WAC NOTES
HAWAI‘I’S THOMAS NAMED VERIZON WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Hawai‘i’s Joston Thomas has been named the Verizon Western Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Jan. 30-Feb. 5. The honor marks the first career WAC Player of the Week for Thomas.
Thomas, a junior forward from Washington, D.C. (College of Southern Idaho), led Hawai‘i to an 83-81 overtime road victory at San Jose State last week. Thomas scored a career-high 29 points with 12 rebounds to notch his fourth double-double of the season. Thomas connected on 12-of 16 shots (75.0 percent) from the field and went 5-of-9 from the free throw line. He also added four assists and two blocks. Thomas helped erase a 14-point second half deficit by scoring 11 of UH’s points during a key 16-0 run. He helped UH pick up its third WAC road win of the season and second in overtime this year.
Other nominees included: Fresno State sophomore forward Jery Brown III … Idaho junior center Kyle Barone … Louisiana Tech freshman guard Raheem Appleby … Nevada sophomore guard Deonte Burton … New Mexico State senior forward Wendell McKines.
WEEK 13 WAC HIGHLIGHTS
Fresno State and New Mexico State each went 2-0 at home last week. Fresno State defeated both Idaho (65-55) and Utah State (60-54). Fresno State’s win over Idaho was its first in its last nine tries against the Vandals, while its win over Utah State was its first over the Aggies since 2007. Jerry Brown led the Bulldogs averaging nearly a double-double per game last week. New Mexico State stepped out of league play to defeat CSU Bakersfield 78-57 at home. Wendell McKines became the 12th player in the WAC to register 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in the win over CSU Bakersfield. NM State also defeated Louisiana Tech 83-72 at home. McKines recorded two double-doubles last week. Hawai‘i picked up an exciting road victory, defeating San Jose State 83-81 in overtime. Joston Thomas scored a career-high 29 points in the effort. Idaho and Nevada each went 1-1 last week. Idaho snapped Nevada’s 16-game win streak with a 72-68 victory in Reno.
NEVADA’S WIN STREAK ENDS AT 16 GAMES
Nevada’s 16-game school record tying win streak was snapped on Saturday as the Wolf Pack fell 72-68 to Idaho on Feb. 4. The streak was the second longest in country when it ended to undefeated Murray State. The Wolf Pack’s 12-game home court win streak also ended and it was tied for 19th longest in the nation. The 16-game win streak is tied with the 1965-66 team for the longest in school history. The 1965-66 squad went on to post a 21-6 record for head coach Jack Spencer. The 19-4 start is the best since the 2006-07 squad began the year 21-2 on the way to a 29-5 record. Nevada has won 19-of-21 after starting the season 0-2.
NMSU’S MCKINES BECOMES WAC’S 12TH MEMBER OF 1,000 PT/1,000 REB. CLUB
New Mexico State’s Wendell McKines became a member of the 1,000-career point and 1,000-career rebound club and led the New Mexico State men’s basketball team to a 78-57 win over CSU Bakersfield on Feb. 1. With his 12th rebound of the game with 7:45 minutes remaining, McKines joined the elite club. He is only the second player in school history along with Sam Lacey, second active player in the NCAA (T.J. Robinson, Long Beach State) and 12th player in the WAC history to achieve the feat.
WAC All-Time 1,000 point/1,000 rebound List
Keith Van Horn, Utah (1993-97) 2,542 points/1,074 reb.
Nick Fazekas, Nevada (2003-07) 2,464 points/1,254 reb.
Bob Elliot, Arizona (1973-77) 2,131 points/1,083 reb.
Michael Harris, Rice (2001-05) 2,014 points/1,111 reb.
Josh Grant, Utah (1988-93) 2,000 points/1,066 reb.
Kenny Thomas, UNM (1996-99) 1,931 points/1,032 reb.
Micahel Cage, SDSU (1980-84) 1,846 points/1,317 reb.
Reginald Slater, UW (1988-92) 1,809 points/1,197 reb.
Al Fleming, Arizona (1973-76) 1,765 points/1,190 reb.
Paul Millsap, LA Tech (2003-06) 1,708 points/1,172 reb.
Mitch Smith, Utah (1985-89) 1,628 points/1,036 reb.
Wendell McKines, NMSU (2007-) 1,306 points/1,012 reb.
SJSU’S CARTER NAMED TO ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT FIRST TEAM
Wil Carter, a senior forward on the San Jose State University men’s basketball team, is one of five NCAA Division I players named to the Capital One Academic All-District VIII first team. Voted on by members of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), the Academic All-District team is the first qualifying stage for Academic All-America honors. A co-captain of the 2011-12 San Jose State team, Carter is in his second year with the Spartans after transferring from Salt Lake Community College. The resident of Pocatello, Idaho ranks fourth in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) in rebounding with an 8.2 per game average. He is third on the San Jose State team in scoring with an 11.3 average.
ESPN SEARS BRACKETBUSTERS MATCHUPS SET
Pairings for the tenth annual BracketBusters – a three-day men’s college basketball event pitting NCAA Championship hopefuls Feb. 17-18 – were announced live on ESPN’s 2012 SEARS BracketBusters Selection Show last Monday. The WAC received two of the 13 television games. Nevada will travel to play Iona, while New Mexico State will host Drake. Both games will take place on Saturday, Feb. 18. The Nevada game will be broadcast on ESPN or ESPN2, while the New Mexico State game will be broadcast on ESPNU.
Friday, Feb. 17 (All times Eastern)
Northern Iowa at VCU, 7 p.m. (ESPN2/ESPN3)
Valparaiso at Loyola-Marymount, 9 p.m. (ESPNU)
Saturday, Feb. 18 (All times Eastern)
Drexel at Cleveland State, 11 a.m. (ESPNU
Wichita State at Davidson, Noon (ESPN or ESPN2/ESPN3)
Buffalo at South Dakota State, 1 p.m. (ESPNU)
Akron at Oral Roberts, 2 p.m. (ESPN or ESPN2/ESPN3)
Drake at New Mexico State, 3 p.m. (ESPNU)
Nevada at Iona, 4 p.m. (ESPN or ESPN2/ESPN3)
Old Dominion a Missouri State, 5 p.m. (ESPNU)
#16 Saint Mary’s at #9 Murray State, 6 p.m. (ESPN or ESPN2/ESPN3)
UNC-Ashville at Ohio, 7 p.m. (ESPN3)
UT-Arlington at Weber State, 8 p.m. (ESPN3)
Long Beach State at #12 Creighton, 10 p.m. (ESPN2/ESPN3)
The other six WAC teams that were not selected to compete in a BracketBusters television game will play non-conference opponents on Saturday, Feb. 18. Those matchups are as follows:
WAC Non-TV Matchups (Saturday, Feb. 18)
Fresno State at Cal State Northridge, 7 p.m. PT
Hawai‘i at Montana, 7 p.m. MT
Portland State at Idaho, 7 p.m. PT
Central Arkansas at Louisiana Tech, 3:30 p.m. CT
San Jose State at Sacramento State, 7 p.m. PT
UC Santa Barbara at Utah State, 7 p.m. MT
WAC CONTINUES RISE ON RPI AND ESPN CONFERENCE POWER RANKINGS LIST
After starting the season as low as No. 28 on the conference RPI list, the WAC has surged its way to No. 13 this week, according to collegerpi.com. The league also comes in as the 12th-best conference in the nation according to ESPN’s conference power rankings. Nevada currently holds the highest team RPI in the league at No. 71, according to the NCAA.
WAC TEAMS/PLAYERS AMONG NATIONAL STATISTICAL LEADERS
As of Feb. 6, teams from the WAC rank in the top-25 in three team statistical categories. Individual players rank in the top-25 in five individual stat categories. New Mexico State holds the highest team mark as it ranks 11th nationally in rebound margin at 7.7. Idaho ranks 16th nationally in three-point percentage at 39.7. Individually, New Mexico State’s Wendell McKines holds the WAC highest national ranking as he ranks fifth nationally with 14 double-doubles. Nevada’s Malik Story ranks eighth nationally with a 46.1 clip from three-point range.
SAN JOSE STATE’S CARTER RECORDS FIRST WAC 20-20 GAME SINCE 2006
San Jose State senior forward Wil Carter scored 21 points and pulled down 20 rebounds in a loss at Hawai‘i on Jan. 7. Carter becomes the first WAC player to score at least 20 points and pull down 20 boards since Louisiana Tech’s Paul Millsap did it in 2006. It also marked the first 20-rebound game by a SJSU player since Chris McNealy did it against Utah in December of 1981. It marks only the eighth 20-rebound performance by a Division I player this season.
UTAH STATE AND HAWAI‘I IMPRESS AT HOLIDAY TOURNAMENTS
Utah State went a perfect 3-0 at the Athletes in Action Classic in Logan to win the championship on Dec. 22. The Aggies defeated UT-Arlington 73-69, Saint Peter’s 72-47 and Kent State 81-62 to claim the title. Hawai‘i went 2-1 at the the Hawaiian Airlines Diamondhead Classic in Honolulu Dec. 22-25. The Rainbow Warriors dropped a close 65-62 decision to Auburn in its tournament opener before winning its next two games, an 84-82 overtime victory over then No. 14 Xavier and a 75-68 win against Clemson.
SAN JOSE STATE AND NEVADA SET SCHOOL RECORDS WITH 16 THREES IN A SINGLE GAME, RANKS AS FOURTH-BEST SINGLE GAME PERFORMANCE IN THE NATION
San Jose State set single-game school records with 16 three-point baskets made and 40 three-point baskets attempted in the December 29 victory over Coppin State at the Elgin Baylor Classic. The previous records in these categories were 14 made 3-pointers in a 2005 game against Louisiana Tech and 32 3-point tries in a 2011 game versus Boise State. Nevada set a single game school record of their own with 16 made thres and 32 attempts to break the old school record of 15 made threes against Cal State Fullerton in 1999. The 16 made threes ranks as the fourth-best single-game performance in the nation this season.
WAC TOURNAMENT RETURNS TO LAS VEGAS, TICKETS ON SALE NOW
The 2012 WAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament will be held March 7-10 at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas and will include all eight WAC teams. All-session tickets for the 2012 Western Athletic Conference Basketball Tournament presented by Verizon are available for purchase now. All-session tickets include access to each men’s and women’s tournament game, totaling 14 games in eight sessions. All-session tickets are on sale Friday through the Orleans Arena Box Office. Tickets will also be available for purchase through each WAC school’s ticket office. Fans are strongly encouraged to purchase tickets from their institution’s ticket office or online to avoid service fees associated with ticket sales through the Orleans Arena. Single-session tickets, which allow access to the two games listed in the session will be sold only on the day of the respective game, and can only be purchased through the Orleans Arena. Fans who wish to attend only the women’s tournament games may purchase a women’s tournament all-session ticket through the Orleans Arena ticket office.
INDIVIDUAL WAC SINGLE-GAME PERFORMANCE RANKS NATIONALLY
Utah State’s Preston Medlin hit eight three-point field goals in a win at Idaho State on Nov. 26. The eight threes is the third-most scored in the nation this season. USU’s Kyisean Reed connected on 11-of-12 shots for a 92.3 field goal percentage against Kent State on Dec. 22. Reed’s performance ranks as the second-best field goal percentage performance in the nation this season. Fresno State’s Jonathan Wills hit a perfect 13-of-13 free throws in a Nov. 22 game against UTSA. Wills’ night ranks him with the third-best performance nationally this year.
WAC TEAM-BY-TEAM WEEKLY NOTES
Fresno State Bulldogs (11-14, 3-6 WAC)
Fresno State went a perfect 2-0 last week with home wins over Idaho (65-55) and Utah State (60-54) ... in the win over Idaho, Tyler Johnson equaled a career high with a game-best 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds to help Fresno State snap a three-game setback skid and win their first against the Vandals in the past nine tries ... Kevin Foster and Garrett Johnson each added nine points and Kevin Olekaibe chipped in seven to lead the team to convert 50 percent (22-44) of its field goal attempts ... against Utah State, Fresno State tied a school-record with just three turnovers ... the Aggies never went away until Kevin Olekaibe, who led all scorers with 26 points, slammed down the clinching transition dunk with 4.8 seconds left ... Olekaibe converted 10-of-21 field goal attempts as he tallied his tenth game of season with 20 or more points ... Fresno State plays at San Jose State and Hawai‘i this week.
Hawai‘i Rainbow Warriors (13-9, 5-3 WAC)
Hawai‘i went 1-0 last week with an 83-81 overtime road victory at San Jose State ... in a roller coaster of a game, Hawai’i pulled off a dramatic overtime win over San Jose State Saturday night at the Events Center ... the Rainbow Warriors overcame a 14-point second half deficit en route to their third win in the last four conference games ... Joston Thomas scored a career-high 29 points on 12-of-16 shooting—including 11 points in a crucial 16-0 run—to help lift UH to victory ... that total surpassed his previous high of 27 points in UH’s win over San Jose State last month ... the junior forward also added 12 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the year ... the game continued UH’s trend of close contests ... eight of the team’s last nine games have been decided by six points or less ... UH now returns home for a three-game homestand, beginning with a showdown against first-place Nevada on Thursday.
Idaho Vandals (12-11, 5-4 WAC)
Idaho went 1-1 last week ... the team took a 65-55 setback at Fresno State before rebounding with a 72-68 victory at Nevada ... at Fresno State, the bright spot in the game for Idaho was junior Mansa Habeeb, who scored a career-high 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting, along with three rebounds, one block, one assist and one steal ... Kyle Barone led Idaho with 14 points and eight rebounds ... at Nevada, the Vandals denied the Wolf Pack an opportunity to set a school-record for consecutive wins and handed Nevada its first loss since Nov. 25, 2011, against BYU ... four Vandals reached double digit scoring in the game at Nevada ... Stephen Madison led the Vandals with 18 points, while Barone and Deremy Geiger each tallied 16 ... Idaho hosts WAC opponents New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech in doubleheaders on Thursday and Saturday.
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (11-12, 3-5 WAC)
Louisiana Tech dropped an 83-72 decision at New Mexico State in the team’s lone game of the week ... a career-high 30 points from freshman guard Raheem Appleby was not enough as Louisiana Tech fell NM State Saturday night ... Appleby is the first Bulldog to score 30 points in a game since former Tech player DeAndre Brown had 31 against Northwestern State last year ... Kenyon McNeail and Cordarius Johnson were the only other Tech players to reach double-figures in scoring with 17 and 16 points, respectively ... Johnson had a team-high nine rebounds including a career-best eight defensive rebounds while freshman guard Kenneth Smith and Appleby dished out six and four assists, respectively ... LA Tech travels to face Utah State Thursday night in Logan.
Nevada Wolf Pack (19-4, 8-1 WAC)
Nevada went 1-1 last week at home ... the Wolf Pack defeated Utah State 53-52 before falling 72-68 to Idaho ... Deonte Burton hit an off-balance 3-pointer with 11.2 seconds left as Nevada rallied to beat Utah State on Thursday, tying a program record with its 16th consecutive victory ... Malik Story scored 18 points and Burton added 13 for the Wolf Pack ...the 16-game winning streak ties the 1965-66 Nevada team for the longest in school history ... in the loss to Idaho, Burton had 18 points for Nevada, including a breakaway dunk that put the Wolf Pack ahead 64-63 with 1:13 left ... Burton banked in a deep 3-pointer with 17.6 seconds remaining to make it 69-66, but Idaho’s Mansa Habeeb hit one of two free throws and Deremy Geiger made two free throws to seal the win for Idaho ... Nevada travels to play Hawai‘i on Thursday night and San Jose State on Saturday night.
New Mexico State Aggies (17-7, 7-2 WAC)
Wendell McKines became a member of the 1,000-career point and 1,000-career rebound club and led the Aggies to a 78-57 win over CSU Bakersfield, Feb. 1 ... he is the12th player in the WAC history to achieve the feat ... McKines also had his 13th double-double of the year and 40th of his career with a game-high 20 points and 14 rebounds ... Daniel Mullings scored 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting, while senior guard Hernst Laroche supplied 10 points and four assists ... the Aggies began the second half of WAC play with an 83-72 win over Louisiana Tech, Feb. 4 ... NM State ended the game with a 20-5 run to hold off the Bulldogs ... Hamidu Rahman had a team-high 20 points, which tied his season-high mark, on a 7-of-10 performance from the field ... it was the fourth 20-point showing of his career ... this week, NM State travels to play Idaho on Thursday and Utah State on Saturday on ESPN2.
San Jose Spartans (7-16, 0-8 WAC)
San Jose State went 0-1 last week with a heart-breaking 83-81 overtime loss at home to Hawai‘i ... four San Jose State starters scored in double-figures and Keith Shamburger had a career-high 12 assists, but Hawai‘i hung on for the overtime victory ... Wil Carter led the Spartans in scoring with a career high 22 points and shared game high rebound honors with 12 ... it was Carter’s second career scoring high of the season - both against Hawai‘i ... when the teams opened conference play in Honolulu, Carter scored 21 points and hauled down 20 rebounds ... James Kinney added 21 and had a chance to win the game in overtime, but missed a 3-point basket try near the halfcourt line at the buzzer ... D.J. Brown and Stephon Smith scored 18 and 12, respectively ... SJSU hosts Fresno State and Nevada this week at the Events Center.
Utah State Aggies (12-12, 4-5 WAC)
Utah State went 0-2 on the road last week ... the Aggies dropped a 53-52 decision at Nevada before taking a 60-54 setback at Fresno State ... at Nevada, Preston Medlin led Utah State with 15 points including 13 in the second-half, while Brockeith Pane finished with 12 points, five rebounds and five assists ... Kyisean Reed added a career-high tying 10 rebounds ... in the loss at Fresno State, Senior forward Morgan Grim led Utah State with 13 points and eight rebounds, while Medlin also scored 13 points and Pane added 11 ... Fresno State snapped its 10-game losing streak to Utah State with the win, as the Aggies are now 2-10 on the road this season ... USU will return home and begin its season-long five-game home stretch against Louisiana Tech on Thursday ... the game against the Bulldogs will be broadcast regionally by ESPN and televised live on Altitude ... USU hosts NM State Saturday for a game televised on ESPN2.