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SEATTLE U'S HEARLIHY NAMED WAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Seattle U graduate student guard/forward combo Josh Hearlihy has been named Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 25-31. This is his first WAC Player of the Week honor of the season and of his career.
The Los Angeles native averaged 20.0 points on 54.5 percent from the field, 62.5 percent from three-point range and 78.6 percent from the free throw line, 3.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.0 blocks as the Redhawks went 2-0 on the week to complete non-conference play with an 11-6 record. He opened the week with 21 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block as Seattle U topped Grambling State, 93-63. He went 6-of-10 from the field and 8-of-9 from the charity stripe for his fourth game of the season with 20 points or more. He followed that performance with a team-high 19 points to go along with four assists, three rebounds, one block and one steal as the Redhawks surpassed the 90-point mark for the third straight game in a 95-71 win over UC Riverside. Hearlihy was 6-of-12 from the field, including 4-of-6 from three-point range, as Seattle U improved to 10-1 at home this season. The games marked the first two times this season that Hearlihy has led the team in scoring. The 11 wins marks the most non-conference victories since joining the WAC in the 2012-13 season.
Other nominees included: Chicago State's Fred Sims Jr. averaged 15.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steals in a pair of games last week ... Isaiah Ross of Kansas City finished with 20 points, six rebounds and two assists in a win over Avila ... NM State's Zach Lofton averaged 22.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steals as the Aggies went 1-1 on the week ... Nick Dixon of UT Rio Grande Valley finished with 21 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals in a win over Hampton ... Utah Valley's Brandon Randolph averaged 20.0 points on 70.6 percent shooting, including 75 percent from beyond the arc, 3.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists in a pair of wins last week.
WAC STAT LEADERS
Grand Canyon leads the WAC in scoring defense (61.3), scoring margin (11.7), field goal percentage defense (39.0), three-point field goal percentage defense (26.0), blocks (4.4), turnover margin (2.7) and offensive rebounds (12.7), while Utah Valley is tops in field goal percentage (48.8), rebounding (40.6), rebounding defense (31.3), rebounding margin (9.3), assists (16.9) and defensive rebounds (28.1). Seattle U leads the league in scoring (82.5), free throw percentage (78.9), three-point field goal percentage (39.1), assist-turnover ratio (1.2) and three-pointers per game (10.3), while UT Rio Grande Valley is tops in steals (8.2).
Individually, UTRGV's Nick Dixon leads the WAC in scoring (20.6), while NM State's Jemerrio Jones is tops in rebounding (11.1), offensive rebounds (3.9) and defensive rebounds (7.2). CSU Bakersfield's Moataz Aly leads the league in field goal percentage (77.3), while teammate Jarkel Joiner leads the league in free throw shooting (93.2). CSUB's Brent Wrapp is tops in assists (5.6) and assist-turnover ratio (2.7), while teammate Rickey Holden leads the WAC in minutes per game (33.5). Kansas City's Broderick Robinson leads the league in steals (1.6), while Utah Valley's Akolda Manyang is tops in blocked shots (2.5). Seattle U's Matej Kavas leads the WAC in three-pointers per game (3.3) and is tied with Chicago State's Montana Byrd for the lead in three-point percentage (50.0).
SEATTLE U WINS 10 NON-CONFERENCE GAMES FOR FIRST TIME SINCE JOINING WAC
With a win over Grambling State on Dec. 28, Seattle U notched its 10th non-conference victory of the season. It added another victory on Dec. 30 against UC Riverside. The 11 wins marks the most non-conference victories since joining the WAC in the 2012-13 season. The previous high was eight, achieved in both 2013-14 (8-5) and 2016-17 (8-7).
CSUB LED IN SCORING BY FRESHMAN FOR FIRST TIME
CSU Bakersfield freshman Jarkel Joiner has moved into the team lead with a scoring average of 11.6 points per game. As far back as the 1991-92 season, no `Runner has led CSUB in scoring on the season as a freshman.
UTRGV USES 30-10 RUN TO BEAT HAMPTON
In its game against Hampton on Dec. 30, UT Rio Grande Valley trailed 59-50 with 9:49 left in the game. The Vaqueros used a 30-10 run to claim an 80-69 victory.
NM STATE DEFEATS TOP 10 TEAM FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 1990
When NM State defeated No. 7 Miami on Dec. 23, it was the Aggies' first victory over a Top 10 team since an 83-82 win at home over seventh-ranked UNLV on Jan. 8, 1990. It was also NM State's first win against an Atlantic Coast Conference team since Lou Henson's 1997-98 team took down Virginia in the 34th Rainbow Classic in Honolulu on Dec. 30, 1997.
GRAND CANYON HAS GIVEN UP THIRD-FEWEST THREE-POINTERS IN NATION
As a team, Grand Canyon has given up just 58 three-pointers this season, the third-fewest of any team in the country, two more than Rhode Island, which has played three less games and one more than San Diego, which has played one less game. The Lopes also second nationally in three-point field goal percentage defense, allowing just 26.0 percent from beyond the arc.