ward added 19 as the University of Nevada women’s basketball team defeated Idaho State 74-66 in the championship game of the Nugget Classic on Dec. 2. The win marked the Pack’s second Nugget Classic title under Nevada head coach Kim Gervasoni as the Pack also won the tournament in 2005. Brandi Fitzgerald and Criner (MVP) were each named to the All-Tournament team.
STREAKIN’
Fresno State’s Tierre Wilson has scored double digit points in 21 straight games dating back to the 2006-07 season. Sherell Neal recently had a streak of 16 straight double digit scoring performances come to an end on Dec. 5 at BYU. Neal currently has registered five or more rebounds in 33 straight games. Idaho’s Alana Curtis has connected on 14 straight free throws, matching the WAC’s longest streak this season. Utah State’s Jamelah Brown and Boise State’s Jessica Thompson have been hot from long range as each player has connected on a three in six straight games.
NEVADA’S SITTON SELECTED AS CANDIDATE FOR LOWE’S SENIOR CLASS AWARD
Nevada senior forward Andrea Sitton has been selected as one of the 30 initial candidates for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award for the 2007-08 basketball season. The award ? presented annually to the NCAA Division I Student- Athlete of the Year in eight sports ? focuses on the “Four C’s” of classroom, character, community and competition. Lowe’s, an official corporate partner of the NCAA, will award the winner with a trophy during NCAA Final Four. This season, Sitton has played in all 10 of Nevada’s games, helping the Pack to a 7-3 overall mark. She is a three-time Academic All-WAC honoree and has a 3.68 GPA in elementary education, and was named to the Dean’s List in the fall of 2006 and spring of 2007, is scheduled to graduate in the spring of 2008. Sitton has participated in a number of community service activities including, the X-Treme Ability Challenge (2004), Race for the Cure (2004-07), the Heart Walk (2005-06), Renown Seniors’ Day (2007) and the Girl’s and Women in Sports Day (2004-06). She has also been a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) since 2004 and is a member of several clubs including Interadversity, Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) and Champions for Christ. From the list of 30 nominees, a national media committee will select 10 finalists for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in January 2008. Those ten names will be placed on the official ballot for a nationwide vote during the NCAA Tournament in March. Fan balloting will be coupled with votes from coaches and media to determine the recipient. Prior recipients of the women’s award include Sue Bird of Connecticut (2002), LaToya Thomas of Mississippi State (2003), Alana Beard of Duke (2004), Kendra Wecker of Kansas State (2005), Seimone Augustus of LSU (2006) and Alison Bales of Duke (2007).
NEW MEXICO STATE ENDS 11-YEAR LOSING STREAK TO RIVAL, DEFEATS NEW MEXICO, COACH SPENCE PICKS UP WIN # 50
Down by two at the half, the New Mexico State women’s basketball team outscored New Mexico by 18 points in the second half to end a 22-game losing streak to the Lobos with a 58-42 victory Sunday at the Pan American Center. The 16-point victory ends the 11-year losing streak to the Lobos, who they face again this season on Dec. 21 in Albuquerque. The win in the Rio Grande Rivalry gives New Mexico State 1.5 points and the Aggies now only trail New Mexico 4.5-3.0 in the series. The Aggie men’s basketball team can tie it up with a victory over UNM on Tuesday, Dec. 4 in Las Cruces. Head coach Darin Spence picked up his 50th career victory Sunday and moved into fourth place on the Aggies all-time win list.
COACHING RECORD SCHOOL MARKS
The number 50 seems to be a common mark among coaches in the Western Athletic Conference. Numerous WAC coaches have either picked up win number 50 or are on the verge of 50 wins during their tenure at their respective schools. New Mexico State coach Darin Spence (52-75) picked up his 50th win as an Aggie by defeating in-state rival New Mexico State on Dec. 3. Fresno State’s Adrian Wiggins (51-33) picked up the milestone win at Long Beach State on Dec. 7. Hawai?i head coach Jim Bolla (48-44) now has 48 wins in just over two seasons with the Rainbow Wahine, and needs only two more wins to reach the 50 mark. Louisiana Tech head coach Chris Long (47-24) needs just three more wins to reach 50, while Boise State head coach Gordy Presnell (46-27) is only four short of 50. Head Coach Kim Gervasoni holds a 48-83 mark at Nevada and is only two wins shy of 50.
NMSU’S NEAL FRESNO’S WILSON, AND UH’S SMITH REACH STATISTICAL MILESTONES, OTHERS ON THE THRESHOLD
Senior forward Sherell Neal became the 16th New Mexico State women’s basketball player to score over 1,000 career points in the Aggies season opener Nov. 9, when she led the team to a 65-61 victory at UC Irvine. Neal now has 1,099 points which, ranking her first among active players in the Western Athletic Conference. Fresno State’s Tierre Wilson reached the 1,000-point milestone on Dec. 15 in a win over Cal-State Bakersfield. Wilson now has 1,014 career points and will soon break into Fresno State’s all-time top-10 scoring list. Hawai?i’s Tanya Smith pulled down 41 rebounds in three games at the Waikiki Beach Marriott Classic Nov. 16-18, helping her reach the 500 career rebound mark. Smith now has 555 career rebounds and is about to break the UH career top-10 list. The 555 career rebounds ranks her second among current WAC players, behind only Neal, who has 797 career boards. Boise State junior Jessica Thompson is now just 51 points shy of 1,000. Boise State’s Jackie Lee needs only 19 more rebounds to reach the 500 mark. Lee is also just 13 assists shy of 200.
TOUGH SCHEDULE
Through six weeks this season, WAC teams have played 22 games featuring a 2007 NCAA Tournament or WNIT opponent. WAC teams have also played eight teams that are either ranked in the top-25 or who are receiving votes in the top-25 polls. No. 13 Cal snuck by Fresno State 83-79 on Nov. 9. Six WAC teams have already picked up wins against 2007 postseason teams. Hawai?i defeated 2007 NCAA Tournament team Washington 80-75 on Nov. 16. Boise State downed 2007 WNIT participant Montana 67-61 on Nov. 11, and Nevada defeated 2007 WNIT team Stephen F. Austin 64-55 on Nov. 22 and NCAA Tournament team Idaho State on Dec. 2. NMSU defeated BYU 54-52 in Provo on Dec. 5. BSU took care of Washington 88-66 at home on Dec. 7.
LOUISIANA TECH HOME TO TOUGHEST PLACE TO PLAY IN THE NATION
Louisiana Tech’s home court, the Thomas Assembly Center, is a tough place to play. The Lady Techsters have won over 93 percent of their games played in Ruston since the program’s inception in 1974. La. Tech currently holds a 445-36 all-time record on its home floor.
WAC TEAMS FIND SUCCESS AT THANKSGIVING TOURNAMENTS
Teams from the WAC competed in six different tournaments over the Thanksgiving break. Louisiana Tech went 2-0 at the Lady Tiger Thanksgiving Classic in Memphis, Tenn. The Lady Techsters defeated host Memphis 82-77 to claim the title. Louisiana Tech’s Jo Sneed was named the Classic’s MVP, while teammate Tarkeisha Wysinger was named to the All-Tournament team. Boise State finished second at the Hilton Concord Thanksgiving Classic in Moraga, Calif. The Broncos dropped a 78-63 decision to host St. Mary’s in the championship game. BSU’s Tasha Harris was named to the All-Tournament team. New Mexico State claimed the title of its own tournament, the Thanksgiving Classic in Las Cruces. The Aggies went a perfect 3-0, defeating Kent State, Northern Colorado, and Texas State. Hawai?i placed third at the Jack in the Box Rainbow Classic in Honolulu. The team went 1-2 at the tournament. Nevada went 1-0 at the UTEP Thanksgiving Classic and was unable to play the championship game due to a city power outage. Idaho participated in the Husky Classic in Seattle, where the Vandals went 0-2. Despite the two losses at the Husky Classic, Idaho’s Hannah Wells was named to the All-Tournament team.
BOISE STATE FAVORED IN PRESEASON POLLS
Boise State, the 2006-07 Western Athletic Conference regular season co-champion and tournament title winner, was selected as the favorite by both the coaches and the media in the WAC preseason polls. The Broncos received seven of the nine first-place votes in the coaches poll and nine of the 15 top votes in the media poll.
PRESEASON ALL-WAC TEAMS ANNOUNCED
Along with the preseason polls, the coaches and media also voted on preseason all-WAC teams. Both the coaches and media selected Boise State junior guard Jessica Thompson, the 2007 WAC Tournament MVP, as the WAC’s preseason Player of the Year. Thompson was also selected to both the coaches and media’s first team all-WAC.
In the coaches poll, junior Nevada guard Dellena Criner and Hawai’i senior forward Tanya Smith, 2006-07 first team all-WAC honorees, also earned spots on the preseason team. New Mexico State forward Sherell Neal and Fresno State guard Tierre Wilson round out the first team. Second-team selections include Shanavia Dowdell (Louisiana Tech), Brandi Fitzgerald (Nevada), Tasha Harris (Boise State), Katie Madison (Idaho) and Taylor Richards (Utah State).
The media’s all-WAC team included Thompson, Criner, Neal, Madison, and Wilson.
NEW MEXICO STATE TO HOST 2008 WAC TOURNAMENT
Lac Cruces and New Mexico State University will host the 2008 WAC Tournament, March 11-15. It will be the second year in a row that the event will be held at the Pan American Center. The tournament features all nine men’s and women’s teams. Boise State defeated host New Mexico State in last year’s tournament championship game, 49-46.
RETURNING STAT LEADERS
Six of the top 10 scorers return for the 2007-08 season, including the top two scorers, Katie Madison of Idaho (19.1) and Sherell Neal of New Mexico State (15.7). Also returning is Nevada’s Dellena Criner who was fourth in scoring (14.6) and Tierre Wilson who as fifth in scoring (14.4). Boise State’s Jessica Thompson, who was seventh in scoring, averaging 13.7 ppg also returns along with New Mexico State’s Anikia Jawara who was eighth (13.1). Seven of the top 10 rebound leaders return. Neal is the leading returning rebounder with a 10.8 rpg average last season (first in the WAC). Hawai?i’s Tanya Smith was second in rebounding last year, averaging 9.2 rpg. Other returning rebounds leaders are: Idaho’s Katie Madison (8.9), New Mexico State’s Anikia Jawara (7.5), San Jose State’s Brittany Powell (6.4), Fresno State’s Tierre Wilson (6.4) and Idaho’s Sara Dennehy (6.4).
LETTERWINNER/STARTER CAPSULE
Nevada returns the most starters, returning all five. Boise State and Hawai?i both return four starters. Idaho returns the fewest with two. Following is a list of teams, the number of letterwinners returning and lost and starters returning and lost.
KEY NON-CONFERENCE MATCHUPS
The WAC has several key non-conference matchups this season. WAC teams could play at least 18 teams that advanced to either the NCAA Tournament or the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) last season. WAC teams will face one team that advanced to the Sweet Sixteen (Arizona State), one team that reached the Final Four (LSU) and Louisiana Tech will face defending national champion, Tennessee.
Games vs. 2006-07 Postseason Teams:
California def. Fresno State, 83-79, 11/9
Oregon def. San Jose State, 67-32, 11/10
Boise State def. Montana, 67-61, 11/11
Hawai?i def. Washington, 80-75, 11/16
BYU def. Fresno State, 59-87 11/17
Gonzaga def. Nevada, 55-93, 11/17
Western Kentucky def. La. Tech, 87-76, 11/20
Nevada def. Stephen F. Austin, 64-55, 11/22
Oklahoma State def. Fresno State, 87-73, 11/24
Tennessee def. La. Tech, 81-60, 11/26
Idaho State def. Utah State, 69-60, 11/28
Utah def. Fresno State, 82-58, 12/1
New Mexico State def. New Mexico, 58-42, 12/2
Nevada def. Idaho State, 74-66, 12/2
New Mexico State def. BYU, 54-52, 12/5
Boise State def. Washington, 88-66, 12/7
Nevada def. UC Riverside, 62-52, 12/9
Mississippi State def. La. Tech, 63-50, 12/13
Montana def. Idaho, 77-52, 12/15
Utah def. Utah State, 70-38, 12/15
Arizona State def. Fresno State, 79-49, 12/17
LSU def. Louisiana Tech, 76-45, 12/16
New Mexico State at New Mexico, Dec. 21
Boise State at Idaho State, Dec. 29
BYU at Utah State, Dec. 29
Fresno State at UC Riverside, Dec. 29