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GRAND CANYON'S BRAUN NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Grand Canyon junior guard Joshua Braun has been named Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Feb. 20-26. This is his first WAC Player of the Week honor of the season and the third of his career.
The Anthem, Ariz., native averaged 28.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists in leading GCU to wins over Chicago State and UMKC last week. He shot 54 percent from the field and 50 percent from three-point range while averaging seven three-pointers per game. Braun opened the week with a career-high and Grand Canyon Division I record nine three-pointers against the Cougars, which also tied a 30-year-old school record across all divisions. He finished the game with 29 points to go with three rebounds and one assist. In an 84-77 win over the Roos on Saturday, Braun posted a game-high 28 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists in leading the Lopes to their sixth-straight victory.
Other nominees included: CSU Bakersfield's Shon Briggs averaged 12.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists as the Roadrunners won their first-ever WAC regular-season title with a pair of victories ... Fred Sims Jr. of Chicago State averaged 15.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.0 block and 1.0 steal ... UMKC's LaVell Boyd averaged 16.5 points, 7.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds in a pair of losses ... Eli Chuha of NM State averaged 11.0 points on 80 percent shooting and 10.5 rebounds per game as the Aggies went 1-1 on the week ... UT Rio Grande Valley's Moe McDonald averaged 14.5 points and 3.5 assists in a pair of losses ... Ivory Young of Utah Valley averaged 14.5 points on 72.7 percent shooting, 5.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists as the Wolverines went 2-0 on the week.
WAC STAT LEADERS
NM State leads the WAC in scoring (78.7), scoring margin (11.0), field goal percentage (46.5), three-point field goal percentage defense (29.9), rebounding (39.7), rebounding defense (33.1), rebounding margin (6.6), assist-turnover ratio (1.11) and offensive rebounds (13.07), while CSU Bakersfield is tops in scoring defense (62.4), field goal percentage defense (37.6), blocks (3.93) and steals (8.43). UMKC leads the league in three-point field goal percentage (37.0) and three-pointers per game (9.10), while Grand Canyon is tops in turnover margin (2.2) and Seattle U leads the WAC in assists (16.14). UT Rio Grande Valley is tops in free throw percentage (72.9) and Utah Valley leads the league in defensive rebounds (29.89).
Individually, Grand Canyon's DeWayne Russell leads the WAC in scoring (21.6), assists (5.33) and minutes per game (38.22), while Chicago State's Trayvon Palmer is tops in rebounding (9.5) and defensive rebounds (6.6). NM State's Eli Chuha leads the league in field goal percentage (60.4) and offensive rebounds (3.79), while teammate Braxton Huggins is tops in three-point percentage (42.9). Seattle U's Brendan Westendorf leads the WAC in free throw percentage (83.9), while UT Rio Grande Valley's Nick Dixon leads the league in steals (1.93) and teammate Antonio Green is tops in three-pointers per game (3.67). CSU Bakersfield's Moataz Aly leads the WAC in blocked shots (1.63) and teammate Brent Wrapp is tops in assist-turnover ratio (2.86).
In WAC games only, NM State leads the WAC in scoring (77.9), three-point field goal percentage defense (29.2), rebounding (40.9), rebounding defense (32.2), rebounding margin (8.8), assists (16.0), assist-turnover ratio (1.32) and offensive rebounds (13.31), while CSU Bakersfield is tops in scoring defense (61.5), scoring margin (9.5), field goal percentage (46.2), field goal percentage defense (38.0), blocks (4.85), steals (8.08) and turnover margin (2.23). UMKC leads the league in three-point field goal percentage (36.9), Seattle U is tops in three-pointers per game (9.0), UTRGV leads the way in free throw percentage (76.6) and Utah Valley leads the WAC in defensive rebounds (29.23).
Individually in WAC games, Dixon leads the league in scoring (20.3) and steals (2.08), while Chuha is tops in rebounding (10.0), field goal percentage (63.5) and offensive rebounds (4.23). Russell leads the WAC in assists (6.46) and minutes per game (39.08), while teammate Joshua Braun is tops in three-pointers per game (2.92). Seattle U's Zachary Moore leads the WAC in free throw percentage (89.7), while Utah Valley's Ivory Young leads the league in three-point percentage (45.5). Aly is tops in blocks (2.0), Wrapp leads the league in assist-turnover ratio (3.24) and Palmer is tops in defensive rebounds (7.23).
CSU BAKERSFIELD WINS FIRST-EVER WAC REGULAR-SEASON TITLE
With its wins over UMKC and Chicago State last week, CSU Bakersfield secured its first-ever outright WAC regular season title in any sport. The Roadrunners have earned the No. 1 seed in next week's WAC Tournament and a first round bye.
UTAH VALLEY SNAPS NM STATE'S 39-GAME WAC HOME WINNING STREAK
When it defeated NM State 84-72 on Feb. 23, Utah Valley snapped the Aggies' 39-game WAC home winning streak, the second-longest conference home win streak in the country. The last time NM State had lost a WAC home game was to a 68-60 defeat to Nevada on Jan. 26, 2012. The Aggies had also won 23-straight home games, the third-most in the NCAA behind Oregon (42) and Cincinnati (24).
DEFENSE REALLY DOES WIN CHAMPIONSHIPS
CSU Bakersfield has only allowed its opponent to score more than 63 points one time in the past 10 games and has gone 9-1 over that stretch. The Roadrunners moved into first place among all NCAA Division I schools in defensive points per possession in transition and second in the nation in defense points per possession overall.
UTRGV'S GREEN MOVING UP PROGRAM, WAC THREE-POINT LISTS
UT Rio Grande Valley sophomore Antonio Green currently ranks second nationally with 110 three-pointers made this season, which ranks tied for second in the UTRGV record books, four shy of the all-time record, and fifth in the WAC record books, 13 away from the record. With a minimum of two games remaining this season, at his current pace of 3.67 three-pointers per game, Green would finish the season with a UTRGV record 117 treys, good for third all-time in WAC history.
CSU BAKERSFIELD BREAKS PROGRAM DIVISION I RECORD FOR BLOCKS
In its win over Chicago State on Feb. 25, CSU Bakersfield broke its program Division I single-game record for blocks with 13, surpassing the previous record of nine. Moataz Aly and Fallou Ndoye had three apiece, while James Suber and Damiyne Durham blocked two shots each. Matt Smith, Brent Wrapp and Shon Briggs each had one block for the 13. The all-time record is 14 vs. UC Davis in 1999.
NMSU'S WEIR BOASTS BEST RECORD OF FIRST-YEAR HEAD COACHES
NM State head coach Paul Weir currently has a 24-5 mark (.828), the best record of all first year head coaches in NCAA Division I. His record is also second to Tim Jankovich at SMU (25-4, .862) for the best mark of all coaches that are in their first year coaching at their current school.
CHICAGO STATE'S PALMER, SIMS JR. MOVING UP PROGRAM SINGLE-SEASON RECORD BOOKS
Chicago State senior Trayvon Palmer and sophomore Fred Sims Jr. are moving up the CSU single-season record books. Palmer ranks first in defensive rebounds (198), second in both total rebounds (285) and rebounding average (9.5) and fourth in offensive rebounds (87). Sims ranks sixth in points (552), tied for seventh in scoring average (18.4) and seventh in three-point field goals made (70).
GCU'S RUSSELL EXTENDS DOUBLE-FIGURE SCORING STREAK TO 32 GAMES
Grand Canyon senior guard DeWayne Russell has scored in double figures in 32 straight games, dating back Feb. 27, 2016, when he scored seven points at CSU Bakersfield. He has led the Lopes in scoring in 18 of his 27 games played this season. Russell currently ranks 11th in the country in scoring (21.6) and second in minutes per game (38.20).
UTRGV ONE OF SIX TEAMS WITH TWO PLAYERS AVERAGING 16.9 POINTS
UTRGV is one of just six teams in the nation to have two players averaging at least 16.9 points per game in junior Nick Dixon (18.4) and sophomore Antonio Green (16.9). They are averaging a combined 17.7 points per game, the sixth-highest among the duos, but rank fifth in total points (1,059). Dixon and Green represent one of just two guard duos on the list, and one of two with an underclassman on the list.