WAC TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Boise State Broncos (15-6, 5-3 WAC)
Senior Mark Sanchez re-entered the Broncos starting five with a bang as he led Boise State on the road against Idaho and Houston Baptist, posting back-to-back double-double games ... the Broncos dropped a 63-59 decision at Idaho before defeating Houston Baptist 85-64 ... BSU had six players score in double figures at Houston Baptist (Kurt Cunningham 16, Paul Noonan 13, Mark Sanchez 11, Aaron Garner 11, Ike Okoye 11, Jamar Greene 10) ... The last time Boise State had six players score in double-digits was Dec. 6, 2008 against Colorado State ... BSU improved its record to 15-6 on the season and with nine regular season games left to be played, the Broncos goal of posting yet another 20-win season ... the only other time the Broncos have posted back-to-back 20+ win seasons was under Bobby Dye when they posted three consecutive seasons with 20 or more wins.
Fresno State Bulldogs (9-13, 1-6 WAC)
In a brief break from conference play, Fresno State picked up an 81-63 victory over Houston Baptist as freshman guard Mychal Ladd earned his first career double-double, with a pair of career-highs ? 22 points and 10 rebounds ... freshman point guard Bryce Cartwright added 13 points and eight assists ... freshman guard Paul George netted 12 points and grabbed eight rebounds ... freshman guard Brandon Sperling also recorded a career night with 11 points and six rebounds, with previous highs for a game of six points and three rebounds ... junior forward Sylvester Seay rounded out the group of five Bulldogs in double figures with 10 points and five boards ... later in the week, a 60-foot regulation buzzer-beater by Seay sent the Bulldog’s hard-fought clash with first-place Utah State into overtime before ending in a tough 83-77 loss for Fresno State. Seay led the team with 20 points against the Aggies.
Hawai?i Rainbow Warriors (10-11, 2-7 WAC)
Hawai?i went 1-1 last week, splitting games on the road at Louisiana Tech and New Mexico State ... The Rainbow Warriors defeated Louisiana Tech 54-53 before falling 82-72 at New Mexico State ... Petras Balocka’s tip-in at the buzzer gave UH a thrilling win over Louisiana Tech ... the Rainbow Warriors picked up their first road win of the year, while also ending a season-long five-game losing streak ... the win also ended a 10-game road losing skid ... UH’s last road win game at Idaho a little more than a year ago. Meanwhile, it was the third straight loss for the Bulldogs who fell into a tie for seventh place with Hawai`i ... against NMSU, the ’Bows had their highest scoring output in WAC play, but were unable to keep up with the Aggies, the league’s top-scoring offense ... UH remains winless in four all-time trips to Las Cruces ... this week, UH will host Fresno State and Idaho.
Idaho Vandals (10-11, 4-4 WAC)
Mac Hopson averaged 19.5 points, 8.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals per game in two games last week ... the Vandals defeated in-state rival Boise State, 63-59, in front of a season-high 4,371 fans ... Hopson scored a game-high 20 points and added eight assists, three steals and zero turnovers in a win over Boise State ... Hopson also knocked down 3-of-4 3-pointers ... Brandon Wiley added 12 points and nine rebounds and Kashif Watson earned his first double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds against BSU ... Idaho hit 24-of-51 (.471) shots from the floor ? a higher percentage than an 11-of-25 (.440) performance from the free throw line ... it helped Idaho to its first victory over Boise State since Feb. 2001; a span of 15 games ... Hopson then scored 19 points and added eight assists, six rebounds, and three steals vs. Nevada ... the Vandals lost to the Wolf Pack, 69-65.
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (8-14, 2-7 WAC)
Louisiana Tech went 0-2 last week, losing a pair of games by a combined three points ... Louisiana Tech dropped a 54-53 decision to Hawai?i before taking a 53-51 setback to San Jose State ... against Hawai?i, Jamel Guyton led the Bulldogs with 14 points and six rebounds, while junior Kyle Gibson finished with 13 points. Junior Magnum Rolle rounded out Tech’s double-digit scorers with 10 points and seven rebounds on the night ... in the loss to San Jose State, Magnum Rolle finished with his third double-double of the season with 19 points and 12 rebounds along with six blocks to lead all scorers ... Adrian Oliver led the Spartans with 15 points ... this week, Louisiana Tech travels to play Nevada on Thursday before heading to Logan to take on WAC leader Utah State on Saturday.
Nevada Wolf Pack (13-8, 6-2 WAC)
Nevada has won 23 of its last 25 WAC regular-season home games heading into this week’s home games with Louisiana Tech and New Mexico State ... freshman Luke Babbitt led the team with a career-high 24 points, his sixth 20-point game of the season, in Saturday’s win at Idaho. Babbitt added 10 rebounds for his fifth career double-double. Johnson also matched his career high with seven rebounds in the game ... Nevada outrebounded Idaho 44-33, the 10th consecutive game that the Wolf Pack has outrebounded its opponent. Nevada is now 10-4 on the year when outrebounding its opponents ... freshman Dario Hunt blocked a career-best six shots in the game. He now has 44 blocks on the season, tying Nevada’s freshman record set by Nick Fazekas in 2003-04.
New Mexico State Aggies (11-11, 5-4 WAC)
The Aggies won a pair of home games versus San Jose State, 89-81, Jan. 29, Hawai’i, 82-72, Jan. 31, in Las Cruces ... sophomore guard Jahmar Young averaged 28.5 points per game and led the Aggies to a pair of wins over San Jose and Hawai’i ... Young shot 72.7 percent from the field, 70.0 percent from the 3-point line and 90.0 from the free-throw line ... in addition, he averaged 5.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals per contest ... against San Jose State, Young scored a season-high 32 points, one shy of tying his career-high mark ... freshman forward Troy Gillenwater finished with 18 points and seven rebounds while junior guard Jonathan Gibson had 12 points ... against Hawai’i, Young had a team-high 25 points ... sophomore guard Gordo Castillo hit four 3-pointers for a career-high 12 point off the bench while Gibson added 14.
San Jose State Spartans (10-10, 4-5 WAC)
San Jose State went 1-1 last week on the road, dropping an 89-81 decision against New Mexico State before defeating Louisiana Tech 53-51 ... against New Mexico State, Adrian Oliver led the Spartans with 28 points, five assists and two steals ... Oliver was also the only Spartan in double-figure scoring in the 53-51 win over Louisiana Tech with 15 points ... he scored San Jose State’s last three field goals in the game on successive possessions with a 3-pointer followed by a pair of baskets ... the win was San Jose State’s first ever at Louisiana Tech in nine tries and marked the first time a Spartan team has won three WAC road games in a season ... this week, San Jose State will host Boise State on Saturday in the team’s only game of the week.
Utah State Aggies (21-1, 9-0 WAC)
Sophomore forward Tai Wesley helped Utah State notch a pair of WAC wins last week with a 72-61 victory against Nevada and a 83-77 overtime win at Fresno State ... against the Wolf Pack, Wesley scored a game-high 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting, and added six rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block ... against the Bulldogs, he scored 16 points on 8-of-12 shooting, and also had four rebounds, three assists and two steals. For the week, Wesley averaged 19.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.0 steals, and shot 66.7 percent from the field (16-24) and 66.7 percent from the free throw line (6-9) ... Gary Wilkinson also had a good week, scoring a career-high 33 points on 14-of-17 shooting in the overtime victory at Fresno State ... USU now holds the nation’s longest win streak at 16 games ... USU hosts New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech this week.
WAC NOTES
NEW MEXICO STATE’S YOUNG NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
New Mexico State’s Jahmar Young has been named the Western Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for Jan. 26-Feb. 1. The honor marks the first career WAC Player of the Week award for Young.
Young, a sophomore from Baltimore, Maryland (Laurinberg Prep), led the Aggies to a pair of wins over San Jose State and Hawai?i. Against San Jose State, Young scored a season-high 32 points, one shy of tying his career-high mark. He blocked a career-high two shots against the Spartans and tied his career-best mark for steals (four) and season-best mark for field goal shots made (nine). In the win against Hawai?i, Young led the way with 25 points and seven rebounds. He was a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line and was 3-of-4 from behind the three-point line.
On the week, Young averaged 28.5 points per game and shot 72.7 percent (16-of-22) from the field. He was 70 percent (7-of-10) from beyond the arc and 90 percent (18-of-20) from the free throw line. Young averaged 5.0 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.0 blocks per game.
Other nominees: Boise State senior Mark Sanchez; Fresno State freshman Mychal Ladd; Idaho junior Mac Hopson; Nevada freshman Luke Babbitt; San Jose State sophomore Adrian Oliver; and Utah State sophomore Tai Wesley.
ESPNU BRACKETBUSTERS MATCHUPS ANNOUNCED
Pairings for the seventh annual ESPNU BracketBusters ? a multi-day men’s basketball event matching NCAA Tournament hopefuls against each other on Friday, Feb. 20 and Saturday, Feb. 21 -- were announced today. There are three WAC teams that will have televised games, including Nevada hosting Virginia Commonwealth on Friday, Feb. 20. On Saturday, Feb. 21, No. 22 Utah State will travel to Saint Mary’s, while Boise State will travel to Portland State. Network and times will be announced Feb. 9.
Friday, Feb. 20
Virginia Commonwealth at Nevada
Illinois State at Niagara
Saturday, Feb. 21
George Mason at Creighton
#11 Butler at Davidson
Miami (OH) at Evansville
Hofstra at Fairfield
Green Bay at Long Beach State
Liberty at Old Dominion
Boise State at Portland State
#22 Utah State at Saint Mary’s
Northern Iowa at Siena
Buffalo at Vermont
Northeastern at Wright State
The other six teams of the WAC that were not selected to compete in a BracketBusters television game will play non-conference opponents on Saturday, Feb. 21. Those matchups are as follows:
UC Irvine at Hawai?i
Cal State Northridge at Idaho
UC Riverside at San Jose State
Cal State Fullerton at New Mexico State
Fresno State at UC Davis
Louisiana Tech at Murray State
GAINING MOMENTUM IN TOP-25 AND RPI RANKINGS
As a conference, the WAC continues to climb the RPI rankings, coming in at 12 according to both CollegeRPI.com and RealTimeRPI.com. The WAC ranks just ahead of the Metro Atlantic, Colonial, and West Coast Conferences. Utah State entered the top-25 polls for the first time this season and is currently ranked 22nd in the latest ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll and holds the 25th spot in the AP poll. It is the first time USU has been ranked since the 2003-04 season when the Aggies spent six straight weeks in the top 25. It also marks the first time that a team from the WAC has been ranked in the top-25 since Nevada was ranked as high as No. 9 during the 2006-07 season.
UTAH STATE HOLDS LONGEST WIN STREAK IN THE NATION
Utah State’s 16-game winning streak is the longest active winning streak in the nation and is tied for the longest winning streak in the country this year with Clemson, Pittsburgh and Wake Forest. USU’s 16-game winning streak is also the third-longest winning streak in USU history behind the 1999-2000 team that won 19 straight and the 2003-04 team that won 17 straight. Utah State has also won 29 straight home games which is the second-longest active winning streak in the nation behind Kansas (36).
YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS
Of the 124 players on rosters in the WAC, 75 (60.5 percent) are made up of juniors and sophomores. There are currently just 20 seniors in the league, eight of which are current starters. There are nearly just as many freshman starters (6) in the league as there are senior starters (8). Juniors and sophomores make up 60.5 percent of the starting lineups on the WAC.
TURNING IT AROUND
After winning eight games last season, Idaho has already surpassed its win total from last season through 21 games already this year. The Vandals went 8-21 last season and already hold an 10-11 (.476) mark this year. Louisiana Tech, which went 6-24 last season, has also surpassed its win total from last year as the team currently holds an 8-14 mark.
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. Pierce also set the SJSU record for most consecutive three-point baskets made as he connected on nine in a row (5-for-5 in second half at San Diego and 4-for-4 to open the game against Northern Colorado).
USU RANKS TOP-10 NATIONALLY IN THREE TEAM STATISTICAL CATEGORIES
As of Feb. 2, WAC teams rank in the top-10 in three team categories. Utah State leads the nation in win-loss percentage (95.5). The Aggies also front the nation in field goal shooting at 50.7 percent. Utah State also ranks seventh in assist-to-turnover ration (1.44).
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.
NEVADA’S BABBITT AMONG TOP FRESHMEN IN NATION
The only freshman in WAC history to earn back-to-back WAC Player of the Week honors, Luke Babbitt has opened his first season with Nevada in strong fashion, leading the team in both scoring and rebounding. Babbitt has a chance to become the first Nevada freshman to lead the team in scoring since Terrance Green in 1999-00. He could also become the first freshman to pace the Pack in rebounding since Nick Fazekas averaged 7.6 rebounds per game in 2003-04. He currently ranks sixth among the nation’s freshmen in scoring.
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.
TOP WAC TEAMS OVER LAST FIVE YEARS
Over the last five seasons dating back to 2003-04, Utah State has turned in a 140-45 record, the best record of any WAC team during that time (.757 winning percentage). In conference games, Nevada has won 74 games, the most in that same time period. The top three teams in winning percentage (both overall and WAC) over the last five seasons:
Overall Record (Pct.)
1. Utah State 140-45 (.757)
2. Nevada 140-47 (.749)
3. Boise State 110-72 (.604)
WAC Record (Pct.)
1. Nevada 74-18 (.804)
2. Utah State 41-16 (.719)
3. Boise State 56-54 (.509)
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.
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 7.3 rebounds, and is shooting 60.3 percent from the field and 83.1 percent from the free throw line.
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.
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.