NEW MEXICO STATE’S SCOTT NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
New Mexico State sophomore guard Abby Scott has been named Western Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Jan. 13-19. This is her first-ever WAC Player of the Week honor.
The Madras, Ore., native led New Mexico State to a pair of WAC victories last week, breaking a school and conference record along the way. Scott opened the week with a career-high 36 points, including 11 three-pointers, breaking both the WAC and NM State single-game records for three-pointers in a game and ranking tied for second place all-time in the NCAA record books. Scott added five rebounds and four assists in the Aggies’ 82-61 win over Chicago State, and accounted for nearly half of NM State’s points in the game. She followed it up with 25 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals in a 106-77 win over Utah Valley. For the week, Scott averaged 30.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists, well above her season averages of 7.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists entering the week. She made 17 treys over the two games and shot 46.3 percent from downtown.
Other nominees included: Chicago State’s Tierra Williams averaged 17.5 points, 1.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steals on the week ... Stacey Barr of Idaho averaged 22.0 points on 67 percent shooting, 5.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists as the Vandals went 2-0 last week ... Kansas City’s Eilise O’Connor averaged 27.0 points and 8.0 rebounds on the week and made a WAC and Kansas City record 22 free throws against NM State, the most in the NCAA this season and one shy of the NCAA record ... Kacie Sowell of Seattle U averaged 16.0 points and 10.0 rebounds as the Redhawks went 1-1 on the week ... Texas-Pan American’s Shawnte’ Goff averaged 21.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.5 steals as the Broncs went 2-0 last week.
WAC STAT LEADERS
Idaho leads the WAC in scoring (74.5), field goal percentage defense (35.7), rebounding (43.7), rebounding margin (3.1), blocks (4.1), assist-turnover ratio (1.25) and defensive rebounds (31.05). Grand Canyon is tops in scoring defense (58.9), scoring margin (11.9) and rebounding defense (37.0), while Kansas City leads the league in free throw percentage (76.8) and three-point field goal percentage defense (26.5). Seattle U is tops in field goal percentage (44.5) and assists (17.2), while Bakersfield leads the conference in offensive rebounds (16.3). Chicago State is tops in steals (9.6), while New Mexico State leads the league in three-pointers per game (8.5). Meanwhile, Texas-Pan American leads the WAC in turnover margin (4.94) and Utah Valley is tops in three-point field goal percentage (36.9).
Individually, Kansas City’s Eilise O’Connor leads the WAC in scoring (20.8) and minutes per game (38.0), while Bakersfield’s Batabe Zempare is tops in rebounding (11.3), offensive rebounds (4.3) and defensive rebounds (7.1). Utah Valley’s Katie Kuklok is tops in free throw percentage (94.4), three-point field goal percentage (49.0) and three-pointers per game (3.36), while Idaho’s Connie Ballestero is tops in assists (4.72) and assist/turnover ratio (2.58). Idaho’s Ali Forde leads the league in field goal percentage (61.3) and blocks (1.94), while Chicago State’s Paris Williams leads the WAC in steals (2.56).
In WAC games only, Idaho leads the conference in scoring (86.7), scoring defense (57.7), scoring margin (29.0), field goal percentage (50.5), field goal percentage defense (31.4), three-point field goal percentage (40.8), rebounding (45.8), blocks (6.33), assists (18.67), assist-turnover ratio (1.56), defensive rebounds (35.83) and three-pointers per game (10.0). New Mexico State is tops in three-point field goal percentage defense (24.1) and offensive rebounds (14.6), while Seattle U is tops in rebounding defense (32.2) and rebounding margin (9.2). Texas-Pan American leads the WAC in turnover margin (5.6) and steals (9.0), while Grand Canyon is tops in free throw percentage (81.2).
Individually in WAC games, O’Connor leads the conference in scoring (23.6) and minutes played (38.6), while teammate Kim Nezianya is tops in rebounding (12.6), offensive rebounds (4.2) and defensive rebounds (8.4). Forde leads the WAC in field goal percentage (71.7), while teammates Brooke Reilly and Christina Salvatore are tops in three-point field goal percentage (75.0) and assist/turnover ratio (6.0), respectively. Grand Canyon’s Kaitlyn Petersen leads the WAC in assists (5.5), while teammate Asha McDonnell is tops in blocked shots (3.25). UTPA’s Shawnte’ Goff is tops in free throw percentage (94.7) and steals (2.2), while Abby Scott of New Mexico State leads the league in three-pointers per game (4.4).
IDAHO’S BARR SCORES 1,000TH CAREER POINT
With the first of two free throws made with 4:59 left in the game against Bakersfield on Jan. 18, Idaho junior Stacey Barr scored her 1,000th career point, becoming the 19th player in Idaho women’s basketball history to do so, joining teammate Alyssa Charlston in the club. Barr now has 1,004 career points.
AGGIES’ SCOTT BREAKS WAC, NM STATE RECORD FOR THREE-POINTERS MADE IN A GAME
New Mexico State sophomore Abby Scott hit 11 three-pointers in the Aggies’ win over Chicago State on Jan. 16, breaking both the WAC and New Mexico State single-game records for long balls in a game. That mark also ranks second all-time in NCAA history, one behind the 12 of Cornelia Gayden of LSU in 1995 and Brittany Rayburn of Purdue in 2012.
KANSAS CITY’S O’CONNOR BREAKS WAC, UMKC RECORD FOR FREE THROWS IN A GAME
On Jan. 18 at New Mexico State, Kansas City’s Eilise O’Connor set both the WAC and UMKC records for free throws made in a game with 22. The 22 free throws made are the most in the NCAA this season and one shy of the all-time NCAA record of 23 held by Shaunda Greene of Washington in 1991 and Shay Doron of Maryland in 2003.
NM STATE HAS THREE PLAYERS SCORE 20 OR MORE POINTS AGAINST KANSAS CITY
In NM State’s 106-77 win over Kansas City on Jan. 18, Danesia Williamson had a career-high 30 points, Abby Scott added 25 and Sasha Weber finished with 20. It was the first time three Aggies scored 20 or more points since Feb. 26, 1994 vs. Long Beach State – Tami Edwards (24), Anita Maxwell (20) and Paulina Blunt (20).
KANSAS CITY’S NEZIANYA IN SECOND PLACE IN KANGAROO CAREER REBOUNDING
Kansas City’s Kim Nezianya currently has 801 career rebounds, good for second place all-time in the Kangaroo record books. The fifth-year senior is 63 boards shy of the all-time record of 864 held by Laurie Smith (1981-85), and would have to average 5.3 rebounds a game for the remainder of the season to break the record.
IDAHO’S CHARLSTON MOVES UP VANDAL CAREER SCORING LIST
Idaho senior Alyssa Charlston currently ranks sixth all-time at Idaho in career scoring with 1,403 career points. At her current pace, she would conclude her career ranked fifth all-time in Vandal history with 1,570 points.
TICKETS ON SALE NOW FOR WAC TOURNAMENT
All-session tickets for the 2014 WAC Tournament, which consists of 14 games in eight sessions, are on sale now through WAC institutions and through the Orleans Arena Box Office. Fans are strongly encouraged to purchase tickets from their institution’s ticket office to avoid service fees associated with the Orleans Arena site. Single-session tickets, which allow access to the two games in each session, will not be available for purchase until March 12 and can only be purchased through the Orleans Arena Box Office.
TWO WAC PLAYERS ARE ALLSTATE GOOD WORKS CANDIDATES
Eilise O’Connor of Kansas City and Kacie Sowell of Seattle U are among the 52 Division I nominees for the 2014 Allstate WBCA Good Works Teams®. The award recognizes basketball student-athletes who have made significant contributions to the greater good of their communities through volunteerism and civic service. A voting panel will select the 10-member team comprised of five student-athletes from the NCAA Division I level and five student-athletes from NCAA Divisions II, III and the NAIA from the nominees. The final roster of award recipients will be unveiled in February.
THREE WAC PLAYERS NAMED SENIOR CLASS CANDIDATES
Three WAC student-athletes – Alyssa Charlston of Idaho, Eilise O’Connor of Kansas City and Kacie Sowell of Seattle U – are among the 30 candidates for the 2013-14 Senior CLASS Award® in women’s basketball. All three student-athletes were named to the Preseason All-WAC first team by both the coaches and the media, while Sowell was selected as the WAC Preseason Player of the Year.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans. The winner will be announced during the 2014 NCAA Women’s Final Four®.
TEAM-BY-TEAM NOTES
BAKERSFIELD ROADRUNNERS (8-8, 2-2 WAC)
The Roadrunners defeated Seattle U 80-78 last Thursday, then fell 96-69 to Idaho on Saturday, snapping a 10-game home winning streak ... Against the Redhawks, Tyonna Outland had a career-high 33 points and 12 boards for her first double-double of the season ... Melissa Sweat added a career-high 26 points ... Against the Vandals, Sweat led the team with 18 points, while Outland added 13 ... Batabe Zempare posted a double-double of 12 points and 11 boards ... Outland ranks sixth all-time at Bakersfield in career scoring with 1,138 points ... Outland has scored in double figures in 14 of 16 games this season ... Zempare leads the WAC and ranks 14th nationally in rebounding (11.3) ... As a team, Bakersfield leads the WAC in offensive rebounds (16.31), and ranks third in free throw percentage (72.6), rebounding (41.4) and turnover margin (1.31) ... The Roadrunners play at Chicago State on Thursday and at Kansas City on Saturday.
CHICAGO STATE COUGARS (3-15, 0-5 WAC)
The Cougars fell 82-61 at New Mexico State last Thursday and lost 66-44 at Texas-Pan American on Saturday ... Against the Aggies, Tierra Williams led the team with 15 points, while Konner Harris added 14 points ... Layne Murphy posted a double-double of 10 points and 11 rebounds, while Chanel Wilson-Stewart grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds ... Against the Broncs, Tierra Williams had 20 points, while Tashuna Brown led the team with 11 rebounds ... Murphy has scored at least 10 points in six of the last seven games ... Tierra Williams has 108 career three-pointers, good for sixth place in program history ... Paris Williams has at least one steal in 32 of her last 38 games and at least two steals in 16 of her last 21 games ... As a team, the Cougars lead the WAC and rank 60th nationally in steals (9.6) ... Chicago State also ranks fourth in the WAC in three-point field goal percentage defense (28.0) and blocks (2.8) ... The Cougars host Bakersfield on Thursday and Utah Valley on Saturday.
GRAND CANYON ANTELOPES (13-4, 2-2 WAC)
The Antelopes were idle last week, but defeated Bakersfield 78-64 on Jan. 9 and beat Utah Valley 88-51 on Jan. 11 to even their record at 2-2 in the WAC ... Against the Roadrunners, Kaitlyn Petersen led all players with 25 points, while Deanna Daniels added 15, Johnna Brown had 14 and Astrea Reed finished with 11 ... Against the Wolverines, Jenna Pearson scored a game-high 17 points, while Petersen posted a double-double of 11 points and 12 assists ... Madison Craig added a career-best 10 points, while Brown had a career-high 12 rebounds and Asha McDonnell set a program single-game record with six blocks ... The Antelopes lead the WAC in scoring defense (58.9), scoring margin (11.9) and rebounding defense (37.0), rank second in field goal percentage defense (38.6), steals (9.5) and turnover margin (3.8), and third in three-point field goal percentage defense (27.7) and rebounding margin (1.4) ... The Antelopes play at Idaho on Thursday and at Seattle U on Saturday.
IDAHO VANDALS (13-7, 6-0 WAC)
The Vandals defeated Utah Valley 96-55 last Thursday and beat Bakersfield 96-69 on Saturday ... Against the Wolverines, Stacey Barr led all players with 21 points, while Alyssa Charlston finished with 20 ... Christina Salvatore added 12 points, while Brooke Reilly tallied 10 points and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds for her first career double-double ... Against the Roadrunners, Barr led all players with 23 points and six assists, scoring her 1,000th career point late in the game ... Ali Forde added 16 points, Connie Ballestero and Reilly tallied 12 points apiece and Charlston finished with 11 ... Idaho made a season-high 14 three-pointers against Bakersfield ... The Vandals are 6-0 for in league play for the first time since the 1981-82 season ... Idaho has made at least one three-pointer in 185 consecutive games ... The Vandals have scored 90 or more points three times this season, the most since 1998-99 ... Idaho hosts Grand Canyon on Thursday in its only game this week.
KANSAS CITY KANGAROOS (6-12, 2-3 WAC)
The ’Roos fell 65-50 at Texas-Pan American last Thursday and lost 106-77 at New Mexico State on Saturday ... Against the Broncs, Kim Nezianya posted a double-double of 19 points and 17 rebounds, while Eilise O’Connor added 19 points ... Against the Aggies, O’Connor scored a career-high 35 points and tied her career-high with 12 rebounds for her third double-double of the season ... Calli White added 12 points, while Nezianya posted her WAC-leading eighth double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 boards ... O’Connor set a WAC and UMKC record against NM State with 22 made free throws, the most in the NCAA this season and one shy of the all-time NCAA record ... White has made 42 three-pointers on the year, good for second all-time among UMKC freshmen, 18 shy of the record ... Nezianya is 63 rebounds shy of the all-time program record of 864 ... O’Connor now ranks second on the UMKC career scoring list with 1,509 points ... The ‘Roos host Utah Valley on Thursday and Bakersfield on Saturday.
NEW MEXICO STATE AGGIES (6-12, 3-2 WAC)
The Aggies defeated Chicago State 82-61 last Thursday and beat Kansas City 106-77 on Saturday ... Against the Cougars, Abby Scott scored a career-high 36 points and drained a WAC and New Mexico State record 11 three-pointers ... Danesia Williamson added 21 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while Sasha Weber finished with 12 points, seven assists and two steals ... Against the Kangaroos, Williamson led a group of five Aggies in double-digit scoring, with a career-high 30 points ... Scott added 25 points, while Weber finished with 20, marking the first time since the 1993-94 season that three Aggies scored 20 or more points in a game ... NM State leads the WAC and ranks 12th nationally in three-pointers per game (8.5) ... Scott ranks sixth in the WAC in three-pointers per game (2.0), while Weber is tied for seventh (1.78) ... Ellis ranks 10th in rebounding (6.5) ... The Aggies play at Texas-Pan American on Saturday in their only game this week.
SEATTLE U REDHAWKS (9-10, 4-2 WAC)
The Redhawks fell 80-78 at Bakersfield last Thursday, then defeated Utah Valley 75-67 on Saturday ... Against the Roadrunners, Taelor Ross had a career-high 22 points, while Kacie Sowell posted her fifth double-double of the season with 21 points and 13 rebounds ... Ashley Ward added 16 points and six assists ... Against the Wolverines, Ward had 15 points, while Sylvia Shephard added 13 and Sowell had 11 ... The Redhawks rank 23rd nationally in assists per game (17.2) and 32nd in field goal percentage (44.5) ... Sowell ranks 44th in the nation in field goal percentage (54.5) ... Seattle U also ranks second in the WAC in rebounding defense (37.4), rebounding margin (2.7) and assist-turnover ratio (0.89), and rank third in scoring (71.7), scoring margin (1.6), steals (9.05) and defensive rebounds (27.6) ... Sowell ranks third in the WAC in rebounding (8.6) and fifth in scoring (15.7) ... Shephard is third in assists (4.5) and fourth in steals (2.0) ... The Redhawks host Grand Canyon on Saturday.
TEXAS-PAN AMERICAN BRONCS (9-9, 3-2 WAC)
The Broncs defeated Kansas City 65-50 last Thursday and beat Chicago State 66-44 on Saturday ... Against the ‘Roos, Shawnte’ Goff had 24 points, while Jasmine Thompson added 13 and Brittany Bush pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds ... Against the Cougars, Goff had 18 points and a career-high four steals, while Thompson added 10 points and Bush grabbed a game-high 12 boards ... UTPA leads the WAC and ranks 23rd in the nation in turnover margin (4.94), and rank third in the WAC and 28th nationally in three-pointers per game (7.8) ... Goff ranks 53rd nationally in three-point field goal percentage (40.7) ... The Broncs also rank second in the WAC in scoring defense (62.5) and offensive rebounds (14.44), third in field goal percentage defense (39.8) and blocks (2.89), and fourth in steals (8.83) ... Bush is second in the WAC in blocks (1.7) and sixth in rebounding (7.9), while Goff is fifth in three-pointers per game (2.1) ... UTPA hosts New Mexico State on Saturday.
UTAH VALLEY WOLVERINES (3-14, 0-4 WAC)
The Wolverines fell 96-55 to Idaho last Thursday and lost 75-67 to Seattle U on Saturday, despite leading by as many as 10 points in the second half ... Against the Vandals, Rhaiah Spooner-Knight and Sam Loggins had 10 points apiece ... Against the Redhawks, Spooner-Knight led all players with 18 points, while Loggins added 13 and Whitney Jenkins finished with 12 ... Katie Kuklok ranks second nationally in three-pointers per game (3.36), third in free throw percentage (94.4) and fourth in three-point field goal percentage (49.0) ... As a team, the Wolverines lead the WAC in three-point field goal percentage (36.9), rank third in field goal percentage (41.8), rebounding defense (39.8), assists (13.71) and assist-turnover ratio (0.88), and fourth in free throw percentage (72.2), field goal percentage defense (40.2) and defensive rebounds (26.9) ... The Wolverines play at Kansas City on Thursday and at Chicago State on Saturday.