PLAYER OF THE WEEK ? Utah State guard Jaycee Carroll, a junior from Evanston, Wyo. (Evanston HS) averaged 36.0 points and 9.0 rebounds in a pair of victories last week. Last Monday night, Carroll scored a career-high 44 points and pulled down 10 rebounds in a 75-63 win over New Mexico State. He was 12-of-16 from the field, including 5-of-7 from three-point range, and made all 15 of his free throw attempts. The 44 points were tied for the fourth most by any player in the nation this season and were the most for a WAC player in eight years. On Saturday, Carroll had 28 points on 11-of-19 shooting in a 75-66 win at Idaho. For the week, he was 23-of-35 (.657) from the field, 7-of-15 (.467) from three-point range and 19-of-20 (.950) from the free throw line. It is Carroll’s third career WAC Player of the Week award and second for an Aggie player this year.
Others nominated:
Reggie Larry, Jr., F, Boise State - averaged 12.5 points and 11.5 rebounds in a pair of wins last week. He had 19 points and 18 rebounds (tied for the second most by any WAC player this year) against Idaho.
Quinton Hosley, Sr., F, Fresno State - averaged 17.0 points and 7.5 rebounds in a split of two games. Against New Mexico State, he scored a game-high 22 points to go along with 10 rebounds in 39 minutes of action.
Bobby Nash, Jr., G, Hawai?i - had 18 points and eight rebounds in a win over Louisiana Tech on Saturday.
Nick Fazekas, Sr., F, Nevada - scored a season-high 33 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in the win at Fresno State.
Justin Hawkins, Jr., G/F, New Mexico State - averaged 14.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and shot 55 percent from the field in two games last week. He had 18 points at Utah State and then added 11 points and eight rebounds against Fresno State.
NEVADA REMAINS IN FIRST ? With three weeks left in the regular season, Nevada remains in first place with a game and a half lead over New Mexico State. The Aggies won an important game at Hawai?i on Monday night, 71-68, to improve to 9-3 in WAC play. Nevada is 10-1 and resumes conference action on Wednesday night when it hosts San Jose State. The Wolf Pack’s lone loss came at New Mexico State. Those two teams play again in Reno on the final day of the regular season, March 3 (ESPN2).
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. This week, all four games on Tuesday and Wednesday will be available along with Idaho and Fresno State’s home games on Saturday. Go to www.wac.tv to sign up or login.
O’REILLY ESPNU BRACKETBUSTERS ? The WAC has four teams competing in the O’Reilly ESPNU BracketBusters, Feb. 16-17. Boise State, Nevada, New Mexico State and Utah State are part of the 28-team field that will play 14 games over the two days. Nevada and New Mexico State’s games will be on ESPN2 while Boise State and Utah State’s contests will be aired on ESPNU.
Friday, Feb. 16
Albany (America East: 18-8) at Boise St., 7:00 MT (ESPNU)
Saturday Feb. 17
No. Iowa (Missouri Valley: 16-10) at Nevada, 3:00 PT (ESPN2)
Utah St. at Oral Roberts (Mid-Continent: 18-8), 6:00 CT (ESPNU)
Ohio (MAC: 16-8) at New Mexico State, 10:00 MT (ESPN2)
BracketBusters was created in 2003 in conjunction with the WAC, ESPN and several top college basketball conferences to match potential NCAA tournament hopefuls against each other.
NON-CONFERENCE MATCHUPS ? Five teams from the WAC were not selected for the BracketBusters event but will be playing non-conference opponents on Feb. 17. Those matchups are:
Louisiana Tech at SE Missouri (Ohio Valley: 10-16), 7:30 CT
San Jose State at Northern Arizona (Big Sky: 13-11), 6:30 MT
Sam Houston State (Southland: 17-7) at Fresno State, 7:00 PT
Hawai?i at Long Beach State (Big West: 17-6), 7:00 PT
UC Riverside (Big West: 5-19) at Idaho, 7:00 PT
The host team in all nine of the above games will return a game with their opponent near the beginning of the 2007-08 season.
FOUR TEAMS WITH AT LEAST 17 WINS ? The WAC has four teams with at least 16 victories as Nevada is leading the way with 22. New Mexico State has 19 followed by Utah State with 18 and Fresno State with 17. Nevada’s two losses are tied for the fewest in the nation with Wisconsin (24-2) and Florida (23-2).
NEVADA WITH 5-GAME WINNING STREAK ? Nevada owns the WAC’s longest active winning streak at five games in a row. The Pack have won 15 of their last 16 games with the lone loss coming at New Mexico State on Jan. 20. In WAC games only, Nevada’s five-game winning streak is also the longest in the conference.
NEW MEXICO STATE OWNS WAC’S LONGEST HOME WINNING STREAK ? New Mexico State has won 17 home games in a row, the longest active winning streak in the WAC and tied for the 11th longest in the nation. Utah State has the second longest streak at 13 straight, tied for the 21st longest nationally. In conference play only, Nevada has the longest home winning streak with 11 in a row dating back to last season.
BOISE STATE ADDS GAME ? Boise State will host Western Montana on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. MT. The game was scheduled to replace the Colorado State game on Dec. 22 that was canceled due to a blizzard in Colorado.
FAZEKAS THIRD IN NATION IN REBOUNDING ? Nevada senior forward Nick Fazekas remained third in the nation in rebounding this week with 11.7 boards per contest. Arkansas-Little Rock’s Rashad Jones-Jennings is first with 12.8 per game followed by Chris Holm of Vermont with 12.1 rebounds per contest. 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.
NATIONAL RANKINGS ? Nevada moved up one spot to 11th in the AP poll and one spot to 10th in the ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll. It’s the highest ranking for a WAC team since Utah was sixth in the final AP poll of the 1998-99 season. New Mexico State is also currently receiving votes in the coaches’ poll.
1,000-POINT SCORERS ? The WAC has six 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 (2,269-1st); Boise State senior guard Coby Karl (1,598-5th); Utah State junior guard Jaycee Carroll (1,524-10th); New Mexico State senior guard Elijah Ingram (1,206-scored 607 points at St. John’s); New Mexico State junior forward Tyrone Nelson (1,090-scored 378 points at Prairie View A&M); and Nevada junior guard Marcelus Kemp (1,088-14th). Boise State’s Eric Lane is next on the list with 972 points.
NEVADA TOP TEAM OVER LAST FOUR YEARS ? Since the start of the 2003-04 season, Nevada is 99-24 (.805), the best record of any WAC team during that time. In conference games, Nevada has won 52 games, the most in that same time period.
TEAM LEADERS ? The WAC has seven schools with players that lead their team in two of three statistical categories (points-rebounds-assists). Louisiana Tech’s Chad McKenzie is the only one that leads his team in rebounds and assists.
Coby Karl, Sr., G, Boise State (15.6 ppg, 3.9 apg)
Matt Lojeski, Sr., G, Hawai?i (15.8 ppg, 4.6 apg)
Chad McKenzie, Sr., F, La. Tech (6.9 rpg, 2.3 apg)
Nick Fazekas, Sr., F, Nevada (20.8 ppg, 11.7 rpg)
Justin Hawkins, Jr., G/F, New Mexico State (15.9 ppg, 7.0 rpg)
Carlton Spencer, Sr., G, San Jose State (14.4 ppg, 3.9 apg)
Jaycee Carroll, Jr., G, Utah State (21.3 ppg, 5.9 rpg)
HOME SWEET HOME ? The WAC’s nine teams are a combined 80-27 (.748) at home this season. On the road and in neutral site games, the WAC is 37-75 (.330). In conference games only, home teams are 32-12 (.727) while road teams are 12-32 (.273)
NON-CONFERENCE MARK ? The WAC is 64-49 (.566) in non-conference games, including a 61-49 (.555) 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).
SESSIONS NAMED COUSY AWARD FINALIST ? Late last month, Nevada junior Ramon Sessions was named one of 17 finalists for the Bob Cousy Award presented by The Hartford, an honor annually presented to the nation’s top collegiate point guard. Sessions is averaging 13.7 points and 4.4 assists per game and leads the WAC in assist/turnover ratio (+2.2/game)
FAZEKAS MIDSEASON ALL-AMERICAN ? Nevada senior forward Nick Fazekas was named one of 30 players to the Wooden Award Midseason All-American Team as announced by the John R. Wooden Award Committee in late January. The midseason list is based on individual player performance and team records during the first half of the season. The players will compete for this season’s player of the year award. Prior to the start of this year, Fazekas was 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.
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.
TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Boise State Broncos (13-10, 7-5 WAC)
Senior G Coby Karl has started 91 consecutive games, the longest current streak in the WAC ... he leads the WAC in three-point field goals made per game (2.78) and is the WAC’s active career leader in three-point field goals made (250) and attempted (658), ranking eighth and sixth, respectively, all-time in the WAC in both of those categories ... junior Matt Nelson leads the WAC in field goal percentage (.595) ... has two of the top five rebounders in the WAC in Nelson (9.2 rpg-3rd) and Reggie Larry (8.7 rpg-5th) ... has played nine games decided by five points or less in the WAC and is 3-6 in those games ... head coach Greg Graham is three wins shy of 100 for his career ... is the only team in the WAC that returned all five starters from last season.
Fresno State Bulldogs (17-8, 6-6 WAC)
Was 10-of-25 from the free throw line in the 81-68 loss against Nevada ... the Bulldogs missed 10 in the first half and trailed just 40-38 ... was 15-of-29 from the charity stripe in a 75-69 win over New Mexico State on Saturday ... Quinton Hosley had a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds ... has two of the top four rebounders in the WAC in Dominic McGuire (9.6 rpg-2nd) and Quinton Hosley (8.9 rpg-4th) ... leads the WAC in scoring defense with 65.1 ppg after allowing 73.7 ppg last year, last in the WAC ... also leads the WAC in FG% defense (.384), blocks (6.64 bpg) and 3-point FGs (9.24/game) ... Kevin Bell leads the WAC in assists (5.16 apg) and McGuire leads in blocks (3.48 bpg).
Hawai?i Rainbow Warriors (14-11, 5-7 WAC)
Has won four of its last six games ... made a season-high 12 three-pointers against Louisiana Tech (averaging 5.2 per game) ... has lost 28 of its last 34 road games dating back to the 2003-04 season ... is the only team in the WAC with four players averaging in double figures ... Matt Gibson has scored in double figures in five of his last six games after reaching that mark in just one of his previous nine games ... is 0-7 when trailing at the half, the only team in the WAC to not win a game in this situation ... UH has posted seven consecutive winning seasons ... head coach Riley Wallace will resign following the conclusion of the season ... he needs four more wins to tie former women’s coach Vince Goo’s school record of 334 victories.
Idaho Vandals (3-21, 1-11 WAC)
In its 75-66 loss to Utah State, trailed by 20 at halftime before outscoring the Aggies by 11 in the second half ... Keoni Watson scored a team-high 24 points in the game ... is 0-5 when leading at halftime ... Darin Nagle has 27 blocks over the last 10 games ... is last in the WAC in scoring with 61.5 points per game ... its 3-21 start ties for the worst in school history as the 1946-47 team was also 3-21 on its way to a final record of 3-22 ... has not allowed its opponents to score 100 points in a game for 455 contests, the longest such streak in the WAC ... has made a three-point field goal in 277 consecutive games (since Feb. 27, 1997) ... has made 180 three-point field goals and is on pace to break the school’s single-season record of 190 set in 1998-99.
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (7-17, 5-7 WAC)
The 17 losses are the most for Louisiana Tech since finishing the 1995-96 season, 11-17 ... scored just 13 points on 6-of-26 shooting from the field in the first half of its 53-50 loss at San Jose State ... the 13 points were the second fewest by any WAC team in a half this season, trailing Tech’s 12 in the first half against Southern Illinois ... Trey McDowell’s 18 points against Hawai?i on Saturday were the most for a Bulldog in five games ... Keith Smith was second on the team in scoring in that game with seven points ... the loss at Hawai?i snapped a three-game winning streak for the Bulldogs in Honolulu .... is 19-4 in non-conference home games since joining the WAC for the 2001-02 season.
Nevada Wolf Pack (22-2, 10-1 WAC)
Outrebounded Fresno State last week, 56-29 ... the 56 rebounds were a season-high ... Kyle Shiloh recorded his first double-double in that game with 18 points and a career-high 11 rebounds ... Shiloh and Nick Fazekas have been a part of 99 wins, the winningest players in school history ... no team in the nation has fewer losses (2) ... has won 36 of its last 39 games, 21 of its last 22 home games and 13 of its last 14 regular season road games ... leads the WAC in scoring margin (+10.9), FG% (.487), rebounding margin (+7.2) and 3-point FG% (.408) ... senior F Nick Fazekas has posted a double-double in 15 games this season and 56 in his career ... he has scored 20 or more points 60 times and has scored in double figures in 52 straight games played.
New Mexico State Aggies (19-6, 9-3 WAC)
Snapped a two-game losing streak by winning at Hawai?i on Monday night, 71-68 ... Martin Iti came off the bench to score a game-high 15 points including four in the final minutes to help secure the win ... is one of just two teams in the WAC with at least a .500 record on the road (6-6) ... has 19 wins for the first time since going 20-9 in 2002-03 ... is 5-3 in games decided by five points or less ... is 23-4 at home under Reggie Theus ... is 6-3 when trailing at the half this season ... NMSU leads the WAC in scoring with 79.7 ppg ... has reached 100 points in three games this season ... also leads the WAC in steals (7.72) and turnover margin (+1.20) ... junior G Fred Peete leads the WAC in steals (1.72 spg).
San Jose State Spartans (4-20, 3-9 WAC)
Three of its last four games have been decided by three points or less (2-1) ... all three of its conference wins have come by three points ... Menelik Barbary scored a game-high 15 points in the 65-64 loss to Boise State ... had three starters score double figures?led by Jamon Hill’s game-high 15 points?in the win over Louisiana Tech, but the other two, Lance Holloway and Kevin Buggs, didn’t score a point ... its schedule is ranked the toughest in the WAC and 28th toughest in the nation according to Sagarin ... 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 (799 games).
Utah State Aggies (18-7, 7-4 WAC)
Has won three in a row after a two-game losing streak ... Jaycee Carroll has scored 72 points in his last two games after posting 39 in his previous three contests ... Carroll leads the WAC in scoring (21.3 ppg), FT% (.908) and 3-point FG% (.437) ... he has scored in double figures in 26 straight games, the second longest active streak in the WAC ... USU is 13-0 this year when Carroll scores at least 20 points ... Utah State leads the WAC in FT% (.772) ... the Aggies have participated in the postseason in each of the past seven years (5 NCAAs, 2 NITs) ... is one of five teams to win at least 23 games in each of the last seven years (Duke, Gonzaga, Illinois and Kansas) ... is 122-11 at home under Stew Morrill.