Richardson, Ward Share POTW
OGDEN, Utah (Dec. 24, 2012) - The Big Sky Conference has selected its men’s basketball Players of the Week for games played Dec. 17-23. Weber State’s Jordan Richardson and Montana’s Mathias Ward, who both led their teams to two conference road wins, have been selected as the Co-Players of the Week.
Richardson, a 6-1 junior guard from Lewisville, Texas, averaged 14.5 points, four assists, two rebounds and a steal in road wins over Eastern Washington and Portland State. Richardson shot 70 percent from 3-point range (7-of-10) and 60 percent overall from the floor. He also had just two turnovers in 62 minutes of action.
In a 74-53 victory over Eastern Washington on Dec. 20, Richardson scored a season-high 15 points with three assists, three rebounds and a steal. He was 3-of-5 from 3-point range and 4-of-6 from the free-throw line. In a 73-69 overtime in over Portland State on Dec. 22, Richardson scored 14 points with five assists, a rebound and a steal Richardson made 4-of-5 from 3-point range.
Richardson leads the Big Sky in 3-point field-goal percentage at 55.9 percent. He also leads in assist to turnover ratio at 3.2.
Ward, a 6-7 senior forward from Gig Harbor, Wash., averaged 14 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists as the Grizzlies earned road wins over Northern Arizona and Sacramento State. In the two games, Ward shot .667 percent from the floor (10-of-15) and was 7-of-8 from free-throw line.
Ward scored 12 points with six rebounds, two assists and a block in a 62-56 win over Northern Arizona on Dec. 19. Ward gave the Grizzlies the lead for good with a 3-pointer with 4:44 left to play. Ward netted 16 points with five rebounds and an assists in Montana’s 61-60 win over Sacramento State on Dec. 21. Ward was 6-of-6 from the free-throw line, hitting all four of his attempts in the final 1:07 to help UM win its seventh straight league road game.
Others Nominated
Venky Jois, C, Eastern Washington: Averaged 13.7 points and 9.7 rebounds in three games.
Melvin Morgan, G, Idaho State: Averaged 15.5 points in two losses.
Xavier Blount, G, Montana State: Averaged 12.5 points and 6 rebounds in two losses.
Max Jacobsen, F, Northern Arizona: Averaged 13.3 points and 7.3 rebounds in three games.
Paul Garnica, G, Northern Colorado: Averaged 14.5 points per game in two wins.
Mitch Wilmer, C, North Dakota: Averaged 14 points and 8 rebounds in two losses.
Lateef McMullan, G, Portland State: Averaged 15 points and 5.5 assists in a win and a loss.
Konner Veteto, F, Sacramento State: Averaged 14.5 points and 9.5 rebounds in a win and a loss.
Jackson Stevenett, F, Southern Utah: Averaged 16.5 points and 7 rebounds in a win and a loss.