Northwest Notes Feb. 23, 2021

Zags' Kispert named a Senior CLASS Award finalist

Gonzaga’s Corey Kispert was named one of 10 finalists for the 2020-21 Senior CLASS Award.

To be eligible for the award, student-athletes must be classified as NCAA Division I seniors and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.

The finalists were chosen by a selection committee from the list of 30 men’s candidates announced earlier in the season. Nationwide fan voting begins immediately to help select the winner, and fans are encouraged to submit votes online at the Senior CLASS Award website through March 22. Fan votes will be combined with those of the media and Division I head coaches to determine the winners. The Senior CLASS Award recipients will be announced during the NCAA Men’s Final Four.

To vote: http://www.seniorclassaward.com/vote/mens_basketball_2020-21/

Zags' Townsend selected as Senior CLASS Award finalist

Gonzaga senior guard Jill Townsend has been selected as one of 10 finalists nationwide for the women’s basketball 2020-21 Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, student-athletes must be classified as NCAA Division I seniors and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.

Townsend, the reigning WCC Player of the Year, currently leads the Zags in scoring at 13.2 points per contest shooting 48.0 percent from the floor and ranks third in rebounding at 4.9 per game.

Townsend has also excelled in the classroom working toward her B.A. in biology, and she has spent nearly 60 hours assisting the Spokane community.

WSU's Williams named Pac-12 Player of the Week

Washington State sophomore guard Noah Williams was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week after leading the Cougars to a big finish to their home schedule, sweeping Cal and Stanford on the weekend for the first time since 2011-12.

Playing without his running mate and the Cougs’ leading scorer, Isaac Bonton, Williams scored 31 points Thursday to lead the Cougs to an 82-51 victory over Cal. On Saturday, Williams scored 40 points in a triple-overtime 85-76, win over Stanford, the Cougs' first win over the Cardinal since 2015.

Williams' 40 points against the Cardinal was the most points scored by a Pac-12 player this season and the most scored in a conference game since 2016. His 72 combined points on the weekend marked the most scored over a weekend in program history surpassing Bennie Seltzer’s record of 68 set in 1993. He became just the fifth Coug all-time to score 30+ points in back-to-back games and the first since Seltzer.

Williams is averaging 14.5 points per game while shooting a team-best 41.7% from distance.

The Cougars close out their regularly scheduled games on the road at Arizona (Thursday) and Arizona State (Saturday).

After another sweep, Aiken repeats

as Big Sky Player of the Week

Eastern Washington junior Kim Aiken Jr. was named Big Sky Conference Player of the Week in men's basketball for the second straight week, and he also received the same honor by College Sports Madness.

Aiken averaged 24.5 points and 9.0 rebounds in twin 90-76 victories over Montana last week for EWU's first season sweep of the Grizzlies since 2003.

In the two games combined versus the Grizzlies, Aiken made 65.4 percent of his shots overall, including 7 of 11 from the 3-point stripe for 63.6 percent. He also made 8-of-10 free throws and had six steals, three assists and a pair of blocked shots.

Eastern, which closes the Big Sky regular season at home versus Idaho State on March 3 and 5, is atop the league standings with an 11-2 record.

Idaho's Bea earns Big Sky Player of the Week for second time this season

Idaho sophomore Beyonce Bea earned the Big Sky Conference Player of the Week honor in women's basketball for the second time this season.

In two wins over Portland State, Bea averaged 22 points and 11.5 rebounds per game to go along with 3.0 blocks, 3.0 assists, and one steal per game. She shot 53 percent from the field this week on 18-of-34 shooting.

The Washougal, Wash., native is the second leading scorer for the Vandals and second in the Big Sky on the season, averaging 16.5 points per game. Gabi Harrington is Idaho’s leading scorer at 16.8 points per game but is not ranked in the Big Sky statistical standings due to minimum game requirements.

Bea and the Vandals will hit the road this week to take on Montana State on Thursday at 5 p.m. and Saturday at 11 a.m. in Bozeman. Idaho currently sits at second place in the Big Sky standings (13-3) just behind Idaho State. The Bobcats are in third place, just behind the Vandals, at 11-3. There are just two weeks left in the regular season. The Big Sky conference tournament will begin on Monday, March 8, at Idaho Central Arena in Boise.

Boise State's Alston awarded conference honor

Boise State fifth-year senior Derrick Alston Jr. was named the Mountain West Player of the Week after leading Boise State back into first place in the conference standings.

Alston averaged 24.5 points per game in a sweep over Utah State last week.

Alston and the Broncos (18-4, 14-3 Mountain West) take on No. 25 San Diego State (17-4, 11-3 MW) on Thursday and Saturday in the final road trip of the regular season.