United Athletic Conference

California Baptist's De'jon Davis has been named TicketSmarter Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for Feb. 24 through March 1. 

 

Davis, a senior forward from Oakland, Calif., was nearly unstoppable in a pair of big home wins. On Wednesday against Utah Valley, the 6-7 senior put up 21 points to go with 16 rebounds in a 73-66 win. He followed that up with 31 points, including four three pointers, and 15 rebounds in an 88-87 overtime win over Seattle U on Saturday. On the season, he is nearly averaging a double-double with 11.9 points per game and a WAC-best 9.9 rebounds per game. 

 

Other nominees included: CSU Bakersfield's Taze Moore shot .636 from the field with 18 points in a 79-59 win over UT Rio Grande Valley, also adding another 18 points in a loss to NM State on Saturday … Grand Canyon's Alessandro Lever averaged 17.5 points per game in a pair of home losses to NM State and UT Rio Grande Valley … Kansas City's Javan White scored 16 points with eight rebounds in an 80-58 blowout win over Chicago State … NM State's Johnny McCants helped the Aggies stay perfect in WAC play, averaging 11.0 points per game and 7.0 rebounds per game in road wins at Grand Canyon and CSU Bakersfield … Seattle U's Terrell Brown matched a career-high with 31 points in an 88-87 overtime loss at California Baptist … UT Rio Grande Valley's Lesley Varner II helped the Vaqueros pick up a big road win at Grand Canyon, scoring 32 points on 9-of-16 shooting in an 88-80 win.

 

It's the last week of regular season play and while the top spot has been set for a couple weeks, there is a lot of other seeds to be determined for next week's Hercules Tires WAC Basketball Tournament presented by TicketSmarter. California Baptist has a tough road trip coming up to end the regular season, facing off against NM State as the Aggies look to finish the WAC schedule undefeated on Thursdy and then traveling to UT Rio Grande Valley to take on a Vaquero squad that will be trying to second the second seed in #WACvegas. Kansas City will also be playing for seeding at the Roos, along with Chicago State, head west to take on Utah Valley and Seattle U. Finally, Grand Canyon plays host to CSU Bakersfield as both the 'Runners and Lopes will be looking to head to Orleans Arena on a winning note.

 

California Baptist leads the WAC in scoring (80.7), scoring margin (+11.4), free throw percentage (.784), field goal defense (.417), three-point field goal percentage (.382), rebounding offense (41.0), assist/turnover ratio (1.2), defensive rebounds (29.4) and three-pointers made (10.0). League-leader NM State is also on top in scoring defense (60.1), rebounding defense (27.3) and rebounding margin (+7.9). Kansas City is the leader in field goal percentage (.460) and three-point field goal defense (.299). Utah Valley is the leader in blocked shots (5.2) and UT Rio Grande Valley is the leader in assists (14.9), steals (8.2) and turnover margin (+4.59. CSU Bakersfield is the top offensive rebounding team (12.7).

 

Individually, Seattle U's Terrell Brown is the scoring leader at 20.7 points per game. CBU's De'jon Davis holds the top spot in rebounding with 9.9 per game and his 2.8 offensive rebounds per game and 7.1 defensive rebounds per game are also WAC bests. NM State's Johnny McCants leads the league in field goal percentage (.574). SU's Morgan Means has the top free throw percentage (.882) and CBU's Ferron Flavors, Jr. has the top three-point shooting percentage (.437) and also leads the league in three-pointers per game (3.0). UTRGV's Javon Levi holds the top mark in assists (7.7) and steals (2.3) and his 2.8 assist/turnover ratio is a WAC-best. UVU's Emmanuel Olojakpoke is the blocked shots leader at 2.7 per contest. 

 

In WAC-only play, Seattle U is the scoring leader at 79.6 points per game and the Redhawks also hold the top spot in turnover margin (+5.43). NM State is the leader in scoring defense (60.5), scoring margin (+12.8), three-point field goal percentage (.377), rebounding defense (25.7), rebounding margin (+8.9), assists (15.3), assist/turnover ratio (1.3) and three-pointers made (9.3). California Baptist holds the free throw percentage (.801) and the Lancers lead as well in rebounding offense (38.1) and defensive rebounds (27.1). Grand Canyon holds the top field goal percentage (.469) while CSU Bakersfield holds the top field goal defense (.413). The 'Runners are also tops in offensive rebounds at 11.7 per game. Kansas City has the top three-point defense (.297) and Utah Valley's 4.7 blocks per game are a league best. UTRGV is the leader in steals (7.3). 

 

Individually, SU's Brown is the scoring leader with 21.0 ppg. CBU's Davis has the rebounding lead at 10.4 per game. NMSU's McCants boasts the top field goal percentage (.582) while CBU's Brandon Boyd has the top free throw percentage (.927) and teammate Bul Kuol has the top three-point percentage (.484). 

UTRGV's Levi is the leader in assists (7.5) and assist/turnover ratio (2.5). SU's Brown is also the leader in steals at 2.0 per game. CBU's Flavors is tied with KC's Rob Whitfield for the lead in three-pointers per game at 2.6 and UVU's Olojakpoke is the block shots leader at 2.6.

 

With a win over UT Rio Grande Valley on Feb. 22, the NM State Aggies clinched their third straight WAC regular season title and their fifth overall.

 

NM State used road wins at Grand Canyon and CSU Bakersfield to push their record-setting WAC win streak to 30 straight games. The Aggies used a win over Seattle U on Jan. 18 to move past Utah, who won 19 straight from 1998-99. NM State also is tied with Dayton for the longest win streak in the nation at 18 games.

 

Seattle U's Terrell Brown became the latest member of the 1,000-point club, reaching the mark on Feb. 20 against Grand Canyon. He joins CBU's Milan Acquaah, GCU's Alessandro Lever, teammate Morgan Means and UTRGV's Lesley Varner II as active members of the 1,000-point club. 

 

Hercules Tires was named the title sponsor of the upcoming WAC Basketball Tournament at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. Hercules Tires will also be the exclusive tire partner for the Conference and will have an integrated marketing presence throughout the year, allowing the brand to connect with WAC alumni, fans, students, and employees at all conference championship events.

 

HEY NOW, YOU'RE AN ALL-STAR

Former NM State Aggie and current Toronto Raptor Pascal Siakam was named a starter for the Eastern Conference at the 2020 NBA All-Star Game on Feb. 16 in Chicago. Playing for Team Giannis, he finished the game with 15 points and six rebounds in 17 minutes on the floor as Team LeBron earned the 157-155 win.