DENVER – Seattle U’s Isiah Umipig has been named Western Athletic Conference men’s basketball Player of the Week for Dec. 16-22.
Umipig, a junior guard from Federal Way, Wash. (Cal State Fullerton), helped Seattle U pull off one comeback victory and nearly led the Redhawks on another comeback over the past week. Umipig tied for the team lead with 18 points as Seattle U rallied for a 70-67 win over Norfolk State. His three-pointer with 1:13 remaining in regulation closed the Redhawk deficit to one at 67-66, and then he secured the win by making two free throws with 0.7 seconds left in the game.
At Nebraska-Omaha, Umipig scored a career-high 35 points in a 76-69 loss. He caught fire in the second half against the Mavericks, scoring 25 points and dishing out four assists after halftime. He hit three shots from beyond the arc over a five-minute span midway through the second half to give the Redhawks a 42-40 lead. Late in the game, he contributed eight points during a 14-3 Seattle U run that closed the Redhawks’ deficit from 13 points to two points.
For the week, Umipig averaged 26.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He shot 50 percent (16-of-32) from the field, 42.1 percent (8-of-19) from the three-point line, and 86.7 percent (13-of-15) from the free throw line.
Other nominees included: Bakersfield senior guard Issiah Grayson scored a career-high 31 points in a win at UTSA … Chicago State junior guard Clarke Rosenberg scored 20 points in a win over SIUE … Grand Canyon junior forward Daniel Alexander scored 15 points at Tulsa … Idaho senior forward Stephen Madison averaged 17.0 points over two games … New Mexico State sophomore center Sim Bhullar tallied 10 blocks over two wins … Texas-Pan American senior guard Javorn Farrell scored 23 points at SMU.