LACEY LOWDOWN

The biggest news in our weekly look at Kiwis in American college hoops is that Jack Salt has helped take Virginia Cavaliers to the Number 1 ranking in men’s basketball. The achievement comes despite Virginia slipping to their first Atlantic Coast Conference loss of the season when they went down in overtime 61-60 to Virginia Tech at the weekend. It’s the first time Virginia have been ranked No 1 since 1982

Tai Wynyard and Kentucky were No 1 in November 2016 but this is probably the first time a Kiwi has been a starter in a top ranked team.

Two other regular starters are Sam Timmins and Izayah Le’afa.

Le’afa dished a game high 5 assists and also scored 11 points (3/7 3PG) but Sacramento State Hornets slid to a third straight loss going down 92-76 at Montana State. The Hornets are 3-8 in Big Sky Conference play.

Timmins scored 4 points (2/2FG) and snared 4 rebounds but Washington Huskies lost a thriller in double overtime (97-94) to Oregon State. The Huskies are now 7-5 in the Pac 12 Conference.

There were also some very good performances amongst our top women.

St Mary’s Gaels made a major statement in the West Coast Conference. Not only did they defeat unbeaten Gonzaga 72-56 but also they achieved the victory at Gonzaga. Stella Beck was a major player in the game adding 13 points and 5 rebounds to a game high 9 assists as the Gaels moved to 9-5 in conference games.

Jacinta Beckley was within three points of a career best as she amassed 23 points (7/13FG, 8/8FT) as Seattle Redhawks beat Chicago State 72-60. With its 7-2 record Seattle are now second on the Western Athletic Conference ladder.

Brooke Blair bounced back in style from a poor midweek showing against Northern Colorado when she failed to score for the first time this season. Against North Dakota she rattled off a team high 19 points (6/11FG) for Idaho State Bengals as they won 68-55 to improve to 7-5 in the Big Sky Conference. The 19 points tally moved Blair past 300 points for the season at an average of 13.6ppg.

Despite a fine shooting performance from Tessa Boagni Cal State Northridge Matadors lost 59-51 at home to Long Beach State. Boagni scored a team high 19 points on the back of 7 from 10 from the field including 4 from 5 from distance. The Cantabrian also added 6 rebounds and 2 blocks. The Matadors are 6-5 in the Big West Conference after slipping to a second loss of the week going down 72-46 to UC Davis – 7 points and 7 rebounds for Boagni in that one.

Penina Davidson was one rebound shy of a double-double as Cal Berkeley Bears edged a thriller against Colorado winning 78-76. Davidson scored 10 points (4/9FG) and corralled nine rebounds, which included 5 offensive boards. She followed that with team high’s in rebounds (7) and blocks (3) as the Bears improved to 8-6 in Pac 12 Conference contests with an 84-73 win against Utah on Sunday.

Mary Goulding managed 10 points and 4 rebounds as Fordham Rams moved their Atlantic 10 Conference record to 10-2 with a 58-45 record against Davidson.

Also in the Atlantic 10 Tera Reed, who has been outstanding all season for Virginia Commonwealth University Rams, posted 27 points on 11 from 18 (61%) shooting against Duquesne – but it wasn’t enough with the Rams falling 80-71.

The Rams bounced back on Sunday outlasting St Bonaventure 77-75 in overtime and improving to 3-9 in the Atlantic 10 Conference. Reed filled the stats line with 6 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals in the win.

Krystal Leger-Walker recorded her first double-double (13 points, 11 rebounds) to help Northern Colorado Bears move to 10-3 in Big Sky Conference play with a narrow 71-69 overtime win against Weber State. The scores were locked at 60 points apiece after fourty minutes, the Bears securing the win courtesy of a triple with just 0.4 seconds left on the clock. Earlier Leger-Walker had tied the game in regulation with her third triple of the game.

Fresno State Bulldogs are now 9-4 in the Mountain West Conference after a 66-60 win at San Diego State. Katelin Noyer pulled down 5 boards to go with 7 points (3/5FG) for the Dogs. Fresno State head coach Jaime White was pleased with the efforts of the former Westlake centre, “I thought she had a good matchup tonight, she came in with poise and finished some shots.”

Both Tera Reed and Sam Waardenburg produced career best scoring efforts for their respective colleges on Wednesday (US time). Both are freshmen and both seem to be flourishing as their team’s head towards the business end of the season.

Reed has been outstanding all season for Virginia Commonwealth University Rams. In their latest outing Reed posted 27 points on 11 from 18 (61%) shooting but it wasn’t enough with the Rams falling 80-71 to second placed Duquesne – VCU now 2-9 in Atlantic 10 Conference play. It was the 18^th double-figure scoring effort of the season from the Westlake Girls alumni and her third 20+ points haul of the campaign.

Reed added 3 rebounds, 2 steals and a team high 6 assists for good measure.

The Waardenburg numbers aren’t as impressive as Reed’s but the former Rangitoto College forward played a major role for the Miami Hurricanes as they held off Wake Forrest to win 87-81 and move to 7-4 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Earning more and more trust from Miami head coach Jim Larranaga and his staff, Waardenburg played most of the second half in a tight, enthralling contest. The stretch four made three from three triples and three from four free throws when the game was in the balance. He finished with 12 points, three rebounds, an assist and a block.

Next week the fourth placed Hurricanes will cross swords with conference leaders and the No 2 ranked Virginia who of course have Jack Salt anchoring their stingy defence – that should be worth watching.

A pair of double-doubles, a career best, and performing in front of the largest crowd for a college basketball game this season are amongst the highlights of another action packed week in the States.

Tessa Boagni helped Cal State Northridge Matadors spring a surprise by ending UC Davis’ 18 game Big West Conference unbeaten run.

The Matadors (6-3) won 75-71 in overtime with Boagni posting her 16^th career double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds plus 3 steals.

 Stella Beck led all scorers with 19 points (8/10FG) as St Mary’s Gaels, after two straight losses, got back in the winners circle with a decisive 73-59 win at San Francisco. This was followed by a 66-57 win against San Diego – Beck prominent again with 15 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals. The two wins improve the Gaels to 8-4 in the West Coast Conference.

Seattle Redhawks claimed a 77-75 win against Utah Valley with the last shot of the game to move to 5-2 in the Western Athletic Conference. Senior guard Jacinta Beckley claimed 11 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and a brace of steals in the winning effort.

2016 Junior Tall Fern McKenna Dale posted 5 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists and a block as Brown University fell 88-55 to Ivy League champions Penn. The Bears are 1-5 in League play.

A fifth double-double of the season from Mary Goulding was not enough to get Fordham Rams the win as they were defeated 91-85 in a double overtime thriller at St Louis. The Cantabrian finished with a stats stuffing line of 18 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and a block. Also prominent, with 8 points and 5 rebounds, was 2017 Tall Fern Zara Jillings. Goulding scored 12 points and Jillings four as Fordham bounced back with a 76-64 win against Rhode Island to move to 9-2 in Atlantic 10 play.

Also filling the stats line was Northern Colorado Bears guard Krystal Leger-Walker. The Bears improved to 8-3 in the Big Sky Conference after a 78-63 win at Montana State with Leger-Walker contributing 5 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, a steal and a block for the Bears. Next up for Leger-Walker and the Bears is a home encounter with Brooke Blair and Idaho State Bengals.

In other good news for women’s basketball the Canterbury pair of Aimee Book and Esra McGoldrick will be heading to the States later this year on NCAA Division 1 basketball scholarships. 2016 Junior Tall Fern McGoldrick has committed to North Carolina State and will link up with the Wolfpack Women later in the year.

McGoldrick demonstrated her Division 1 potential with a strong performance for the New Zealand Premier team against the University of California Berkeley at North Shore Events Centre in August last year. The Canterbury forward scored 9 points and added 6 rebounds as the NZ Premier team went down 77-69.

McGoldrick joins a high profile programme with the Wolfpack currently ranked 23^rd in the Associated Press Poll issued on Monday on the back of a seven game winning streak in the strong Atlantic Coast Conference.

Book, daughter of former Tall Black Ed Book, is originally from Nelson but attended Middleton Grange School and played for Canterbury in 2017.

The shooting guard is heading to California State University Fullerton in June. CSU play in the Big West Conference the same conference as Cal State Northridge where former Canterbury standout Tessa Boagni is in her senior year.

Known as the Titans CSU are struggling a little this year, currently 7-14 overall but 2-6 in conference play.

The pair join the likes of Amy West (Liberty University) and Grace Vaofusi (University of Northern Colorado) committed to Division 1 basketball in 2018.

And to the men………..

From a Harbour rep player to playing in front of 27,083 fans – the rise of former Westlake standout Jack Salt continues.

In front of the largest crowd to watch a college basketball game this season, Salt and the Virginia Cavaliers emphasized their No 2 ranking in NCAA Division 1 with a 59-44 road win at the Carrier Dome against Syracuse on Saturday.

Salt chipped in with 6 points (3/3FG) and 6 rebounds with the Cavs now boasting an 11-0 record atop the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Also posting a big win were Sam Timmins and Washington Huskies as they defeated No 13 ranked Arizona 78-75 on the buzzer. Timmins posted 4 points and a team equal high 7 rebounds as the Huskies move to third spot on the Pac 12 Conference ladder with a 7-3 record.

Izayah Le’afa emerged with a career best 5 steals to go with 5 assists and a couple of points as Sacramento State Hornets (3-6 in Big Sky Conference) fell 74-54 to Eastern Washington. Le’afa sits third on the BSC assists list averaging 3.7 dimes per outing.

In more good news for New Zealand women’s basketball the Canterbury pair of Aimee Book and Esra McGoldrick will be heading to the States later this year on NCAA Division 1 basketball scholarships. 2016 Junior Tall Fern McGoldrick has committed to North Carolina State and will link up with the Wolfpack Women later in the year.

McGoldrick demonstrated her Division 1 potential with a strong performance for the New Zealand Premier team against the University of California Berkeley at North Shore Events Centre in August last year. The former Rangi Ruru School forward scored 9 points and added 6 rebounds as the NZ Premier team went down 77-69.

McGoldrick joins a high profile programme with the Wolfpack currently ranked 23^rd in the Associated Press Poll issued on Monday on the back of a seven game winning streak in the strong Atlantic Coast Conference.

Book, daughter of former Tall Black Ed Book, is originally from Nelson but attended Middleton Grange School and played for Canterbury in 2017.

Book also played for New Zealand at the FIBA Under 17 Oceania Championship in Guam in 2017.

The shooting guard is heading to California State University Fullerton in June. CSU play in the Big West Conference the same conference as Cal State Northridge where former Canterbury standout Tessa Boagni is in her senior year.

Known as the Titans CSU are struggling a little this year, currently 7-14 overall but just 2-6 in conference play.

The pair join the likes of Amy West (Liberty University) and Grace Vaofusi (University of Northern Colorado) committed to Division 1 basketball in 2018.

Close to fifty Kiwi women are currently playing college basketball in the States with 16 attending Division 1 universities. That number is likely to swell in 2018 and beyond.

It is a long way from playing at Westlake Boys High to stepping on court in front of 27,000 home fans but Jack Salt seems to be taking it in his stride.

The Virginia Cavaliers co-captain helped his No 2 ranked team to a 14th straight win.

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It was another busy week of college action with plenty of strong performances from our top players in the States. Many are playing at an elite level including Jack Salt at Virginia University.

Salt, the Cavaliers co-captain, made 7 points (3/3FG, 1/1FT) and snared 3 rebounds and a pair of blocks as the Cavaliers held off No 4 ranked Duke to win 65-63.

The win further strengthens the Cavaliers No 2 ranking and they are now unbeaten in the Atlantic Coast Conference with eight straight victories and overall have won 12 on the bounce – they are breathing down the neck of No 1 ranked Villanova.

Stella Beck, fresh from being named West Coast Conference Player of the Week following her career best 31 point last week, posted a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds but St Mary’s Gaels are now 6-4 in West Coast Conference play after a narrow 68-65 defeat at Portland.

Brooke Blair scored 19 points (7/13FG) but Idaho State Bengals fell 84-73 at Weber State and are now 4-4 in the Big Sky Conference.

Tessa Boagni scored 8 points and grabbed 12 boards as Cal State Northridge Matadors went down 56-47 at UC Irvine. The Matadors were outscored 17-7 in the last quarter as a three game winning streak came to an end – now 4-3 in Big West Conference fixtures.

Penina Davidson dropped 10 points and collected 7 rebounds as No 23 ranked Cal Berkeley Golden Bears thumped Arizona 63-39 but were then held to just 42 points by Arizona State losing 57-42. Davidson had 5 points and 8 rebounds in that one with the Bears now 6-4 in the Pac 12 Conference.

Mary Goulding, appearing to be fully recovered from a recent hand injury produced 15 points and 10 rebounds as Fordham Rams had a convincing 72-48 victory against St Bonaventure – the win was 600^th career win for Fordham coach Stephanie Gaitley. Fordham are now 8-1 in the Atlantic 10 Conference.

Izayah Le’afa came up with 7 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and a steal as Sacramento State Hornets finished a three game road stretch with a 71-61 win at Portland State. The victory improves the Hornets Big Sky Conference record to 3-5.

 Krystal Leger-Walker hit all three of her shots from beyond the arc but on her way to 11 points for Northern Colorado in the 79-71 loss to Idaho. However the Bears improved to 6-3 in Big Sky Conference play with a 68-62 victory against Eastern Washington – Leger Walker was busy in that one with 5 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals.

Katelin Noyer came off the bench to post 7 points for Fresno State Bulldogs in a dramatic 74-72 come from behind victory at Las Vegas – it doesn’t get much more dramatic than two threes being scored in the final 6.6 seconds to turn a four points deficit into a two points win. The Bulldogs have a 5-4 record in the Mountain West Conference after going down 60-52 at Utah State on Saturday – a couple of points and blocks plus a team high 6 rebounds for Noyer in the loss.

Harbour players enjoyed another good week in college basketball.

Brooke Blair and Tera Reed keep on scoring and Jack Salt and Matt Freeman keep Cavaliers and Sooners amongst the nations best.

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In the latest edition of Kiwi versus Kiwi the Wellington pair of Stella Beck (St Mary’s College Gaels) and Shalae Salmon (Brigham Young University Cougars) faced off in West Coast Conference action.

With both teams holding a 6-2 record the tie was a contest to determine second spot on the WCC standings at the mid point of the season and it was BYU that emerged the winners 63-54. BYU led by 20 points with four minutes to play and pretty much dominated proceedings throughout.

Beck, fresh from being named West Coast Conference Player of the Week scored the first points of the game for the Gaels and eventually finished with 10 points and 9 rebounds. Beck also added a brace of blocks and steals but her 6 turnovers contributed to the 22 that plagued the St Mary’s effort.

Salmon played important minutes – 23 in total – off the bench for BYU and contributed 4 points (2/4FG), 3 rebounds, a block and an assist.