IRVINE, Calif. -- The PacWest slowed down after its fast start to the 2021-22 season with just two wins against West Region opponents this week as Point Loma and Academy of Art each picked up important wins. Eight of the PacWest’s 11 teams are now .500 or better on the season.
Academy of Art defeated Sonoma State 68-53 to improve to 3-2 against NCAA Division II opponents this season.
Stuart Chanel had 16 points, three steals and two blocks off the bench for the Urban Knights in the win, while
Joy Krupa added 13 points, 11 rebounds and her league-leading 13th and 14th blocks of the year.
Point Loma defeated Simon Fraser 81-75 on Saturday, becoming the third PacWest team this year to reach four overall wins. The Sea Lions have been the conference’s best 3-point shooting team so far this year after going 8 for 13 in the win.
Haylee Saurette made all three attempts in the win, while
Allie Carreon went 7 for 13 on the week.
Hawai`i Pacific got its third win of the year by beating Black Hills State, 68-55, with
Tavia Rowell scoring a team-high 29 points in the win with three steals.
Avery Cargill made 4 of 6 shots from beyond the arc to add 14 points, while
Amy Baum finished with a triple-double.
Azusa Pacific is now in first place in the PacWest standings and will open conference play at home against Holy Names and Fresno Pacific this week after taking the week off. Concordia and Point Loma will be in Hawai`i this week as they each take on the defending champion Hawai`i Pacific on Monday and Thursday.
Weekly awards for the week of November 22-28
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Amy Baum, Hawai`i Pacific
G, Sr., 5-7 -- Melbourne, Australia
Baum recorded her third career triple-double on Wednesday against Black Hills State, leading the Sharks to their third win of the season. The preseason PacWest Player of the Year lived up to her title with 11 points, 10 assists and 12 rebounds for Hawai`i Pacific. Two days later, she had eight points, nine rebounds and five assists to finish the week with an average of 9.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists per game. Baum also had two steals in each game to reach a total of 140 career steals. Baum also moved up on the PacWest list of career assist leaders, taking second place with 485 assists. Baum made 5 of 10 shots in the win against Block Hills State and made 4 of 7 from 2-point range against Lubbock Christian. For the season, Baum averages 12.6 points, 8.8 rebounds and 6.2 assists.
DEFENDER OF THE WEEK
Alisha Wilson, Academy of Art
F, Fr., 6-2 -- Pomona, Calif.
Wilson was three blocks away from a triple-double in Academy of Art’s road game against NCAA Division I San Jose State. Wilson had three blocks on the year before she made her first career start, when she recorded her third double-double of the season. The freshman tallied seven blocks, which is a new season high for PacWest athletes. She finished the game with 16 points and 10 rebounds on 8-of-10 shooting to go along with one steal. Then on Saturday, she added three more blocks in a win against Sonoma State to go along with her seven rebounds. Wilson now has 13 blocks on the season, which is the second most in the PacWest behind her teammate
Joy Krupa. She is also averaging 10.7 rebounds per game, which also ranks second in the PacWest this season, while playing just 23 minutes per game so far in her freshman season. As a team, Academy of Art leads the conference in rebounds and blocks. The Urban Knights’ average of 7.0 blocks per game so far this year is on pace to break the program record of 152 total blocks.