FRESNO STATE’S ROSS NAMED VERIZON WIRELESS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Fresno State junior guard Jaleesa Ross has been named the Verizon Wireless Western Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Feb. 8-14. This is the third WAC Player of the Week honor of the season for Ross and the sixth of her career.
Ross, a Pinole, Calif., native, averaged 19.5 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 3.0 steals per game while leading Fresno State to a record start last week. She shot 61 percent (14-of-23) from the field and 61 percent (8-of-13) from three-point range on the week as the Bulldogs are now 20-5 on the year and 11-0 in WAC play. She opened the week with 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting, a career-high nine assists, four rebounds and three steals in a win over Idaho. In Saturday’s win over New Mexico State, a game in which she played the full 40 minutes, Ross scored a game-high 23 points to go with eight rebounds, two assists and two steals. Her eight three-pointers during the week bring her career total to 266, seven shy of the Fresno State career record of 273.
Other nominees included: Rebecca Kepilino of Boise State averaged 13.0 points on 75 percent shooting, 7.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals on the week … Hawai’i’s Leilani Galdones averaged 14.5 points on 64 percent shooting and dished out 3.0 assists on the week … Rachele Kloke of Idaho averaged 16.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.0 steals last week … Louisiana Tech’s Shanavia Dowdell finished with 25 points, 13 rebounds and three assists in a win over San Jose State … Tahnee Robinson of Nevada averaged 17.5 points on 40 percent shooting as the Wolf Pack went 1-1 on the week … New Mexico State’s Crystal Boyd averaged 17.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.0 blocks and 1.5 steals … Chasity Shavers of San Jose State averaged 17.5 points on 56 percent shooting to go with 5.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals on the week … Utah State’s Nicole Johnson became the Aggies’ all-time blocks leader with her 128th career swat last week.
FRESNO STATE IMPROVES TO 11-0 IN WAC PLAY, RANKED 37TH IN RPI
After rattling off a school-record 12 straight wins, including all 11 of its WAC games, Fresno State is currently ranked 37th in the NCAA RPI. The 11-0 WAC start is the Bulldogs’ best since joining the conference in the 1998-99 season. Prior to this year, three different Fresno State teams had started WAC play 6-0.
JOHNSON BECOMES UTAH STATE’S CAREER BLOCKED SHOTS LEADER
Utah State senior Nicole Johnson recorded her 128th career block at the 19:07 mark of the second half when she blocked a Shavon Moore jumper. In doing so, she took sole possession of the Aggie career record for blocked shots. The 128 blocks places her fifth in the WAC career record books, 23 shy of first place. Johnson has 43 blocks this season, which places her fifth on USU’s single-season charts.
DOWDELL RANKS IN TOP FOUR NATIONALLY IN REBOUNDING, DOUBLE-DOUBLES
Reigning WAC Player of the Year Shanavia Dowdell currently ranks third in the nation in rebounding (12.3) and fourth in double-doubles (15). She’s also ranked 37th in field goal percentage (52.1) and 42nd in scoring (18.0).
BOISE STATE’S HARRIS, VAN HOOGEN NAMED ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT
Boise State’s Tasha Harris and Jessica Van Hoogen were named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Team as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Harris was named to the District 8 first team, which makes her eligible for Academic All-America honors, while Van Hoogen was named to the second team.
This marks the second time in Harris’ career that she has been named to the district team, making the third team in 2008. The Longmont, Colo., native is a three-time Academic all-WAC honoree who has already earned her bachelor’s degree in communication and a master’s degree in athletic administration, and is currently working on a master’s in communication. She finished her undergraduate work with a 3.6 grade-point average and has a 3.68 graduate GPA.
Van Hoogen, a Temecula, Calif., native, is a three-time Academic all-WAC honoree who has earned her bachelor’s degree in communication and is currently working on a master’s in athletic administration. She finished her undergraduate degree with a 3.33 GPA and has a 4.00 GPA in graduate school.
FRESNO STATE RANKED SIXTH IN ESPN’S MID-MAJOR TOP 10
After winning its last 12 games, Fresno State is ranked sixth in the Feb. 14 ESPN.com Mid-Major Poll. Graham Hays had this to say about the Bulldogs: “Here’s how Fresno State coach Adrian Wiggins made his case recently: ‘If you flipped and put our name on Arizona State’s stats or UCLA’s stats and changed the names, I think you’d be amazed at what you’d think about our team.’ He has a point. The lack of a signature win hurts in raising the profile, but the Bulldogs played Stanford close into the second half and acquitted themselves well on the road at TCU and USC without guard Emma Andrews early on. The next hurdle comes with Nevada, second in the WAC, at home on Saturday, followed by trips to Louisiana Tech and Boise State in the week that follows..”
ROSS RANKS SECOND IN SCHOOL HISTORY, FIFTH IN WAC, IN THREE-POINTERS MADE
Fresno State’s Jaleesa Ross is currently in second place on the school’s career three-pointers list with 266, two shy of the all-time record. Ross’ total also ranks fifth in the WAC record books, six away from fourth place.
HARRIS RANKS IN TOP 10 IN WAC IN CAREER FREE THROWS
Boise State senior Tasha Harris currently has 447 made free throws on her career, good for eighth place all-time in the WAC. With a minimum of seven games remaining in her career, at her current pace, Harris would finish with 476 career free throws, good for fifth place in WAC history.
LA TECH’S DOWDELL RANKS IN WAC TOP FIVE IN REBOUNDING
Louisiana Tech’s Shanavia Dowdell, the reigning WAC Player of the Year, currently has 897 career rebounds, good for fourth place all-time in the WAC. At her current pace, with a minimum of seven games remaining on her career, Dowdell would conclude her career with 983 boards, good for first place in WAC history.
VAN HOOGEN CLIMBING WAC STEALS CHART
Boise State senior Jessica Van Hoogen has 282 career steals, good for seventh place all-time in the WAC career record books, 21 away from sixth place.
FRESNO STATE, LOUISIANA TECH FAVORED IN PRESEASON POLLS
Fresno State, the 2008-09 WAC regular season co-champion and tournament title winner, was selected as the favorite by the coaches in the WAC preseason poll. The Bulldogs received five of the nine first-place votes and 60 points to beat out Louisiana Tech for the top spot.
Meanwhile, Louisiana Tech, which shared last year’s WAC regular-season title with Fresno State, was picked to win the title in the media poll. The Lady Techsters received 14 first-place votes, earning 180 points.
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 Louisiana Tech senior forward Shanavia Dowdell as the WAC’s preseason Player of the Year.
Joining Dowdell on the first team in the coaches poll was teammate Adrienne Johnson, along with Yinka Olorunnife of Idaho, Jaleesa Ross of Fresno State and Madison Spence of New Mexico State. The second team was comprised of New Mexico State’s Crystal Boyd, Tasha Harris and Jessica Van Hoogen of Boise State, Fresno State’s Hayley Munro and Derisa Taleni of Idaho.
The media’s all-WAC first team included Dowdell, Harris, Johnson, Ross and Spence. Second-team selections included Munro, Olorunnife, Taleni, Van Hoogen and Lydia Whitehead of Utah State.
NEVADA TO HOST 2010 WAC TOURNAMENT
Reno and the University of Nevada will host the 2010 WAC Tournament, March 10-13. It will be the second year in a row and the fourth time Nevada has hosted the event. The Wolf Pack also hosted the tournament in 2005, 2006 and 2009. The tournament features the top eight men’s and women’s teams.
BOISE STATE BRONCOS (15-9, 4-6 WAC)
The Broncos defeated Nevada 65-51 last Wednesday in their only game of the week ... Rebecca Kepilino led Boise State with team highs of 13 points and seven rebounds ... Tasha Harris recorded her 21st double-digit scoring game of the year with 11 points ... The Broncos average 70.9 points per game, which ranks third in the WAC and 47th nationally ... Boise State also ranks 36th in the nation with 10.6 steals per game, led by senior Jessica Van Hoogen, who averages 2.6 steals per contest, which ranks 48th nationally ... Harris ranks second all-time in career points at Boise State with 1,653 and first in career free throws made (447) and attempted (608) ... Van Hoogen ranks third in career points at Boise State with 1,550 ... Boise State opened the year 4-0 on the road before dropping its last eight road games ... The Broncos host Idaho on Wednesday and play at San Jose State on Saturday.
FRESNO STATE BULLDOGS (20-5, 11-0 WAC)
The Bulldogs defeated Idaho 85-38 last Tuesday and beat New Mexico State 71-60 on Saturday ... In the win over Idaho, Rosie Moult had a career-high 20 points, while Jaleesa Ross scored 16 points and hit four three-pointers to go along with a career-high nine assists ... It was Fresno State’s largest margin of victory ever over an opponent in a WAC game ... The Bulldogs shot a season-high 57 percent from the field vs. the Vandals ... Ross scored a game-high 23 points and grabbed eight rebounds vs. the Aggies ... With 266 three-pointers in her three years at Fresno State, Ross needs just seven more to become the Fresno State career leader ... The Bulldogs have won a school-record 12 straight games and have won 20 games for the fifth time in six seasons ... The Bulldogs play at Utah State on Wednesday and host second-place Nevada on Saturday.
HAWAI`I RAINBOW WAHINE (9-16, 3-9 WAC)
The Rainbow Wahine fell 75-67 at New Mexico State last Wednesday and 74-59 at Idaho on Saturday ... Against the Aggies, Breanna Arbuckle led five Rainbow Wahine in double figures with 16 points ... Allie Patterson and Julita Bungaite added 11 each, while Leilani Galdones and Keisha Kanekoa finished with 10 apiece ... Against the Vandals, Galdones led the team with 19 points ... Hawai’i out-shot Idaho 46-38 percent from the field, but was out-rebounded 45-32 ... The Rainbow Wahine fell 76-56 at Nevada on Monday ... UH shot 38 percent from the field, breaking a streak of four straight games shooting 43 percent or better ... Kanekoa led the Rainbow Wahine with 14 points, while Katie Wilson came off the bench to score 11 ... The Wolf Pack out-rebounded the Rainbow Wahine 51-27 ... The Rainbow Wahine play at San Jose State on Wednesday and host Louisiana Tech on Saturday.
IDAHO VANDALS (6-17, 4-6 WAC)
The Vandals fell 85-38 at Fresno State last Wednesday and defeated Hawai’i 74-59 on Saturday ... Rachele Kloke had 13 points vs. the Bulldogs ... In the win over Hawai’i, Kloke had 19 points for her eighth straight double-digit scoring game and team-leading 19th this season ... Yinka Olorunnife posted her 15th career double-double with a career-high-tying 25 points and season-high 14 rebounds ... The Vandals had a season-high 21 second-chance points off a season-best 21 offensive rebounds in the win over Hawai`i ... Olorunnife’s three-pointer at the 13:34 mark put her over 800 points for her career. She is the team’s active leading scorer and rebounder ... Idaho is now 3-1 against UH under Newlee. The team was 0-8 against the Rainbow Wahine before he arrived ... The Vandals play at Boise State on Wednesday and host New Mexico State on Saturday.
LOUISIANA TECH LADY TECHSTERS (16-6, 7-3 WAC)
The Techsters defeated San Jose State 81-66 on Sunday in their only game last week ... Shanavia Dowdell finished with 25 points, 13 rebounds, three assists and one block ... Dowdell has recorded 15 double-doubles this season, the fourth-most in the country ... Dowdell has recorded nine double-doubles in 10 WAC games, including eight straight, and her 39 career double-doubles ranks sixth-best in the Tech record books ... Louisiana Tech has won four straight games ... Dowdell needs 71 more rebounds to become the WAC’s all-time leader. She is currently in fourth place ... LA Tech has out-rebounded its opponent in nine of its 10 WAC games this year. The only game it didn’t outrebound its opponent was in an overtime win over Idaho ... The Techsters play at New Mexico State on Wednesday and at Hawai’i on Saturday.
NEVADA WOLF PACK (15-11, 9-3 WAC)
The Wolf Pack fell 65-51 at Boise State last Wednesday and defeated Utah State 77-66 on Saturday ... In the loss to the Broncos, Shavon Moore led the team with 13 points and six boards ... Against the Aggies, Tahnee Robinson had 24 points, while Moore scored 14 and added a team-high seven rebounds ... Nevada recorded a season-low 10 turnovers and posted season highs in free throws made (26) and free throws attempted (34) ... The Wolf Pack defeated Hawai’i 76-56 on Monday ... Robinson and Moore each recorded 14 points, while Johnna Ward added 12, including her 700th career point ... Marianne Lombardi (10) and Kayla Williams (11) each finished with double digits in rebounding as the Pack out-rebounded the Rainbow Wahine 51-27 ... Robinson has scored in double figures in 16 of her 17 career games, including the past 14 ... Nevada plays at Fresno State on Saturday in its only other game this week.
NEW MEXICO STATE AGGIES (16-9, 6-5 WAC)
The Aggies beat Hawai’i 75-67 last Wednesday and fell 71-60 at Fresno State on Saturday ... In the win over UH, Madison Spence led all scorers with 17 points, while Crystal Boyd added 16 points and four blocks ... In the loss to the Bulldogs, Jasmine Lowe paced the Aggies with 22 points, followed by Boyd with 19 ... NM State was out-rebounded 46-36 in the loss ... Boyd leads the team with 22 double-digit point performances this season ... The Aggies’ 16 overall victories this season rank as the second-best win total for NM State since joining the WAC, with five regular-season games remaining ... NM State is 13-3 when holding opponents to 70 points or less this year ... With the win at Hawai’i, NM State secured its second winning season in three years ... The Aggies host Louisiana Tech on Wednesday before traveling to Idaho on Saturday.
SAN JOSE STATE SPARTANS (5-19, 1-10 WAC)
San Jose State fell 66-46 to Utah State last Thursday and fell 81-66 at Louisiana Tech on Sunday ... In the loss to the Aggies, SJSU was led by Ashley Brown with 10 points and three assists ... Samantha Marez and Shaunna Ridge both added nine points and five assists ... The game at Tech was moved back a day because of weather-related travel issues ... Chasity Shavers scored 27 points, while Sayja Sumler added 17 points in the loss at LA Tech ... SJSU shot 50 percent from the field in the loss, just the fourth time all season the Spartans have shot 50 percent or better in a game this season ... The Lady Techsters held a staggering 23-2 scoring edge in second chance points and made eight more free throws than the Spartans ... The Spartans host Boise State on Saturday in their only game this week.
UTAH STATE AGGIES (12-12, 4-7 WAC)
The Aggies defeated San Jose State 66-46 last Thursday and fell 77-66 at Nevada on Saturday ... Against the Spartans, LaCale Pringle-Buchanan posted her first double-double in a USU uniform, scoring 10 points with 10 rebounds ... Amber White led all scorers with 12 points ... In the loss to the Wolf Pack, TaHara Williams led the Aggies with 17 points, while White added 12 and Alice Coddington had 10 ... Utah State had a season-high 26 fouls called against them in the loss ... Nicole Johnson became the Utah State career leader in blocked shots at the 19:07 mark of the second half at Nevada, blocking a Shavon Moore jumper to give her 128 on her career ... Johnson also ranks fifth in the WAC career record books, while her 43 blocks this season place her fifth on USU’s single-season charts. ... The Aggies host Fresno State on Wednesday in their only game this week.