FRESNO STATE’S MOORE NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Fresno State sophomore guard Ki-Ki Moore has been named the Verizon Western Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for Jan. 23-29. This is the third WAC Player of the Week honor of the season and her career for Moore.
The San Francisco, Calif., native averaged 23.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.0 steals per game as Fresno State went 2-0 on the week and remained the only unbeaten team in WAC play. She posted game highs in scoring in both contests and shot 56.7 percent from the field and 41.7 percent from three-point range. Moore opened the week with 19 points and five rebounds in a win over San Jose State. She followed it up by tying her career high of 28 points on 73 percent shooting (11-of-15) to go along with four rebounds and four steals in a rout of Hawai‘i. Moore has now scored in double figures against each WAC opponent Fresno State has faced.
Other nominees included: Vicky Tagalicod of Hawai‘i averaged 14.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game and posted a career-high 20 points at Nevada ... Idaho’s Alyssa Charlston averaged 23.0 points and 12.5 rebounds per game in a pair of losses ... Whitney Jones of Louisiana Tech scored a game-high 15 points, grabbed four rebounds and nabbed two steals in a win over New Mexico State ... Nevada’s Kate Kevorken averaged 19.7 points and 6.3 rebounds over three games last week ... Tabytha Wampler of New Mexico State finished with 14 points and eight rebounds in a loss to LA Tech ... San Jose State’s Brittany Johnson averaged 21.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game and posted a career-high 32 points in a win over Nevada ... Devyn Christensen of Utah State scored 22 points in a win at Idaho.
SAN JOSE STATE SNAPS 44-GAME WAC ROAD LOSING SKID
With its 86-79 win at Nevada on Jan. 28, San Jose State broke a 44-game conference road losing streak that dated back to the 2005-06 season. The last time a Spartans team had won a WAC road game was on Feb. 1, 2006, when the Spartans defeated Boise State 69-64 at Taco Bell Arena. With three wins in their first five conference games, the Spartans have already equaled or surpassed their single-season WAC win total from any of the last five seasons. The last time San Jose State won as many as three conference games was in 2006-07, when it went 3-13 in WAC play.
JOHNSON’S DOUBLE-DIGIT SCORING STREAK EXTENDS TO 21 GAMES
San Jose State senior forward Brittany Johnson has scored in double figures in 21 straight games (each of the team’s 20 games this season, plus one last year). The WAC’s leading scorer, she currently ranks 20th nationally in scoring with an average of 19.3 points per game. She has scored 20 or more points nine times this season and scored a career-high 32 against Nevada on Jan. 28.
LOUISIANA TECH FAVORED IN PRESEASON POLLS
Louisiana Tech, which won the WAC regular-season title last year, was the preseason favorite to win the WAC in both the coaches and media polls. In the coaches poll, the Lady Techsters received 47 points and five first-place votes to beat out Utah State for the top spot. The Aggies captured second place with 40 points and two first-place votes. Fresno State came in third with 36 points and received the other first-place vote. In the media poll, LA Tech received 13 first-place votes, earning 144 points. Meanwhile, Fresno State was picked to finish second with 129 points and three first-place votes, just ahead of Utah State in third place with 126 points and the other three first-place votes.
WAC STAT LEADERS
San Jose State’s Brittany Johnson currently leads the WAC in scoring with 19.3 points per game. Kamilah Jackson of Hawai‘i is tops in rebounding with an average of 10.6 boards. Nevada’s Kayla Williams leads the WAC in field goal percentage (51.0) and blocked shots (2.13), while Louisiana Tech’s Jasmine Bendolph leads the league in assists (5.55). Utah State’s Brooke Jackson is tops in free throw percentage (87.1), while Fresno State’s Rosie Moult leads the WAC in steals (2.74) and three-pointers per game (2.79). Utah State’s Maddy Plunkett is tops in three-point field goal percentage (49.2), while Taylor Thompson of Fresno State leads the WAC in assist-turnover ratio (2.59) and San Jose State’s Sara Plavljanin leads the league in minutes per game (36.3).
In WAC games only, Utah State’s Devyn Christensen leads the WAC in scoring (19.6) and three-pointers per game (2.2), while Kamilah Jackson is tops in rebounding (11.8). Brooke Jackson leads the league in field goal percentage (65.7), while Bendolph leads the WAC in assists (7.0) and assist-turnover ratio (3.18). Alissa Campanero of Idaho is tops in free throw percentage (100.0), while Thompson leads the WAC in steals (3.4) and three-point field goal percentage (69.2). Idaho’s Ashley Walters leads the league in blocks (3.0) and Plavljanin is the leader in minutes per game (37.6).
ORLEANS ARENA IN LAS VEGAS TO HOST WAC TOURNAMENT
The 2012 WAC Basketball Tournament will be held March 7-10 at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. It will be the second year in a row the tournament has been at the Orleans. The tournament features all eight men’s and women’s teams.
FRESNO STATE BULLDOGS (17-4, 5-0 WAC)
Fresno State defeated San Jose State 76-49 last Thursday and beat Hawai‘i 83-48 on Saturday ... Against the Spartans, Ki-Ki Moore led all players with 19 points, while Alex Sheedy added 16 ... Against the Rainbow Wahine, Moore tied her career high with 28 points on 11-of-15 shooting ... Fresno State has now won 117 games by 10 or more points under head coach Adrian Wiggins ... The Bulldogs rank second nationally in three-pointers per game (9.8), 11th in assist-turnover ratio (1.15) and turnover margin (6.43), 12th in assists per game (17.4), 15th in scoring (75.7), 21st in winning percentage (81.0) and steals per game (12.0), 25th in three-point percentage (35.7), 39th in turnovers per game (15.1) and 41st in scoring margin (11.3) ... Taylor Thompson ranks fifth in the nation in assist-turnover ratio (2.59), while Rosie Moult is 18th in three-pointers per game (2.8) and 50th in steals per game (2.7) ... Fresno State leads the WAC in scoring, scoring margin, assists, steals, turnover margin, assist-turnover ratio and three-pointers per game ... The Bulldogs play at New Mexico State on Thursday and at Louisiana Tech on Saturday.
HAWAI‘I RAINBOW WAHINE (8-12, 3-2 WAC)
The Rainbow Wahine defeated at Nevada 72-63 last Thursday and fell 48-83 at Fresno State on Saturday ... Against Nevada, Vicky Tagalicod scored a career-high 20 points, while Kamilah Jackson posted her 11th double-double of the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds ... Against Fresno State, Kalei Adolpho matched her career high with 14 points ... Jackson has scored in double figures 16 times and has grabbed 10 or more rebounds in 13 games this season ... The Rainbow Wahine rank 16th nationally in personal fouls per game (13.4) ... Jackson leads the WAC and ranks 11th in the nation in double-doubles (11) and is tops in the WAC and 16th nationally in rebounding (10.6). She also ranks sixth in the conference in scoring (14.1) and minutes played (32.4) ... Breanna Arbuckle ranks third in the WAC in blocked shots (1.6) ... Hawai‘i leads the WAC in defensive rebounds (27.65), ranks second in rebounding margin (1.6), and third in free throw percentage (68.8), field goal percentage defense (38.5), rebounding (38.8), rebounding defense (37.2) and blocked shots (3.8) ... Hawai‘i hosts Idaho on Thursday and Utah State on Saturday.
IDAHO VANDALS (5-16, 0-5 WAC)
Idaho fell 70-76 to Nevada last Monday and 70-78 to Utah State on Saturday ... Against Nevada, the Vandals trailed by as many as 17 in the second half and cut it to five, but that was as close as they would get ... Alyssa Charlston posted her sixth double-double of the season, finishing with 17 points and a career-high 16 rebounds ... Against the Aggies, Charlston was one point shy of her career high with 29 points, while Stacey Barr matched her career high with 20 points ... Outside of Charlston and Barr, the Vandals combined to go 6-of-18 from the field ... The Vandals have lost eight straight games, with five of those eight coming by 10 points or less, including their last two ... Charlston ranks fourth in the WAC in scoring (14.6) and blocks (1.24), fifth in rebounding (8.1) and 10th in field goal percentage (47.0) ... Ashley Walters is second in the WAC in blocks (1.89), while Adrie Shiels is 10th (0.80) ... Barr is fourth in the conference in three-pointers per game (1.9) ... As a team, Idaho leads the WAC in blocked shots (4.48), and rank second in field goal percentage defense (37.9) and defensive rebounds (27.05) ... The Vandals play at Hawai‘i on Thursday and at San Jose State on Saturday.
LOUISIANA TECH LADY TECHSTERS (10-10, 3-2 WAC)
Louisiana Tech defeated New Mexico State 69-42 Saturday in its only game last week ... Whitney Jones and Kiara Young both scored 15 points ... The Techsters rank 46th nationally in three-point field goal percentage (34.0) ... Jasmine Bendolph leads the WAC and ranks 21st nationally in assists (5.6) and ranks second in the WAC and 38th in the nation in assist-turnover ratio (1.85) ... LA Tech ranks second in the WAC in assists (14.65), assist-turnover ratio (0.89) and three-pointers per game (5.6), third in scoring margin (0.2), three-point field goal percentage (34.0) and turnover margin (1.75), and fourth in scoring (66.8), scoring defense (66.6), field goal percentage (40.9), field goal percentage defense (40.5), three-point field goal percentage defense (29.9), steals (7.5) and offensive rebounds (12.25) ... Shantale Bramble-Donaldson ranks third in the WAC in field goal percentage (49.7) and ninth in rebounding (7.3), while Kiara Young is fourth in field goal percentage (49.6) ... Angie Felton is second in the WAC in three-point field goal percentage (43.4) ... The Techsters host Nevada on Thursday and Fresno State on Saturday.
NEVADA WOLF PACK (5-15, 1-4 WAC)
Nevada defeated Idaho 76-70 last Monday, then fell 63-72 to Hawai‘i last Thursday and lost 79-86 to San Jose State on Saturday ... In the win over the Vandals, Kate Kevorken led a group of four players in double-digit scoring with 18 points ... Against the Rainbow Wahine, Chanelle Brennan led the team with 20 points, while Kevorken added 16 ... Against the Spartans, Kevorken scored a team-high 25 points ... Kevorken ranks 37th nationally in three-point field goal percentage (38.3), while Kayla Williams is 39th in blocks (2.1) ... As a team, Nevada leads the WAC in offensive rebounds (14.6), ranks second in rebounding (40.9) and blocked shots (4.45), and third in scoring (67.3), field goal percentage (41.1) and rebounding margin (1.1) ... Kevorken ranks second in the WAC in scoring (17.3), second in three-pointers per game (2.20), sixth in field goal percentage (47.5), seventh in three-point field goal percentage (38.3) and eighth in free throw percentage (71.1) ... Williams leads the WAC in field goal percentage (51.0) and blocks (2.13), and ranks sixth in rebounding (8.1) ... The Wolf Pack play at Louisiana Tech on Thursday and at New Mexico State on Saturday.
NEW MEXICO STATE AGGIES (4-16, 1-4 WAC)
New Mexico State fell 42-69 to Louisiana Tech on Saturday in their only game last week ... Tabytha Wampler led the Aggies with 14 points and eight rebounds ... As a team, NM State shot 29 percent from the field in the game, its lowest field goal percentage in WAC play ... The Aggies also committed 25 turnovers in the loss, their highest total in conference games ... NM State has held opponents to 26 points or less in five of the last seven halves, resulting in a 1-3 record in those games ... As a team, New Mexico State leads the WAC in scoring defense (63.0), three-point field goal percentage defense (27.7), rebounding defense (35.0) and rebounding margin (2.5), and ranks second in free throw percentage (69.1) ... Wampler ranks second in the WAC in rebounding (9.1) and defensive rebounds (6.95), fifth in free throw percentage (73.1), eighth in scoring (13.3) and ninth in offensive rebounds (2.15) ... Kaitlyn Soto ranks 10th in the WAC in minutes played (31.35), while Hannah Womack ranks 10th in three-point field goal percentage (35.6) ... The Aggies host Fresno State on Thursday and Nevada on Saturday.
SAN JOSE STATE SPARTANS (8-12, 3-2 WAC)
San Jose State fell 49-76 at Fresno State last Thursday, then snapped a six-year, 44-game WAC road losing streak with an 86-79 win at Nevada on Saturday ... Against Fresno State, Ta’Rea Cunnigan led the team with 12 points ... In the win over the Wolf Pack, Brittany Johnson and Cunnigan both scored career highs of 32 and 21 points, respectively ... Johnson has now scored in double digits in 21 straight games, dating back to last season ... Johnson leads the WAC and ranks 20th nationally in scoring (19.3), while Sara Plavljanin ranks 23rd nationally in three-point field goal percentage (40.0) ... Johnson also ranks fourth in the WAC in rebounding (8.5), seventh in steals (1.65) and ninth in blocks (0.80) ... Plavljanin leads the WAC in minutes played (36.30), ranks third in three-pointers per game (2.1) and steals (2.1), sixth in assists (3.4) and assist-turnover ratio (0.89) and seventh in scoring (13.7), ... As a team, San Jose State leads the WAC in field goal percentage defense (37.1) and rebounding (41.5), and ranks second in three-point field goal percentage defense (28.7) and offensive rebounds (14.55)
... The Spartans host Utah State on Thursday and Idaho on Saturday.
UTAH STATE AGGIES (13-6, 4-1 WAC)
Utah State defeated Idaho 78-70 on Saturday in their only game last week ... Devyn Christensen led the Aggies with 22 points for her fourth-straight game with 20 or more points ... This is the best start ever for Utah State since joining the WAC for the 2005-2006 season ... It is also the first time that USU has won its first three WAC road games with wins against Idaho, Louisiana Tech and New Mexico State ... The Aggies rank seventh nationally in three-point field goal percentage (38.1), ninth in free throw percentage (77.4), 16th in field goal percentage (44.4), 39th in scoring (71.7) and 48th in steals (10.8) ... Brooke Jackson leads the WAC and ranks 23rd nationally in free throw percentage (87.1), while Christensen is 46th (85.0) ... Ashlee Brown ranks third in the WAC in rebounding (8.6), fifth in scoring (14.3) and steals (1.95) and seventh in blocks (1.0) ... Maddy Plunkett leads the WAC in three-point field goal percentage (49.2), while Jackson is fifth (40.9) and Christensen is eighth (36.8) ... As a team, Utah State leads the WAC in free throw percentage, field goal percentage and three-point field goal percentage ... The Aggies play at San Jose State on Thursday and at Hawai‘i on Saturday.