IRVINE, Calif. -- The PacWest has a lot of parity in men’s basketball this year with eight teams already earning multiple wins in conference play, which only adds to the importance of Biola’s two wins last week in Hawai`i against Chaminade and Hawai`i Pacifc to improve to 5-1 for a tie atop the PacWest standings with Academy of Art.
Alex Wright and
Chris Rossow combined for 103 points, 19 rebounds and 16 assists in two wins for Biola, which now has a three-game winning streak. Biola got some help from Point Loma, which became the first PacWest team to defeat Academy of Art. The Sea Lions picked up their first of two wins last week in double overtime against Academy of Art.
Kaden Anderson scored 35 points with 13 rebounds, while
Ben Okhotin tallied 22 points and 11 rebounds off the bench in 41 minutes. Anderson scored 10 of his points in the second overtime period.
Academy of Art bounced back quickly with an 85-71 win over Concordia. The Urban Knights’ three leading scorers all came off the bench and
Cheickna Sissoko led the way with 21 points in just 20 minutes. There are currently four teams in the PacWest with just one conference loss going into this week’s games.
Two of those teams will face each other today as Hawai`i Hilo hosts Biola. On Thursday, Academy of Art will travel to Hawai`i Hilo, and then on Saturday, Biola will play at Point Loma. Dominican will begin its trip to Hawai`i this week, playing at Chaminade and Hawai`i Pacific.
Weekly awards for the week of Jan. 3-9
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Chris Rossow, Biola
G, Sr., 5-9 -- Freeport, Texas
During the first two games of Biola’s trip to Hawai`i, the Eagles’ offense ran through Rossow, who produced two 30-point performances while leading the conference in assists last week to lead Biola to a pair of wins. The Eagles are now tied for first place in the PacWest standings as Rossow became the conference leader in assists for the season with 58. He opened the week with a 32-point performance with eight assists in a 90-82 win over Hawai`i Pacific. He made 10 of 18 shots from the field and got to the free-throw line at a high rate with 14 attempts. On Saturday, he again set a season-high in scoring with 33 points as he shot lights out from beyond the arc, going 7 for 8. That performance is tied for the eighth best 3-point percentage in a single game in PacWest history. He is the first PacWest player this year with back-to-back 30-point games.
DEFENDER OF THE WEEK
Klay Brown, Academy of Art
G, Jr., 6-4 -- South Jamaica, New York
Brown, who was already the PacWest leader in steals this season, added to his lead with 10 steals last week against Point Loma and Concordia. In the Urban Knights’ double overtime loss to Point Loma, he recorded a season-high five steals to go along with two blocks and eight rebounds, including seven on the defensive end. Against Concordia, Brown helped the Urban Knights earn a season sweep with five more steals and four defensive rebounds. Brown made 5 of 6 three-pointers in the win for Academy of Art before he fouled out of the game with just 21 minutes played. He has now recorded multiple steals in 11 of 13 games this year and has a total of 32 steals on the season. He has four-consecutive games with at least 10 points and two steals, helping Academy of Art to win three of those four games. Academy of Art is now tied for first place in the PacWest with Biola with a 5-1 PacWest record, while the two teams have not yet faced each other this season.