In our second month’s awards, teams have settled into their conference schedules where success hinges on the contributions of their players. This month’s teams were selected on that contribution, whether it was great or not and whether it lead to the raising of their program’s national ranking. The All-AHA teams (NCAA D1 unless noted) for January are:
Women’s Team
1. Hayley Munro (Sophomore Forward, Fresno State 15-6, 6-2 WAC): January saw the talented Victorian’s team go 7 and 2, including wins against Boise State and out of conference power UNLV. Fresno State received votes in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll this month. It was return to the polls since 1987 when the ‘Dogs were in the Top 25. A narrow 3 point loss at home against Idaho will see the Bulldogs looking for revenge against the Vandals when they travel there on Feb 13, a few days after facing #1 WAC team, Nevada. Hayley Munro became the third Bulldog to earn WAC Player of the Week honours this season. She scored a career-high 28 points against Utah State and had 22 against San Jose State in January.
2. Alison Lacey (Junior Guard, Iowa State 17-4, 5-2 Big 12): Another 7 and 2 January saw the Cyclones gain a National ranking of 21 and 23. Honourable mention pre-season All-Big 12 Lacey’s move to the shooting guard has seen her ppg production increase and her teams stocks rise. A communications major whose blog runs in the NY Times, the Canberra native is clearly enjoying her time in Iowa. The Cyclones overcame a tough challenge on February 5th when they upset #4 Texas A&M, 67-50.
Check out Alison Lacey's NY Times Blog after you finish reading this!
3. Tegan Cunningham (Junior Guard, Forward, Oklahoma State 13-5, 2-3 Big 12): Cowgirls' Cunningham is playing a great supporting role to potential All-American team-mate Andrea Riley who has had 5 thirty plus outings this year. The Cowgirls had a 5 and 3 January which saw their ranking drop out of the polls, however their schedule looks easier coming into February. Highlight game for them will be in the in-state game at home versus Oklahoma, with super-star Courtney Paris, the current leader of NCAA double-doubles, men or women.
4. Jillian Harmon (Senior Forward / Stanford 17-4, 8-1 Pac10): Surprise NZ Olympian, Harmon led the Cardinal by stepping up and scoring a game-high 17 points and grabbing nine rebounds in a win over UCLA. #9 Stanford, long a women’s powerhouse under former US Olympic coach Tanya VanDerveer, are eyeing off another +20 win season after experiencing their 7th sub-par year in her 30 year tenure. Valentines Day sees the top two teams in the Pac 10 go head to head, when Stanford host Cal.
5. Kylie Morrisey (Senior Forward / Troy 9-12, 4-7 Sun Belt) Geelong’s Morrisey leads the team in scoring and minutes played, and is fast closing in on the schools all-time top 5 scoring marking this year. Playing alongside 4 other Aussies, the senior is quick to pass on her tips and make her country women feel at home in Alabama. They play Sun Belt #1 Middle Tennessee on February 11 which they hope will set up their post-season ambitions.
Honourable mentions:
Louella Tomlinson (St Marys): Had the second triple-double of her career earning her third career WCC POW;
Emma Langford (Wyoming): Freshman still putting up big numbers;
Megan Sinclair (Metro State NCAA D2): 2nd double-double of the season in 1 pt loss v Regis on Jan 11;
Heather Oliver (USC): Former Central Arizona JuCo star now 10 ppg off the bench at a big-time program;
Caitlin Shadbolt (Mineral Area College – NJCAA D1): Part of a well balanced Region 16 team performing very well.
Men’s Team
1. Luke Nevill (Senior Centre, Utah 15-7, 5-2 Mountain West): The Utes are coming off two straight emotional victories, beating New Mexico, 69-68 at home on the 27th, and capturing a 94-88 overtime against BYU on the 31st to snap a four-game skid against their biggest rivals. Utah is led by 7-2 senior centre Luke Nevill, who is making a strong case for All-American and MWC Player of the Year honours. He won his 4th MWC Player of the week honour this season and leads the Utes with 17.6 points per game to go with 8.3 rebounds and 2.7 blocks. The Utes sit in 3rd place in the conference and host MWC#2 San Diego State on February 11 and #1 UNLV on February 25.
2. Patrick Mills (Sophomore Guard, St Marys18-3, 5-2 WCC): Pat suffered a broken hand in the Gaels 2nd loss for the season, in a bruising encounter against Gonzaga. Until that point in the game, St Mary’s was leading, had a record of 18 and 1, a national ranking of 18/22, and Mills was on course for a big night out, having already scored his season average 18 points in 17 minutes. A vital part of the Gaels success, his injury devastated the team and inspired the Bulldogs. The team dropped the next game v Portland before returning to Moraga for Pat to have surgery on his hand. The Gaels have a chance to right their season when they face San Francisco on February 5 and an even tougher battle without Mills when they face Utah State in a ESPN Bracket Buster on February 25.
3. Ryan Bathie (Nicholls State 13-8, 6-2 Southland): The Colonels went 6 and 3 in January and are currently equal conference leaders thanks in large part to their Aussie roster and a stifling defence. Led by Bathie, Nicholls State boasts one of the stingiest defences in D1 and are currently 7 and 1 on their home court. Victoria’s Bathie earned Southland Player of the Week on January 12 for his leadership and in combination with Sydney’s Anatoly Bose, they have the Colonels tied for best record in the Southland Conference after knocking off Stephen F. Austin, the #12 Mid-Major team in the country, 57-50 on February 5th.
4. Ben Magden (Junior Forward, Augusta State NCAA D2 16-4, 10-3 PBC): Slipping down the rankings by 3 spots to be ranked #7 nationally, Augusta State is 3rd in their conference, one game behind equal first place USC Aiken and GCSU. South Aussie Magden continues his fine form earning a conference Player of the Week honour on January 12. The Jags will look to keep in contact with the leaders and should feature heavily in post-season play again this year. Magden’s combination with Centre, Garret Siller, see them #13 and #14 on ASU’s all-time leading scorers list, both with more than 1300 career points.
5. Andrew Ogilvy (Sophomore Centre, Vanderbilt 13-8, 2-5 SEC): Sophomore standout A.J. Ogilvy has recently been under the weather and nursing a sore foot, but against Auburn, the 6’11 big man looked like his old self. He scored 14 points and grabbed six rebounds to go along with five assists against the Tigers. Ogilvy was named to the John R. Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 list with Pat Mills in mid November and Ogilvy has scored in double-figures in 48 out of 53 games in his two year career at Vanderbilt. The Commodores face a tough schedule with the feature match being a home game against Kentucky on February 17.
Honourable mentions:
Anatoly Bose (Nicholls State): The "Robin" to Ryan Bathie’s "Batman" in a super-Aussie display in Louisiana;
Jesse Wagstaff (Metro State, NCAA D2) named RMAC Academic Player of the Year to go along with his 3 double-doubles this year;
Trent Fildes (Miles CC, NJCAA D1): Increased his scoring output by 3 ppg with his team going 4 and 3 mostly on the road in January;
Auryn McMillan (Gardner Webb): averaging a career-high 9.9 points and 5.7 rebounds per game in a resurgent GWU Bulldogs outfit;
Kevin White (Alaska Anchorage, NCAA D2): has made 20 of his last 40 three pointers to go with his 24 assists and 4 turnovers in his last 6 games.
2 comments:
you have to be joking with some of your selections right! trent fildes.... ummmm ok! do you really need help?
well it looks well researched and covers all aspects of college basketball, so who would you have listed in the honourable mentions or are you saying all selections he needs help with?
Post a Comment