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Northwest Notes March 22, 2023

| March 22, 2023 1:20 AM

Former Coeur d'Alene High standout Orlandi named WBCA NAIA Assistant Coach of the Year

ATLANTA — Lewis-Clark State women’s basketball associate head coach Caelyn Orlandi, who will be inducted in the LC State Athletics Hall of Fame in April and who helped guide this year’s Warriors team to the NAIA Round of 16, can now add WBCA NAIA Assistant Coach of the Year to her long list of accolades.

“This is such a great honor and so very much deserved,” LC State coach Brian Orr said. “Coach Orlandi is extremely dedicated to the coaching profession and both myself and our players are the beneficiaries of her commitment to excellence. Over the last decade as a player and now as a coach, I can't think of anyone who has made a bigger impact on our women's basketball program than Coach Orlandi. We are blessed to have her part of our Warrior family.”

Orlandi, the former Coeur d'Alene High standout, is the LC State leader in career assists (634), and ranks in the top 10 in multiple categories from her time as a player. In her sixth season on the bench, she is heavily involved in the team’s recruiting operation, scouting and day-to-day operations.

“I always hear about how a great coach can change your life, but what I think fails to be said is how much your players can change your life,” Orlandi said. “I have had the opportunity to coach some wonderful and truly special players in my six years here, and the relationships we have built and what I have learned from them is what makes this job so wonderful.

“Being part of the LC State women’s basketball coaching staff with Brian Orr has been such a privilege and the knowledge I have gained from him is invaluable,” Orlandi added. “I am looking forward to winning more games and making more memories with the team.”

LC State finished the season with a record of 30-4 for the fourth-most wins in program history. The Warriors earned a share of the regular-season Cascade Conference Championship and was victorious in the first two rounds of the NAIA Women’s Basketball Championship in Lewiston.

“I want to thank the WBCA for this award. The WBCA has done and continues to do wonderful things for the women’s basketball world, and to be honored by the association is incredibly special,” Orlandi said.

Zags' Timme named Naismith Trophy finalist

ATLANTA — Gonzaga’s Drew Timme was named one of four finalists for the Naismith Trophy on Tuesday.

The award is presented annually to the nation’s top men’s basketball player.

Timme was joined as a finalist by Purdue’s Zach Edey, Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis and Jalen Wilson of Kansas.