Team-by-Team WAC Team Notes
Boise State Broncos (10-3, 1-0 WAC)
The Broncos’ win over the Rainbow Warriors in their WAC conference opener improved Boise State’s record to 10-3 and marked the third consecutive season in which the Broncos have won their conference openers ... BSU now owns a record of 5-3 in WAC conference openers, including a record of 2-1 when opening on the road ... for the 13th consecutive game, junior Kurt Cunningham has shot 50 percent or better from the fi eld as he made 5-of-9 from the field to tally 14 points against the Rainbow Warriors ... senior forward Mark Sanchez led Boise State last week when he averaged 13 points and 12.5 rebounds in wins against Eastern Washington and WAC foe Hawai?i ... Sanchez converted on 10 of his 22 attempts from the floor ... the Broncos hit the hardwood as they host San Jose State on Jan. 8 ... tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. MT.
Fresno State Bulldogs (7-8, 0-1 WAC)
Freshman point guard Bryce Cartwright broke out for a career-high 20 points while hitting 8 of 9 from the field and connecting on all three 3-pointers as Fresno State beat the Cal Poly Mustangs 90-87 in an overtime thriller on the road ... senior swing guard Dwight O’Neil delivered a clutch 20 points and freshmen guards Mychal Ladd and Paul George were also critical to the Bulldogs clawing their way back into the game as Ladd netted 17 and George added 16 ... George also had 10 rebounds for his fourth career double-double ... in the week’s second game, George led Fresno State with 15 points and 11 rebounds (fifth career double-double) as he again shot 50 percent from the field (7-14) during its WAC opening loss to New Mexico State, 79-66 ... the Bulldogs are off until Jan. 10 when they welcome San Jose State in a Saturday night match-up.
Hawai?i Rainbow Warriors (9-5, 1-1 WAC)
Roderick Flemings averaged 14.0 ppg and 5.7 rpg as UH went 2-1 last week ... he recorded his third double-double of the season with 18 points and 10 rebounds in a 73-47 rout of George Washington in the Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic ... the junior was named to the all-tournament team ... UH claimed the consolation title after a 78-70 win over Pepperdine ... the Rainbow Warriors dropped their opening WAC game at home to Boise State, 70-58 but then bounced back to earn their fi rst victory against Louisiana Tech on Monday, Jan. 5 ... Bill Amis hit the game-winning basket with 8.1 seconds left to lift Hawai`i to a 65-64 win over the Bulldogs at the Stan Sheriff Center ... Amis finished with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting ... UH begins a two-game road trip in Moscow, Idaho as it takes on the Vandals on Jan. 8 before traveling to Boise on Jan. 10.
Idaho Vandals (7-8, 1-1 WAC)
Luciano de Souza and Mac Hopson each scored 16 points and Idaho hit 16-of-18 free throws in the second half to escape the Lawlor Events Center with a 78-73 upset victory over five-time WAC champion Nevada in the conference opener for both teams ... the win was the first for Idaho against Nevada in nine tries since joining the WAC ... the Vandals finished with five players in double figures and shot 63.6 percent (7-11) from beyond the three-point arc ... UI then traveled to Utah State and hung tough but couldn’t hold on against the Aggies as they were defeated 70-61 ... Idaho forced 17 turnovers and held USU to just 36 percent from the fi eld in the second half ... Kashif Watson led the Vandals with 15 points and made 9-of-10 free throw attempts ... Idaho just needs one more win to match its eight-win total of the 2007-08 season ... the team is back in action against Hawai?i on Thursday in Moscow.
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (7-8, 1-1 WAC)
The Bulldogs opened their conference season with a 66-61 victory on the road against San Jose State on Jan. 3 ... after leading by as many as nine in the fi rst half, the Bulldogs would take a 33-27 lead into halftime thanks in part to shooting 48 percent in the fi rst stanza of play ... junior Kenneth Cooper fi nished the first half with 12 points, while Jamel Guyton was a perfect 3-of-3 from the three point line ... Kyle Gibson’s three-pointer would give LTU a 52-51 lead that it would never relinquish ... Cooper fi nished with a team-high 17 points ... Tech then went on to lose a heartbreaker to Hawai?i, 65-64 ... the Bulldogs out-rebounded UH, 32-27 ... the team looks to extend its undefeated home-winning streak to six in Thursday’s game against Utah State.
Nevada Wolf Pack (7-7, 0-1 WAC)
Nevada had the tough task of going up against the No. 1 team in the country on New Years Eve as they hosted North Carolina ... freshman Luke Babbitt recorded a career-high 22 points against the Tar Heels to bring his scoring average to 14.7, good for no. 11 in the nation among freshman ... the Wolf Pack then dropped a 78-73 decision against Idaho in its WAC opener last week ... Nevada now drops 4-5 in WAC openers ... this season marked just the third time in the last nine years that Nevada opened conference play at home since joining the league in 2000-01 ... Nevada was led by junior Brandon Fields’ 19 points ... sophomore Malik Cooke added a career-best 17 for the Wolf Pack on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor ... the Wolf Pack begin a two-game road trip beginning in Las Cruces as it takes on conference-leader New Mexico State on Jan. 8.
New Mexico State Aggies (8-7, 2-0 WAC)
The Aggies began WAC play with a 79-66 win at Fresno State, Jan. 3, at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif ... the victory was the first road win of the season for the Aggies ... sophomore guard Jahmar Young had a game-high 25 points while sophomore forward Wendell McKines collected his eighth double-double of the season with 18 points and 12 rebounds ... NMSU concluded the WAC road trip at San Jose State, Monday, Jan. 5 as the Aggies defeated the Spartans in a thriller, 75-73 ... freshman center Hamidu Rahman made two free throws with 2.7 seconds left in regulation to give NMSU its second conference victory of the season ... Wendell McKines led the team with 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting, while adding eight rebounds ... the team next prepares for Nevada on Jan. 8 and Utah State on Jan. 10 ... both games will be played in Las Cruces.
San Jose State Spartans (6-6, 0-2 WAC)
C.J. Webster led all players with a season-high 22 points and pulled down 9 rebounds, but two late free throws by New Mexico State center Hamidu Rahman was the difference in the Aggies’ 75-73 win over San Jose State on Jan. 5 ... two days prior SJSU lost a heartbreaker to Louisiana Tech, 66-61 ... C.J. Webster and Adrian Oliver combined for 35 points on 14-of-26 shooting ... San Jose State overcame a six-point halftime deficit and led 50-44 with 10:26 after Oliver made his fourth consecutive field goal try of the second half ... the team shot 41.7 percent from the field, slightly less than the Bulldogs’ 42.2 percent ... the Spartans have lost both of their conference games by a combined seven points ... SJSU returns to action on Jan. 8 at Boise State.
Utah State Aggies (13-1, 1-0 WAC)
After sweeping through the first two games of the Gossner Foods Duel in the Desert against Howard (85-45) and Houston Baptist (94-77), Utah State defeated Wyoming 90-85 in an overtime thriller ... Jared Quayle led USU with 24 points and 10 rebounds to garner WAC Player of the Week honors ... the Aggies opened their conference season on a good note as they took care of business against Idaho, 70-61 on Monday, to extend their win streak to eight games, tied for the ninth longest in the nation ... senior Gary Wilkinson recorded his third double-double of the season and second in the last three games ... the forward finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds ... Jared Quayle registered a team-high 18 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field ... the Aggies finished the game shooting 53.7 percent (22-41) ... Utah State now hits the road for the first time since Dec. 20, Louisiana Tech on Thursday.
WAC NOTES
UTAH STATE QUAYLE NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Utah State’s Jared Quayle has been named the Western Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for Dec. 29-Jan. 4. The honor marks the first career WAC Player of the Week award for Quayle.
Quayle, a junior guard from Perry, Utah (Box Elder HS), was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2008 Duel in the Desert hosted by Utah State last week as he led the Aggies to the tournament championship with wins against Howard (85-45), Houston Baptist (94-77) and Wyoming (90-85 OT). Quayle posted his first double-double of the year with 17 points and a season-high 11 rebounds against Howard while adding seven assists. Versus Houston Baptist, he scored 15 points to go along with six rebounds, five assists and two steals. In the final game against Wyoming, Quayle had another double-double with a season-high 24 points and 10 rebounds.
On the week, Quayle averaged 18.7 points, 9.0 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.7 steals per game. He shot 53.8 percent from the field (21-of-39), 41.2 percent from three-point range (7-of-17), and 87.5 percent from the charity stripe (7-of-8).
Other nominees: Boise State senior forward Mark Sanchez; Fresno State freshman guard Paul George; Hawai’i junior guard Roderick Flemings; and New Mexico State sophomore forward Wendell McKines.
UTAH STATE’S WILKINSON EARNS SPOT ON NATIONAL WATCH LISTS
Utah State’s Gary Wilkinson has been named one of 50 players to headline the Naismith Trophy watch list. The watch list was compiled by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s Board of Selectors, which based its criteria on player performances from the previous year and expectations for the 2008-09 college basketball season. The Naismith Trophy presented by AT&T will be awarded at the 2009 NCAA Men’s Final Four in Detroit, Mich. He was also named one of 30 candidates for the 2008-09 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award, which is presented annually to the NCAA Division I Student-Athlete of the Year. Wilkinson, a 6-9 senior forward from South Jordan, Utah is the only player from the Western Athletic Conference to be selected for both the Naismith and Lowe’s CLASS award. Entering the 2008-09 season, Wilkinson was voted as the WAC’s preseason Player of the Year by the media after earning second-team all-WAC honors as a junior. As a senior, Wilkinson is averaging 17.3 points and 7.8 rebounds, and is shooting 64.3 percent from the field and 81.0 percent from the free throw line. He currently ranks fourth in the WAC in scoring, third in field goal shooting, fifth in free throw shooting and third in rebounding.
SAN JOSE STATE’S PIERCE SETS SCHOOL THREE-POINT MARKS
Forward Tim Pierce became the new San Jose State career record holder for 3-points baskets made. He broke the old record of 123 set by Michael Quinney. Pierce also holds the SJSU all-time record for 3-point field goal attempted at 394.
WAC TEAMS RANK TOP-10 NATIONALLY IN TWO TEAM STATISTICAL CATEGORIES
As of Dec. 22, teams from the WAC rank top-10 or better in two team statistical categories. Utah State currently leads the nation in field goal percentage at 52.9 percent. The Aggies also rank eighth in the country in rebound margin (10.1). Individually, Utah State’s Gary Wilkinson ranks second nationally in field goal percentage with a 69.5 percent clip.
USU POSTS SECOND-BEST DEFENSIVE EFFORT IN NCAA HISTORY
Utah State accomplished a rare feat Nov. 25 in its 75-49 home win against Weber State as it held the Wildcats without a field goal for the final 16:20 of the game, which according to the NCAA is the second-longest field goal drought in NCAA history. The longest stretch in NCAA history one team has held another without a field goal was on Feb. 25, 1979 when Duke held North Carolina scoreless for 20:48. For Utah State, its defensive effort against Weber State is the best since Feb. 15, 2006, when it held Idaho scoreless for 13:53, which was the third-longest scoring drought in NCAA history. USU also had a 37-0 run against the Vandals, which is an NCAA record, and it held Idaho without a field goal for 16:01 during that game, which was the second-longest streak in NCAA history before the WSU game.
IDAHO SETS SCHOOL RECORD FOR LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY
Idaho’s 54-point victory over UC Irvine on Nov. 28 was its largest margin of victory over a Division I opponent in school history. The previous record was a 53-point margin against Pacific in 1983. It ranked as the second largest margin ever at Idaho behind a 111-34 win over Northwest College in 1987.
TOP WAC TEAMS OVER LAST FIVE YEARS
Over the last five seasons dating back to 2003-04, Nevada has turned in a 134-44 record, the best record of any WAC team during that time (.753 winning percentage). In conference games, Nevada has won 68 games, the most in that same time period. The top three teams in wins (both overall and WAC) over the last five seasons:
Overall Record (Pct.) WAC Record (Pct.)
1. Nevada 134-46 (.744) 1. Nevada 68-17 (.800)
2. Utah State 128-43 (.749) 2. Hawai?i 43-41 (.512)
3. Hawai?i 90-72 (.556) 3. Fresno State 41-42 (.494)
UTAH STATE’S HOME WIN STREAK CONTINUES
Utah State has won 60 straight regular season non-conference home games, which is the second-longest streak in the nation behind Duke who has won 60 straight. When including postseason play, USU has won 36 straight home games against non-conference opponents and 60 of its last 62 overall. The last time Utah State lost a non-conference home game during the regular season was on Jan. 8, 2000 against BYU, 82-73. The team has also won 26 straight games inside the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, which is the fourth-longest active winning streak in the country.
FRESNO STATE’S GEORGE PUTS DOWN DUNK THAT LANDS NO. 1 ON SPORTCENTER’S TOP PLAYS
Paul George highlighted Fresno State’s game at Saint Mary’s (11/17) with a memorable dunk that landed as the No. 1 play on Sportscenter’s Top 10 “Plays of the Day” for Nov. 18, 2008 and opened the preview highlights for the broadcast. The dunk, where the freshman slashed straight to the basket and delivered an emphatic one-handed slam on two Gael defenders, beat a pair of Lebron James’ and other professional highlights for the top spot.
WAC TEAMS GO PERFECT IN EXHIBITION PLAY
WAC teams went a perfect 14-0 in exhibition play this season. Boise State, Fresno State, Hawai?i, New Mexico State, and Utah State each went 2-0, while Idaho, San Jose State, Nevada, and Louisiana Tech each went 1-0.
WAC TOURNAMENT TO RETURN TO RENO IN 2009
The WAC Board of Directors awarded the 2009 and 2010 WAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments to the University of Nevada and the Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority. The tournaments will be held in the 11,485-seat Lawlor Events Center, located on the campus of the University of Nevada. The tournament features all nine men’s and women’s teams. The WAC tournaments were last held in Reno in 2006. The 2007 and 2008 tournaments were held in Las Cruces, New Mexico at New Mexico State University.
ESPNU BRACKETBUSTERS
For the seventh year in a row, the WAC has partnered with ESPN and several other top college basketball conferences for ESPNU BracketBusters, a weekend men’s basketball event matching potential NCAA tournament hopefuls against each other. All nine WAC teams will be a part of this year’s pool of teams. The event will be held February 20-21. The match-ups for Bracket Buster Saturday will be determined by ESPN in conjunction with the conferences about three weeks before the event.
TOP PLAYERS RETURNING
The WAC returns one player from last year’s all-WAC second team, Utah State forward Gary Wilkinson. No players return from the first team. Three of the five named to the all-newcomer team return: Armon Johnson (G, Nevada), C.J. Webster (C, San Jose State), and Wilkinson. Nevada guard Lyndale Burleson is the lone returner from last season’s all-defensive team. Nevada’s Johnson was the 2007-08 WAC Freshman of the Year.
TOURNAMENT OPPONENTS
WAC teams could face at least 16 non-conference opponents that played in last year’s NCAA Tournament, including three teams in last years’ Final Four (Kansas, North Carolina, UCLA). Idaho and Nevada lead the conference with three games scheduled apiece.
2007-08 NATIONAL POSTSEASON TOURNAMENT TEAMS ON WAC SCHEDULE
Idaho at Michigan State, Nov. 16
Cal State Fullerton at Hawai’i, Nov. 16
Boise State at Siena, Nov. 17
Nevada at San Diego, Nov. 18
Idaho at Gonzaga, Nov. 18
New Mexico State at USC, Nov. 18
Fresno State at St. Mary’s, Nov. 19
UNLV at Fresno State, Dec. 3
New Mexico State at Kansas, Dec. 3
UNLV at Nevada, Dec. 6
Utah State vs. BYU, Dec. 6 (SLC, UT)
San Jose State at San Diego, Dec. 8
Washington State at Idaho, Dec. 21
Boise State at San Diego, Dec. 22
Louisiana Tech at UCLA, Dec. 28
North Carolina at Nevada, Dec. 31
LETTERWINNER/STARTER CAPSULE
This season, three of the nine WAC teams return at least three starters: Louisiana Tech, San Jose State and Utah State. San Jose State leads the conference as they return all five of their starters from last season. Nevada returns two starters from the 2007-08 season, and Boise State, Fresno State, Hawai’i, Idaho, and New Mexico State all return one from the previous season. Boise State has the most number of returning letterwinners with nine.
Team LR LL SR SL
Boise State 9 4 1 4
Fresno State 3 8 1 4
Hawai?i 5 7 1 4
Idaho 5 5 1 4
Louisiana Tech 4 6 3 2
Nevada 7 6 2 3
New Mexico State 7 6 1 4
San Jose State 8 4 5 0
Utah State 6 5 3 2
STAT LEADERS BACK
Statistically, only two of the top 15 scorers return for the 2008-09 season. Louisiana Tech junior, Kyle Gibson, was ranked seventh in the WAC in scoring last season averaging 16.5 points per game. Utah State’s Gary Wilkinson averaged 13.3 points per game to rank 13th. Wilkinson is also the second-best rebounder returning in the conference with a 7.0 rpg average. San Jose State’s Chris Oakes averaged the most rebounds last season of returning players, by grabbing 7.2 boards a game (6th in the WAC). Boise State guard, Anthony Thomas, enters the 2008-09 season with a 4.15 assist per game average (5th in the WAC) from last year, the most among returning players. Hawai?i junior Bill Amis leads returners with 1.33 blocked shots per game, good for third in the conference.