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NM STATE CAN'T COMEBACK AT ARIZONA STATE IN NCAA FIRST ROUND
Second-seeded Arizona State sprinted out of the game, scorng 45 first-half points to put an early end to any upset throughts from 15-seed NM State as the Sun Devils earned a 74-52 win in the first round of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament. ASU showed an extreme home court advantage, shooting 52.6 percent on their home floor as the Aggies couldn't keep up. NM State senior Sasha Weber left it all on the floor in her final collegiate game, scoring 18 points to lead NM State. Moriah Mack finished with 11 points for the Aggies.
UTRGV FALLS AT TCU IN WNIT
Making its second consecutive trip to the postseason and first ever trip to the WNIT, UT Rio Grande Valley couldn't slow down host TCU in the opening round as the Horned Frogs earned the 97-73 win. The Vaqueros were led by 15 points, six rebounds and three steals from Bernesha Peters with Shawnte' Goff adding 14 points, Rickell Preston scoring 13 points and Anushka Maldonado finishing with 12 points. UTRGV struggled shooting, making jsut 24-of-62 attempts for 38.7 percent.
NORTH DAKOTA SNEAKS PAST GRAND CANYON, 57-51, IN WBI OPENER
North Dakota outscored Grand Canyon, 15-7, in the final quarter to complete a comeback in the opening round of the Women's Basketball Invitational. The Fighting Hawks were aided by a 21 to 10 disparity in free throw attempts but that didn't stop GCU from putting up a good fight. Cheyenne Hedrington led the way with 16 points and six rebounds while Courtney Hayes and Jessica Gajewski added 15 and 10 points respectively.
NM STATE WINS WAC TOURNAMENT
Top-seeded NM State won its second consecutive WAC Tournament title Saturday, defeating No. 2 UT Rio Grande Valley 80-53 in the championship game. The Vaqueros led 5-2 in the opening minutes, but NM State used a 14-0 run to take the lead for good. UTRGV pulled within 12 on the opening possession of the fourth quarter, but the Aggies scored the next seven points to push the game out of reach.
Brooke Salas led the Aggies with 20 points, five rebounds and two blocks. Tournament MVP Sasha Weber finished with 16 points, five rebounds and three assists. Shanice Davis added 11 points, seven assists and three steals. Anushka Maldonado led the Vaqueros with 14 points and five rebounds, while Hildur Björg Kjartansdóttir was just shy of a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds.
All-Tournament Team
Shawnte' Goff, UT Rio Grande Valley
Hildur Björg Kjartansdóttir, UT Rio Grande Valley
Brooke Salas, NM State
Batabe Zempare, CSU Bakersfield
MVP: Sasha Weber, NM State
BY THE NUMBERS
NM State finished the regular season leading the WAC in scoring offense (69.2), scoring defense (59.3), scoring margin (+9.8), blocked shtos (4.2), steals (9.9), turnover margin (+4.57), assist/turnover ratio (0.9) and three-point field goals per game (7.6). Utah Valley was the top shooting team from the field (.429) while Missouri-Kansas City led the WAC on free throws (.739). UT Rio Grande Valley led the league in field goal defense (.366). CSU Bakersfield was the top three-point shooting team (.331) while Grand Canyon was the best at defending the three (.296). UTRGV also led the WAC in rebounding offense (41.8) while UMKC was the league-leader in both rebounding defense (29.8) and rebounding margin (+7.3). Seattle U led the WAC in assists (13.4).
Individually, UTRGV's Shawnte' Goff led the WAC with 15.6 ppg. CSUB's Batabe Zempare averaged 9.9 rpg to lead the WAC in rebounding for the second straight season. Utah Valley's Sam Loggins was the top shooter (.505) while CSUB's Alyssa Shannon led the league in free throw percentage (.869). Grand Canyon's Courtney Hayes leads in both assists (6.6) and steals (2.9). NM State's Sasha Weber is the top three-point shooter in terms of both percentage (.409) and per game (2.6). UVU's Loggins also led the WAC in blocked shots (1.6).
In conference-only play, NM State led the WAC in scoring offense (68.5), scoring margin (+8.8), assists (13.6), steals (8.9), turnover margin (+5.00), assist/turnover ratio (1.0) and three-point field goals per game (7.6). Utah Valley was the leader in scoring defense (57.5), field goal percentage (.447), free throw percentage (.768) and three-point field goal percentage (.379). UTRGV led the league in field goal defense (.358), three-point field goal defense (.295) and rebounding offense (41.4). UMKC led the WAC in rebounding defense (29.6) and rebounding margin (+7.2) while Chicago State was tops in blocked shots (4.2)
Individually, UTRGV's Goff led the WAC with 16.1 ppg in WAC play. Zempare averaged 9.8 rpg and was the most accurate shooter with a .551 field goal percentage. UMKC's Aries Washington was the top free throw shooter (.872) while GCU's Hayes averaged 7.5 assists per game and 2.8 steals per game. Utah Valley's Rebecca MaWhinney was the most accurate three-point shooet (.492) while CSUB freshman Addi Walters averaged a league-best 3.0 three-pointers per game. UVU's Loggins led the WAC in blocked shots in league play, averaging 2.1 per game.
RISING STAR IN THE MAKING
New Mexico State women's basketball assistant coach Aarika Hughes was named as one of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's inaugural “Thirty Under 30†honorees on Friday. Hughes has played an integral role since joining the staff in 2011, a year removed from player under Trakh at USC where she was a four-year letterwinner. This is the first year of the award from the WBCA and was selected by the Assistant Coaches Council. Moving forward the award will be comprised of winners from the most recent award season.
REWRITING THE RECORD BOOK
NM State senior Sasha Weber has already established herself on a pair of WAC career lists as the guard finished sixth all-time in three-pointers made during conference play with 138 and is also sixth in three-pointers made overall with 269. CSU Bakersfield senior Batabe Zempare also etched her place in the record book with 901 of her 1,125 total rebounds coming as a member of the WAC, good for seventh all-time. Zempare is also tied for third with Tanya Zachary of Hawai'i (1990-92) for rebounding average in conference play at 10.2 and finished her carer in fourth for rebounding aveage in all games played (10.1). Grand Canyon's Courtney Hayes finished conference play tied for fourth all-time in single-season assist average with 7.5 dimes per game. She also tied for fourth in total assists in all games with 195.
THEY'RE SMART
A total of 25 WAC women's basketball players have been honored for success in the classroom, earning Academic All-WAC honors. To be eligible, a student-athlete must have competed at least one academic year, have at least a 3.2 cumulative GPA and have participated in at least 50 percent of the teams contests. The honorees are:
CSU Bakersfield: Airica Carmon, So.; Keri Kleist, Sr.
Chicago State: Jessica Cerda, Jr.; Konner Harris, Jr.; Layne Murphy, Sr.
Grand Canyon: Alyxis Bloom, Jr.; Jessica Gajewski, Jr.; Katelyn Lee, So.
Missouri-Kansas City: Sierra Bone, So.; Paige Husa, So.; Taylor Leathers, Sr.; Kristen Moore, So.; Samantha Waldron, So.; Aries Washington, So.
NM State: Brianna Freeman, Jr.; Sasha Weber, Sr.
Seattle U: Wilma Afunugo, Jr,; Jacinta Beckley, So.; Ashlyn Lewey, So.
UT Rio Grande Valley: Laura Van Tilburg, So.
Utah Valley: Georgia Agnew, Jr.; Samantha Loggins, Sr.; Rebecca MaWhinney, Jr.; Karlee Norris, Jr.; Mariah Seals, So.
WELCOME TO THE CLUB
One week after Chicago State's Layne Murphy and Seattle U's Taelor Ross joined UTRGV's Shawnte' Goff and NM State's Sasha Weber as active members of the 1,000 point club, CSU Bakersfield senior Batabe Zempare scored her 1,000th career point in a win at Grand Canyon to become the seventh active Division I player with 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.
FROM DOWNTOWN
CSU Bakersfield's Erika Williams became the eighth active player in the WAC to make 100 career three-pointers. NM State's Sasha Weber leads the list with 259.
MILESTONE WINS
Seattle U head coach Joan Bonvicini became the 23rd collegiate coach to hit the 700-win mark and the 17th Division I coach to reach the milestone when her Redhawks defeated Chicago State on Jan. 9. Grand Canyon head coach Trent May also earned a milestone win, collecting his 300th victory on Jan. 16 at Utah Valley.
ALL IN THE FAMILY
When CSU Bakersfield took on then-No. 14 Stanford on Dec. 22, ‘Runner head coach Greg McCall faced off against his daughter, and Cardinal forward, Erica. The younger McCall finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds in 22 minutes played.
ON THE DOWN LOW
When UT Rio Grande Valley earned a win over Grand Canyon early in the WAC season, it set a new mark for lowest combined points in WAC history. The Vaqueros put up just 52 points in the winning effort, holding the Lopes to just 28 points for a total of 80 points.
NO FREEBIES
CSU Bakersfield held No. 7 Oregon State to just two free throw attempts, tying the WAC record held by Hawai'i and last done in 2008-09 against Utah State.
WELCOME HOME
Seattle U finally made their true home debut on Dec. 19 when the Redhawks hosted Boise State at the newly renovated Connolly Center. The Broncos spoiled the homecoming, earning the 84-66 win.
JUMPING ON THE JAYHAWKS
Missouri-Kansas City picked up its first Division I win of the year in big fashion, knocking off Big 12 Kansas on Thursday at famed Allen Fieldhouse. The Kangaroos held the Jayhawks to just two points in the first quarter and a big game by Kiana Law led UMKC to its fourth all-time win against KU.
CLEANING THE GLASS
CSU Bakersfield senior Batabe Zempare broke her own school record for rebounds in a game with 22 against San Jose State.
COMEBACK KIDS
Utah Valley scored 37 points in the fourth quarter against San Francisco to force overtime and eventually win by six. The come-from-behind win is the biggest comeback in program history.
ISTANBUL (NOT CONSTANTINOPLE)
The Nov. 21 game between UT Rio Grande Valley and Eastern Michigan featured the first-ever matchup of Turkish-born players in an NCAA women's basketball game, including freshman Idil Türk (Istanbul) and EMU senior Sera Ozelci (Ankara). It was the second-ever matchup of players of Turkish decent, as American-born Yasemin Kimyacioglu (Santa Clara) faced her sister, Sebnem (Stanford), in the first round of the 2005 NCAA Tournament. Turk finished with nine points.
BLOCK PARTY
Seattle U center Taelor Ross recorded her 100th career block in a win over Evergreen. Chicago State's Layne Murphy also passed the 100 block mark this season. The WAC record for blocks in a career is 303 by Christen Roper of Hawai'i.
KEY NON-CONFERENCE MATCHUPS
This season, WAC teams will face some tough competition in the non-conference portion of the schedule, with as many as 16 games against NCAA Tournament participants and as many as 16 against Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) participants. The complete list is below.
Games vs. NCAA Teams
Nov. 13 - Utah Valley at Brigham Young
Nov. 15 - Seattle U at Montana
Nov. 18 - Seattle U at Washington
Nov. 19 - Utah Valley at Boise State
Dec. 15 - CSU Bakersfield at Oregon State
Nov. 23 - Grand Canyon at Gonzaga
Nov. 24 - Chicago State at DePaul
Nov. 28 - CSU Bakersfield vs. South Carolina
Nov. 28 - Seattle U vs. Princeton
Nov. 29 - CSU Bakersfield vs. Arizona State
Dec. 5 - UT Rio Grande Valley at Oklahoma State
Dec. 19 - Boise State at Seattle U
Dec. 22 - CSU Bakersfield at Stanford
Dec. 22 - Missouri-Kansas City at Northwestern
Jan. 2 - Seattle U at CSUN
Games vs. WNIT Teams
Nov. 13 - Hawai'i at Grand Canyon
Nov. 13 - Pacific at CSU Bakersfield
Nov. 19 - Sacramento State at NM State
Nov. 21 - UT Rio Grande Valley at Eastern Michigan
Nov. 23 - San Francisco at Utah Valley
Nov. 27 - CSU Bakersfield at Hawai'i
Nov. 28 - UT Rio Grande Valley at TCU
Dec. 2 - CSU Bakersfield at Fresno State
Dec. 3 - Utah Valley at Eastern Washington
Dec. 5 - CSU Bakersfield at UCLA
Dec. 5 - Kansas State at Chicago State
Dec. 7 - UT Rio Grande Valley at Kansas State
Dec. 21 - Northern Colorado at Grand Canyon
Dec. 30 - Hawai'i at CSU Bakersfield
Dec. 31 - Long Beach State at Seattle U
NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL RULES CHANGES
The NCAA Women's Basketball Rules Committee made a number of rules changes, most of which are intended to align the college game with the international and pro game.
Key Rule Changes
- The time limit to replace a disqualified player is reduced to 15 seconds. When the head coach fails to replace a disqualified player before the second horn, the head coach is assessed a bench technical foul. (Rules 2-10.9 and 10-4.5)
- Playing time for varsity games shall consist of four 10-minute periods. The intermission between the first and second and the third and fourth periods shall be the length of the elctronic-media timeout. (Rule 5-6.1)
- When a timeout is charged to the offensive team during the last 59.9 seconds of the fourth period and/or any extra period, the team has the option to advance the throw-in spot to the 28-foot mark in the frontcourt on the same side of the court as the scorers' table. (Rule 5-14.2)
- A team is awarded two free throws for each common foul beginning with the fifth team fould in a period. (Rule 8-2.1)
- The 10-second count shall reset on all stoppages of the game clock except when the defense causes the ball to be out of bounds, the offense retains possession after a held ball, or there is a technical foul assessed to the offensive team. (Rule 9-10)
- When an offensive post player with her back to the basket in the lane area is in control of the ball, a post defender may only place one forearm or one hand with a bend in the elbow on the offensive player. (Apendix III, Section 3)