FRESNO STATE’S MUNRO EARNS WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
Fresno State forward Hayley Munro has been named the Western Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for Jan. 26-Feb. 1. This is the first WAC Player of the Week honor of the season for Munro and the second of her career.
The sophomore from Montmorency, Victoria, Australia, averaged 25.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in a pair of wins that moved the Bulldogs into sole possession of second place in the conference. She shot 64 percent (16-of-25) from the field, 50 percent (2-of-4) from three-point range and 84 percent (16-of-19) from the free throw line on the week. Against San Jose State last Friday, she scored 22 points in 20 minutes on 8-of-10 shooting. In Sunday’s win over Utah State, Munro scored a career-high 28 points on 8-of-15 from the field while grabbing nine rebounds.
Other nominees included: Dita Liepkalne of Hawai?i averaged 11.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists as the Rainbow Wahine picked up their first WAC win of the season ... Idaho’s Rachele Kloke finished with 13 points in a win over Hawai?i ... Whitney Jones of Louisiana Tech scored a game-high 22 points, grabbed seven rebounds and dished out four assists in the Techsters’ win over New Mexico State ... Nevada’s Cherlanda Franklin averaged 10 points and eight rebounds in a pair of wins to keep the Wolf Pack undefeated in WAC play ... Utah State’s Danyelle Snelgro averaged 13.0 points and 5.5 assists on the week.
BULLDOGS LEAD NATION IN THREE-POINT FIELD GOAL AVERAGE
In statistics through Feb. 1 games, Fresno State leads the nation in three-point field goals per game, with an average of 9.9 per game. The Bulldogs have had 10 or more treys in 13 of 20 games this season, including a WAC record 16 vs. UC Santa Barbara on Nov. 20.
NEVADA POSTS BEST-EVER START
Nevada has opened WAC play with a 7-0 record, its best-ever conference start. Its previous best start to conference play came in 1997-98, when the team was 5-0 in the Big West Conference. Since joining the WAC in the 2000-01 season, Nevada’s best conference record is 10-6 in 2006-07.
IDAHO OFF TO BEST-EVER START IN WAC PLAY
Idaho is off to its best-ever start in WAC play, as the Vandals are 5-2 and in third place in the conference. Idaho’s five WAC wins tie its highest total since joining the conference ? the team went 5-11 in 2005-06, its first season in the WAC.
ALBRIGHT BECOMES NEVADA’S ALL-TIME WINNINGEST FIRST-YEAR COACH
With two wins last weekend, Nevada moved to 13-7 on the season, making head coach Jane Albright the program’s all-time winningest first-year head coach. She passed Julie Hickey, who recorded 12 wins (12-15 overall) during the 1982-83 season.
HAWAI?I’S KANEKOA RANKS SECOND NATIONALLY IN FREE THROW PERCENTAGE
Hawai?i point guard Keisha Kanekoa currently ranks second nationally with a .936 (44-of-47) free throw percentage. The sophomore has been perfect from the charity stripe in 10 games this season. What’s more, she has improved by nearly 24 percent, as a year ago as a freshman she connected on just 30-of-43 free throws for a .698 clip.
Boise State Broncos (11-10, 4-3 WAC)
The Broncos fell 77-45 at Nevada in their only game last week ... It was the worst defeat since coach Gordy Presnell took the program more than four years ago ...The Broncos committed 29 turnovers, shot a season-low 29 percent (16-of-55) from the field and connected on just 15 percent (2-of-13) from beyond the arc ... Marisa Stotler was the lone Bronco in double-figure scoring with 12 points ... As a team, Boise State ranks 20th nationally in three-point field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to just 27 percent shooting from downtown ... Boise State travels to New Mexico State on Friday and Louisiana Tech on Sunday.
Fresno State Bulldogs (15-6, 6-2 WAC)
The Bulldogs went 2-0 last week, defeating San Jose State (73-44) and Utah State (68-59) ... Against the Spartans, Hayley Munro scored 22 points in 20 minutes on 8-of-10 shooting from the field ... Munro also scored a career-high 28 points and grabbed nine rebounds vs. the Aggies ... Jaleesa Ross moved into fourth place on the school’s career three-point leaders list with 149 ... Fresno State’s 15-6 record is the third-best record in school history through 21 games ... Bailey Amundsen needs two treys to move into the career Top 10 list for three-pointers made. She currently has 100 ... The Bulldogs play at Nevada on Friday and at San Jose State on Sunday.
Hawai?i Rainbow Wahine (4-17, 1-7 WAC)
The Rainbow Wahine went 1-1 on the road last week, defeating Utah State (63-61) before falling to Idaho (66-50) ... In the win over Utah State, Megan Tinnin made a layup with 17.5 seconds left in the game for the win. She finished with a season-high 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting ... Tara Hittle scored a career-high 17 points at Idaho ... Dita Liepkalne added 12 points, four rebounds and three assists ... Keisha Kanekoa ranks second nationally with a .939 free throw percentage. The sophomore is 46-of-49 on the year and has been perfect from the line 11 times this season ... The Rainbow Wahine host San Jose State on Friday in their only game this week.
Idaho Vandals (8-10, 5-2 WAC)
The Vandals defeated Hawai?i 66-50 on Sunday for their first-ever win over the Rainbow Wahine ... Hawai?i was the third opponent Idaho has held to 50 or fewer points this season ... Four players scored in double digits, led by Charlotte Otero with a career-high-tying 14 ... Yinka Olorunnife grabbed a career-high five steals ... Rachele Kloke is 12-of-12 from the free throw line in WAC games ... Shaena Kuehu has hit a three-pointer in nine-straight games ... Olorunnife is on pace for 300 rebounds this season, which would bread Idaho’s single-season record of 277, set during the 1980-81 season ... Idaho plays at Louisiana Tech on Friday and at New Mexico State on Sunday.
Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters (11-10, 5-4 WAC)
The Techsters defeated New Mexico State 77-51 in their only game last week ... Whitney Jones scored a game-high 22 points to go along with seven rebounds and four assists. She hit a career-high five three-pointers, all coming in the first half ... The Techsters rank fifth nationally in three-point field goal percentage defense (.251), 28th in field goal percentage defense (.354) and 47th in blocks per game (2.0) ... Shanavia Dowdell leads the WAC with 11 double-doubles and ranks 47th nationally with 2.0 blocks per game ... The Techsters host Idaho on Friday and Boise State on Sunday.
Nevada Wolf Pack (13-7, 7-0 WAC)
The Pack went 2-0 last week, defeating Boise State (77-45) and San Jose State (61-50) to remain undefeated in WAC play and tie the second-longest win streak in program history at seven games ... Against the Broncos, Cherlanda Franklin was just shy of a double-double, finishing with nine points and nine rebounds, while Marissa Hammond grabbed a career-high eight boards ... Head coach Jane Albright became the all-time winningest first-year head coach in program history, passing Julie Hickey, who recorded 12 wins in 1982-83 ... Nevada has held four of its last five opponents to 50 points or under ... Nevada hosts Fresno State on Friday and Utah Jose State on Sunday.
New Mexico State Aggies (6-15, 2-5 WAC)
The Aggies fell 77-51 at Louisiana Tech in their only game last week ... Danisha Corbett led NMSU with 13 points, followed by Madison Spence with 12 and Kaitlyn Soto with 10 ... Niki Holt is six blocked shots away from moving into fourth place on the Aggie career list (100) ... NMSU, which is 0-11 on the road, is shooting 42 percent from the field and 39 percent from three-point range at home this year, compared to 34 percent from the field and 26 percent from downtown on the road ... After playing nine out of its last 11 games on the road, NMSU now has its next four games at home for the longest homestand of the season ... NMSU hosts Boise State on Friday and Idaho on Sunday.
San Jose Spartans (2-19, 1-7 WAC)
The Spartans went 0-2 on the road last week, falling at Fresno State (73-44) and Nevada (61-50) ... Against the Bulldogs, Chasity Shavers led SJSU with 18 points, while Shaunna Ridge grabbed 10 boards ... SJSU scored a season-low 14 first-half points at Fresno State ... Natalie White led the Spartans with 14 points at Nevada ...The Spartans shot 41 percent against the Wolf Pack, just the sixth time this season they have been above 40 percent shooting ... SJSU has used 12 different starting lineups this season and 11 of 12 players have started a game ... The Spartans have been out-rebounded in seven of their eight WAC games ... SJSU plays at Hawai?i on Friday and hosts Fresno State Sunday.
Utah State Aggies (10-12, 4-5 WAC)
The Aggies went 0-2 last week, falling to Hawai?i at home (63-61), before losing 68-59 at Fresno State ... Danyelle Snelgro led the Aggies with 16 points vs. the Rainbow Wahine ... In the loss at Fresno State, Shawnta Pope paced the Aggies with 15 points, while Snelgro and Ana Pares added 10 points each ... Pares has scored in double figures in all nine WAC games and 13 in a row ... Nicole Johnson currently ranks 45th nationally with 2.0 blocks per game ... With 53 career wins, head coach Raegan Pebley is three wins shy of becoming the all-time winningest coach in Utah State history ... The Aggies play at Nevada as part of the Play Up Tour on Sunday in their only game this week.
NEWLEE EARNS WIN 100
Idaho head coach Jon Newlee picked up his 100th career win at the NCAA Division I level on Jan. 25 when the Vandals defeated New Mexico State. Newlee posted a 93-82 record in six seasons at Idaho State and is 8-10 in his first season at Idaho for a career record of 101-92.
UTAH STATE EARNS FIRST-EVER WAC ROAD SWEEP
For the first time since joining the conference in 2005-06, the Aggies won both ends of a WAC road trip when they defeated San Jose State and Hawai?i on Jan. 23 and 25. It was also the Aggies’ 10th win of the season, surpassing last season’s win total as USU was 9-20 last year.
CRINER BECOMES NEVADA’S ALL-TIME STEALS LEADER
Dellena Criner became Nevada’s all-time steals leader in the team’s win over Utah State Jan. 14. The senior tied Tracy Graham for first place with her 237th career steal at the 9:22 mark of the first half. She took sole possession of the record when she stole the ball from Utah State’s Danyelle Snelgro at the 14:27 mark of the second half. Criner currently has 246 steals, good for ninth in the WAC record books.
NEVADA’S JONES SCORES 1,000TH CAREER POINT
Nevada’s Brandi Jones became the seventh player in program history to reach the 1,000-point plateau when she hit a three-pointer with 16:59 left in the game at Hawai?i on Jan. 16. Jones is also the seventh player in program history to record 1,000 career points and 500 career rebounds as she has 1,026 points and 536 rebounds. This marks just the second time in history the Pack have had two active 1,000 career points scorers on the same roster as Jones joined teammate Dellena Criner (1,461). Chris Starr (1982-86; 2,356 career points) and Kit Larson (1981-85; 1,334 career points) were the other two 1,000 career point scorers on the same roster.
SNELGRO BECOMES UTAH STATE’S ALL-TIME STEALS LEADER
Danyelle Snelgro made Utah State history in the first half of the Aggies’ loss to Louisiana Tech on Jan. 10 with her 176th steal, passing Margaret Johns (1980-83) for the top spot in the Utah State career record books.
TALENI SCORES WAC SEASON-BEST 31 POINTS AGAINST UTAH STATE
Idaho junior guard Derisa Taleni scored a WAC season-high 31 points to pave the way for a 71-63 come-from-behind victory over Utah State Monday night. Entering the game, Taleni had hit only eight of her previous 57 three-point attempts on the season, but nailed 5-of-6 (.833) to give her the WAC’s second-best three-point performance of the year.
CRINER FOURTH IN WAC RECORD BOOK IN FREE THROWS MADE
Nevada’s Dellena Criner currently ranks fourth all-time in the WAC record books in career free throws made. The senior has 498 made free throws on her career, 99 away from first place (597).
WHITE NINTH IN WAC CAREER FREE THROW PERCENTAGE
San Jose State senior Natalie White currently has a career free throw percentage of .816 (177-of-217), which ranks ninth all-time in the WAC. Julie Krommenhoek, who played at Utah from 1994-98, holds the record with a .851 clip (313-of-368).
FRESNO STATE UPSETS NO. 22 TCU
Fresno State rallied for a 75-71 victory over No.22 TCU Dec. 4 in front of 2,288 fans. The Bulldogs trailed 69-53 with 6:20 remaining in the game before going on a 22-2 run to earn the victory. The win is Fresno State’s first over a nationally ranked opponent since December 1, 2006, when the Bulldogs defeated No. 23 Texas Tech. It is only the third win against a ranked team in the last 16 years. Hayley Munro had a career-high 23 points and eight rebounds while Joh-Teena Filipe came off the bench to score 14 points and grab six rebounds.
NEVADA GETS FIRST-EVER WIN OVER RANKED TEAM
Nevada recorded the biggest win in program history Nov. 29, beating No. 7 Louisville 85-82. It was the Wolf Pack’s first-ever win over a ranked team and the highest ranked team Nevada had ever faced. The previous highest ranked teams the Wolf Pack had played were No. 8 Louisiana Tech (2003-04), No. 9 Cal (2008-09) and No. 11 Louisiana Tech (2002-03).
SJSU’S WHITE REACHES 1,000-POINT PLATEAU
The Spartans’ Natalie White scored her 1,000th career point on a three-pointer at the 4:27 mark of the second half against Sacramento State on Nov. 28. Making the game even more memorable was the fact that she hit the game-winning basket as time expired to give San Jose State its first win of the season. White is just the 12th player in school history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.
NEVADA’S ALBRIGHT EARNS WIN 400
In her first year at Nevada and 25th overall, Wolf Pack head coach Jane Albright earned her 400th career win against Northern Iowa on Nov. 28, becoming just the 39th Division I coach to reach 400 victories. The following night, she earned win No. 401 against No. 7 Louisville. Thirteen of her wins have come at Nevada, 48 at Wichita State, 161 at Wisconsin and 188 at Northern Illinois.
PLAY UP TOUR CONTINUES SUNDAY IN RENO
The WAC Play Up Tour for women’s basketball continues Sunday, Feb. 8, in Reno, Nev., when Nevada hosts Utah State at 2 p.m. WAC staff members will be on site to distribute promotional items. Fans will also have the opportunity to sign up to win a WAC prize pack that includes WAC apparel and other WAC related items. All fans that enter the drawing will be eligible for the grand prize of a WAC Basketball Tournament package. The package includes two tickets to the tournament, airfare and hotel accommodations.
The following are the dates and times of the remaining 2009 Play Up Tour stops. All times are local and subject to change.
Sunday, Feb. 8 ? Reno, Nev.
Utah State at Nevada, 2 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 13 ? Ruston, La.
Hawai?i at Louisiana Tech, 7 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 15 ? Moscow, Idaho
San Jose State at Idaho, 2 p.m.
BOISE STATE FAVORED IN PRESEASON POLLS
Boise State, the 2007-08 WAC 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 five of the nine first-place votes in the coaches poll and 15 of the 22 top votes in the media poll.
PRESEASON ALL-WAC TEAMS ANNOUNCED
The coaches selected Nevada senior guard Dellena Criner as the WAC’s preseason Player of the Year, while the media tabbed Boise State senior guard Tasha Harris as the league’s top player. In the coaches poll, Criner and Harris were joined on the first team by Louisiana Tech junior forward Shanavia Dowdell, and Fresno State sophomores Hayley Munro and Jaleesa Ross. Second-team selections include Brandi Jones (Nevada), Danyelle Snelgro (Utah State), Madison Spence (New Mexico State), Natalie White (San Jose State) and Tarkeisha Wysinger (Louisiana Tech).
The media’s all-WAC team included Criner, Dowdell, Harris, Ross and Spence.
NEVADA TO HOST 2009 WAC TOURNAMENT
Reno and the University of Nevada will host the 2009 WAC Tournament presented by Verizon Wireless, March 10-14. It will be the third time that Nevada has hosted the event. Nevada also hosted the tournament in 2005 and 2006. The tournament features all nine men’s and women’s teams.