LOUISIANA TECH’S JOHNSON NAMED VERIZON
WIRELESS WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK - Louisiana Tech senior forward Adrienne Johnson has been named the
Verizon Wireless Western Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the
Week for the week of Jan. 18-23. This is the second WAC Player of the Week
honor of the season for Johnson and the sixth of her career.
A Franklin, La. native, Johnson led LA Tech
to a pair of WAC wins over Utah State (91-74) and Nevada (67-43), averaging
31.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.5 steals per game. She opened the
week with her seventh double-double of the season when she tallied a
career-high 36 points to go with 13 rebounds. She also dished out four assists,
grabbed three steals and set a program record by hitting 16-of-16 free throws.
Johnson followed that up by scoring 26 points against Nevada. For the week, she
hit an amazing 24-of-25 free throws (96 percent) in the two wins.
Other nominees included: Boise State’s
Lauren Lenhardt had 14 points against Idaho … Yinka Olorunnife of Idaho
averaged 23.5 points and 9.5 as the Vandals went 1-1 on the week … New Mexico
State’s Madison Spence finished with 23 points, four assists and three steals
in a win over Utah State … Sara Plavljanin of San Jose State averaged 12.0
points, 6.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 3.0 steals as the Spartans picked up
their first wins of the season … Utah State’s Ashlee Brown averaged 21.5 points
and 8.5 rebounds on the week.
LOUISIANA
TECH REMAINS ONLY UNBEATEN IN WAC PLAY - With a pair of wins against Utah State and New Mexico State last
week, Louisiana Tech remained the only unbeaten team in WAC play.
JACKSON
LEADS NATION IN REBOUNDING - Hawai`i freshman Kamilah Jackson currently leads the country in
rebounding with a 13.1 average. She has reached double-digit rebounds in 13 of
18 games this season and has pulled down 20 or more boards on three different
occasions.
SAN
JOSE STATE PICKS UP FIRST WINS OF SEASON - San Jose State defeated Idaho and Hawai`i last week, picking up
its first wins of the season and snapping a 20-game losing skid.
TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
Boise State Broncos (11-8, 2-3 WAC)
The Broncos fell 68-48 at Idaho last
Saturday ... Lauren Lenhardt led Boise State with 14 points ... Kati Isham
currently ranks 34th nationally in three-point field goal percentage (41.9) and
49th in three-pointers per game (2.6) ... Diana Lee is 28th in the nation in
assist-turnover ratio (2.0) ... On the year, Isham leads the team and ranks
seventh in the WAC in scoring (14.3) ... In league contests, Lenhardt leads the
team and is tied for fifth in the WAC in scoring (16.6) ... As a team, Boise
State ranks second in the WAC in field goal percentage (42.0), three-point
percentage (32.9) and blocks (4.1), and third in scoring (69.4), three-pointers
(6.2) and assists (14.9) ... The Broncos host New Mexico State on Thursday and
Louisiana Tech on Saturday.
Fresno State Bulldogs (13-6, 4-1 WAC)
The Bulldogs defeated Hawai`i 79-57 on
Monday ... Hayley Munro came off the bench and led all scorers with 18 points
... Jaleesa Ross finished with 12 points and needs nine more to surpass Yvette
Roberts (1985-89) as the most prolific scorer in program history with 1,779
points ... As a team, the Bulldogs lead the nation in three-pointers per game
(10.1), rank 17th in assists (17.0), 22nd in scoring (75.9), 24th in steals
(11.9), 43rd in three-point field goal percentage (35.3) and 45th in
assist-turnover ratio (0.93) ... Ross ranks fourth nationally in three-pointers
per game (3.3) and 23rd in three-point field goal percentage (42.9) ... The
Bulldogs host San Jose State on Thursday and play at Nevada on Saturday.
Hawai`i Rainbow Wahine (6-13, 0-6 WAC)
The Rainbow Wahine fell 53-43 at San Jose
State last Saturday ... Kamilah Jackson was just shy of a double-double,
finishing with nine points and 13 rebounds ... On Monday, Hawai`i fell 79-57 at
Fresno State ... Allie Patterson led Hawai`i with 14 points, while Jackson
pulled down 12 boards ... Jackson currently leads the nation in rebounds per
game (13.2) and ranks 18th in double-doubles (9) ... Hawai`i is 0-6 in road
games this year and has lost its last 16 WAC road games ... Against the
Spartans, Keisha Kanekoa moved into 11th place all-time in scoring at UH. She
now has 1,073 career points ... The Rainbow Wahine play at Utah State on Thursday
in their only other game this week.
Idaho Vandals (10-7, 3-2 WAC)
The Vandals fell 63-61 at San Jose State
last Thursday before defeating Boise State 68-48 on Saturday ... In the loss to
the Spartans, Yinka Olorunnife finished with a career-high 34 points and 13
rebounds for her eighth double-double of the season ... Against the Broncos,
Rachele Kloke led all players with 15 points ... The 20-point win was Idaho’s
largest margin of victory over the Broncos since Feb. 2, 1990, when the Vandals
won 89-46 ... As a team, the Vandals rank 21st nationally in personal fouls
(14.2), 42nd in blocked shots (4.6) and 47th in free throw percentage (73.0)
... Olorunnife ranks 28th in the nation in double-doubles (8) and 34th in
rebounds (9.7) ... The Vandals host Louisiana Tech on Thursday and New Mexico
State on Saturday.
Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters (13-5, 5-0 WAC)
The Lady Techsters defeated Utah State
(91-74) and Nevada (67-43) last week to remain unbeaten in WAC play ... Against
the Aggies, Adrienne Johnson posted her seventh double-double of the season
with a career-high 36 points and 13 rebounds ... In the win over Nevada,
Johnson tallied a game-high 26 points ... As a team, Louisiana Tech ranks 37th
in the nation in three-point field goal percentage defense (27.8) and turnover
margin (3.89), 45th in scoring (71.7) and 50th in won-loss percentage (72.2)
... Johnson ranks ninth nationally in scoring (22.0), 33rd in free throw
percentage (86.0) and 44th in field goal percentage (51.8) ... The Techsters
play at Idaho on Thursday and at New Mexico State on Saturday.
Nevada Wolf Pack (13-5, 2-3 WAC)
The Wolf Pack fell 67-43 at league-leader
Louisiana Tech last Saturday ... Tahnee Robinson led Nevada with 14 points,
while Kayla Williams finished with 10 ... Nevada committed 28 turnovers and
shot just 36 percent from the field on the game ... As a team, the Wolf Pack
rank 21st nationally in rebound margin (7.8), 43rd in field goal percentage
(43.3) and 50th in won-loss percentage (72.2) ... Robinson ranks 13th in the nation
in scoring (20.8) ... While Nevada has suffered on the road (3-4) the Pack is
8-1 at home, and holds a 34-9 mark at home over the last three seasons ... The
Wolf Pack host Fresno State on Saturday in their only game this week ... Nevada
is 9-26 all-time against the Bulldogs, including an 8-10 mark at home.
New Mexico State Aggies (9-10, 3-2 WAC)
The Aggies defeated Utah State 75-71 on
Saturday in their only game last week ... Madison Spence scored a season-high
23 points, while Danisha Corbett added 21 ... It was the only time this season
Spence shot better than 50 percent from the floor (53.8) ... NM State’s 3-2
conference record is its best mark through five games since 2007-08 ... As a
team, the Aggies rank 49th nationally in turnovers (15.7) and 50th in turnover
margin (3.16) ... Jasmine Lowe leads the WAC and ranks 22nd nationally with 3.0
steals per game ... Tabytha Wampler ranks second in the WAC and 28th in the
nation in free throw percentage (86.6) ... The Aggies play at Boise State on
Thursday and at Idaho on Saturday.
San Jose Spartans (2-16, 2-3 WAC)
The Spartans picked up their first wins of
the season last week, defeating Idaho
63-61 last Thursday and Hawai`i 53-43 on Saturday ... The win over Idaho broke
the Spartans’ 20-game losing skid ... Four players finished in double-digit
scoring vs. the Vandals, led by Marnesha Hall and Sara Plavljanin with 13
apiece ... Against the Rainbow Wahine, A.J. Newton scored a game-high 15 points
... In WAC games, Myesha Broaden leads the conference in free throw percentage
(93.3), while Brittany Johnson ranks fifth in rebounding (8.2) and Plavljanin
is third in three-point field goal percentage (40.7), fourth in three-pointers
per game (2.2) and eighth in scoring (15.0) ... The Spartans play at Fresno State
on Thursday and at Utah State on Saturday.
Utah State Aggies (8-10, 2-3 WAC)
The
Aggies fell 91-74 at Louisiana Tech last Thursday and 75-71 at New Mexico State
on Saturday ... Against the Techsters, Ashlee Brown tallied her seventh
double-double of the season with 24 points and 13 rebounds ... Brown led the
team with 19 points against NM State ... Brown, who ranks fifth in the WAC in
both scoring (15.0) and rebounding (8.7), has now tied the school record for
most double-doubles in a season ... The Aggies rank second in the WAC in
assists (15.1) and steals (10.8) ... Devyn Christensen leads the WAC and ranks
20th nationally in free throw percentage (87.9) ... Alice Coddington ranks 47th
in the nation with 2.7 steals per game ... The Aggies host Hawai`i on Thursday
and San Jose State on Saturday.
NON-CONFERENCE - The WAC is 62-57 (.521) in non-conference
games this season to be ranked 13th in conference RPI. Three teams are in the top 100 led by
Louisiana Tech (34), Fresno State (64) and Nevada (89).
WAC TOURNAMENT HEADS TO LAS VEGAS, TICKETS
NOW ON SALE - The
2011 WAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament will be held March 9-12 at the
Orleans Arena in Las Vegas and will include the top eight teams in the
regular-season standings. Ticket information is available at
www.wacbasketballtournament.com.
WAC ANNOUNCES TOURNAMENT FORMAT CHANGE - The 2011 WAC Tournament will feature a new
format that will reward teams based on regular season success, giving the top
two teams byes into the tournament semifinals. Under the format, the tournament
will begin on Wednesday with two men’s and two women’s games featuring the No.
5 seed against the No. 8 seed and No. 6 vs. No. 7. The winners then advance to
Thursday’s quarterfinal matchups to play the No. 4 and No. 3 seeds. The winners
of those games then advance to Friday’s semifinals against the top two seeds.
The change also results in two men’s and two women’s games being played each
day of the tournament except for Saturday, which will feature the men’s and
women’s championship games.
ESPNU TO TELEVISE FOUR GAMES IN 2010-11
SEASON - ESPNU will
televise four WAC women’s basketball games during the 2010-11 season. The
network will televise three regular-season WAC women’s basketball match-ups and
will also air the championship game of the WAC Tournament, held at the Orleans
Arena in Las Vegas, Nev.
The complete schedule:
Thursday, Jan. 6 Idaho 61, at Nevada 56 (OT)
Thursday, Jan. 13 Louisiana Tech 94, at Fresno State 92 (3OT)
Monday, Feb. 28 Louisiana Tech at Nevada, 8 p.m. (PT)
Saturday, March 12 WAC Tournament Championship, 1 p.m. (PT)
WAC TEAMS PARTICIPATE IN NCAA PACK THE HOUSE
CHALLENGE - All
nine WAC teams are participating in the NCAA Pack the House Challenge with the
goal of setting an attendance record. The schools compete against other WAC
schools as well as all Division I schools for a chance to be the 2010-11 NCAA
Women’s Basketball Pack the House Challenge Champion. The WAC schools’ Pack the
House Challenge dates are listed below.
School Date Opponent Attendance
Idaho Nov.
13 Eastern Oregon 549
Nevada Nov.
26 North Carolina State 1,039
Hawai`i Jan.
8 Louisiana Tech 1,601
Utah State Jan.
8 Fresno State 516
Fresno State Jan.
13 Louisiana Tech 3,275
New Mexico State Jan. 22 Utah
State 1,410
Boise State Jan.
29 Louisiana Tech
Louisiana Tech Feb. 5 Fresno
State
San Jose State Mar. 3 Hawai`i