Pittsnogle Named CBA Player Of The Week

Pittsnogle Named CBA Player Of The Week
MetroNews Sports
Pittsburgh, Pa.

The Continental Basketball Association announced that Kevin Pittsnogle has been named the Player of the Week for the week of December 26 – January 1. This is a first for the Pittsburgh Xplosion franchise.

The West Virginia alum has been a steady force for the Xplosion early this season as they have been competitive every game but has been unable to capture a win until this week. Pittsnogle started the week off in Yakama with a 12 point, 6-rebound effort. Next for Pittsnogle was a 19 point, 10-rebound effort against Utah. Kevin next traveled to Butte where he put up 33 points in a 119-118 victory, the first for Pittsburgh this season. Pittsnogle hit the game winner for the Xplosion’s first win this season. In his final game of the week, Pittsnogle exploded for 42 points and 9 rebounds in a heart breaking 132-130 loss to conference leader Albany. Pittsnogle’s 42 points is the second most points scored in a game this season, behind only Desmond Ferguson’s 43 points on opening night against Utah.

Pittsnogle averaged 26.5 points and 8.3 rebounds over a four game span. He shot 89.3% (25/28) from the line and 40% (13/33) from behind the arc.

Other players receiving consideration were:

T.J. Thompson, Albany
David Bell, Butte
Malik Moore, Great Falls
Shaun Fountain, Indiana
Ray Cunningham, Minot
Harold Arceneaux, Utah
Ben Ebong, Yakama

CBA Facts
· The CBA had 13 NBA call-ups this season, giving the league 600 NBA call-ups since the league began keeping track in 1978.

· Currently, 11 NBA head coaches have either coached or played in the CBA. Included in that list are: Eric Musselman (Sacramento) Rick Carlisle (Indiana), Maurice Cheeks (Philadelphia), Bob Hill (Seattle), Phil Jackson (Los Angeles Lakers), Eddie Jordan (Washington), George Karl (Denver), Sam Mitchell (Toronto), Flip Saunders (Detroit), Jerry Sloan (Utah), and Terry Stotts (Milwaukee).

· There were 37 members of NBA coaching staffs this season that had ties to the CBA.

· 38 CBA alums were on 2005-06 NBA opening-night rosters.

· The average attendance for CBA games this season was 2,426 (192 games). The Yakama Sun Kings led the league with an average attendance of 3,824.

· The CBA is the oldest professional basketball league in the world, having recently completed its 60th anniversary season.
WVIAC Announces Players Of The Week
WVIAC
Princeton

MEN'S:
Chris Carey, Fairmont State, 6-4, Soph., G, Morgantown, WV/Shane Maynard, West Liberty State, 6-4, Jr., F, Beckley, WV: Carey averaged 27.5 points per game and was named to the all-tournament team as Fairmont State split a pair of games at the Glenville Orthopedics Classic...His 23 points paced FSU to a 104-94 upset over #11 Pfeiffer...Maynard was a key for West Liberty State in a pair of in-region victories over Pitt Johnstown and Mansfield...The Beckley junior averaged 28.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 3.0 steals per game...His season-high 41 points versus Pitt Johnstown helped the Toppers avenge an earlier loss to the Mountain Cats.

Other nominees: Ohio Valley's Chris LeBorious (27 points, 14 rebounds in loss to Division I Campbell), Glenville State's Chase Groves ( 24.3 ppg in three contests), Alderson-Broaddus' Stan Hall (22 points in loss at Virginia State), Pitt Johnstown's Dwight Hines (24.0 ppg in two games), Shepherd's Danley Shank (20.5 ppg in two contests), Wheeling Jesuit's Colin Howard ( 19.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg in two victories), and Charleston's Dustin Kinney (17 points, 11 rebounds in win over Chowan).

WOMEN'S:
Lena Kalvans, West Liberty State, 6-1, Sr., F, St. Petersburg, Russia/Allison Krischer, Pitt Johnstown, 5-7, Sr., G, Johnstown, PA: Kalvans averaged 26.5 points and 9.0 rebounds as West Liberty split a pair of contests at the Edinboro Classic...The senior forward was named to the all-tournament squad and hit on 20 of 33 field goals...Krischer was named the MVP of the Mountain Cat Tournament as UPJ downed Daeman and Bloomfield to claim the title...The senior guard averaged 21.5 points, 6.0 assists, and 5.5 rebounds in the victories.

Other nominees: Glenville State's Casey Taylor (22.3 points, 6.5 rebounds in four games), Charleston's Rachel Pike (12.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg in five victories), Seton Hill's Katie Lintner ( 12.4 points, 10.0 rebounds, two double-doubles in a pair of games), Shepherd's Danielle Costello (13 points, 10 rebounds in win over Columbia Union), West Virginia Wesleyan's Sarah Van Horn (21 points, 9 rebounds in loss to Gannon), and Alderson-Broaddus' Kim Nakamura (19 points in loss to District of Columbia).
Glenville Women Ranked No. 11 In D-II Poll
WVIAC
Princeton

USA TODAY ESPN Top 25 women's basketball poll, with first-place votes noted to the side, total points based on 25 points for first place through one point for 25th.

Rank Institution - First Place Votes Last Week's Rank Record Points

1. Henderson State University (Ark.) - 20 1 11-0 618
2. University of North Dakota - 3 4 17-1 579
3. Washburn University (Kan.) 5 10-1 544
4. Emporia State University (Mich.) 3 9-2 543
5. Southern Connecticut State University 6 12-0 524
6. Grand Valley State University (Kan.) 2 11-2 517
7. Florida Gulf Coast University - 1 8 16-0 472
8. Missouri Western State - 1 12 12-0 429
9. California State University, Chico 9 7-1 417
10. West Texas A&M University 10 11-2 347
11. Glenville State College (W. Va.) 7 8-2 344
12. Northern State University (S.D.) 13 11-2 332
13. Delta State University (Miss.) 11 10-2 313
14. Metropolitan State College (Colo.) 16 10-2 285
15. Stonehill College (Mass.) 15 11-2 283
16. University of South Dakota 23 13-1 225
17. Clayton State University (Ga.) 20 9-1 219
18. Northern Kentucky University 17 7-3 148
19. American International College (Mass.) 21 10-3 138
20. Wingate University (N.C.) 18 8-3 122
21. Bellarmine University (Ky.) 25 9-2 98
22. St.Cloud State University (Minn.) 24 11-3 92
23. Western Washington University 14 7-3 85
24. College Of Saint Rose (N.Y.) 22 10-3 70
25. Fort Valley State University (Ga.) 19 5-4 63

Dropped Out: None Dropped Out.

Others Receiving Votes: Lewis University (Ill.) - 59; Augustana College (S.D.) - 37; Holy Family University (Penn.) - 32; University Of California-San Diego - 30; Catawba College (N.C.) - 29; Central Washington University - 27; Franklin Pierce College (N.H.) - 18; Southern Illinois University Edwardsville - 18; Carson-Newman College (Tenn.) - 14; Regis University (Colo.) - 14; Anderson University (S.C.) - 9; Fairmont State University (W. Va.) - 9; Minnesota State University, Moorhead - 6; Pace University (N.Y.) - 4; University Of Nebraska, Kearney - 4; Bentley College (Mass.) - 3; Harding University (Ark.) - 2; Valdosta State University (Ga.) - 2; Florida Institute of Technology – 1.

The USA TODAY ESPN Board of Coaches is made up of 28 head coaches at Division II instituti ons. All are members of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). The 2006-07 board: Antonio Davis (St. Augustine College), Barbara Stevens (Bentley College), Brandon Schneider (Emporia State University), Denny Downing (Texas A&M University-Commerce), Gary Brown (Bluefield State College), Greg Bruce (Western Oregon Univ.), Jamie Pewinski (Lake Superior State), Jay Sparks (Columbus State), Jerry Olson (Oklahoma Panhandle State University), Jessica Smith (Univ. of New Haven), Joddie Gleason (Humboldt State University), Joe Frager (Southern Connecticut State), John Barnes (Michigan Tech), Karl Smesko (Florida Gulf Coast University), Katherine Pate (Belmont Abbey College), Kip Drown (CSU Pueblo), Kristin Trn (Shippensburg University), Linda Raunig (Regis University), Linden Weese (Eastern New Mexico), Lynn Plett (Lewis Universi ty), Michael McLaughlin (Holy Family University), Paul Fessler (Concordia University, St. Pauls), Sandra Rushing (Delta State University), Shannan Bergen (University of West Florida), Sherry Winn (University of Charleston), Tom Andersen (Chadron State College), Valecia Tedder (Francis Marion University), Vanessa Taylor (Johnson C. Smith University).

This Day In Mountaineer Sports History: Jan. 3
Jeffrey Mason
Morgantown

Jan. 3, 1952:The Mountaineers, led by 6-8 All-American senior center Mark Cecil Workman of Charleston, knocked off sixth-ranked New York University in The Big Apple 100-75. It was WVU’s largest margin of victory ever over a top 10 team and first road win over a ranked team in club history. Jim Sottile recorded West Virginia’s first triple double, as he scored 19, pulled down 10 rebounds and dished out 10 assists for Red Brown’s second Mountaineer squad (23-4).
This Day In Mountaineer Sports History: Jan. 2
Jeffrey Mason
Morgantown

January 2, 2006:
Freshman Steve Slaton broke Tony Dorsett’s 1977 Sugar Bowl rushing record (202 yards) with 26 carries for 204 yards and three touchdowns as the Mountaineers won their seventh consecutive game and upset eighth ranked Georgia 38-35 in the relocated Sugar Bowl in WVU-friendly Atlanta (where West Virginia has won four of five bowl games). Rich Rodriguez’s fifth squad (11-1) exploded to a 28-0 lead thanks to freshman quarterback Patrick White’s 197 yards of total offense (77 of which came on the ground) and a total team effort that resulted in 382 rushing yards. The Mountaineers withstood a Bulldog comeback and sealed the victory with punter Phil Brady’s 10-yard fake punt run on fourth-down-and-six at the Georgia 48 late in the fourth quarter.

Villanova Preview

By John Antonik for MSNsportsNET.com
January 2, 2007

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – No Allen Ray, no Randy Foye, no Kyle Lowry, no Jason Fraser. No problem for Villanova and its highly successful coach Jay Wright. The Wildcats are 10-2 without those four outstanding players – three of whom are on NBA rosters – and are coming off an 83-65 win over city rival Temple on Dec. 30.

	West Virginia players celebrate their 81-71 victory over No. 12 Connecticut last Saturday at the WVU Coliseum. All-Pro Photography/Allison Toffle

Six-seven forward Curtis Sumpter is back for the Wildcats after missing all of last season to a knee injury. The senior is averaging 19.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per game and is a candidate for Big East player of the year honors.

Senior guard Mike Nardi is averaging 14.8 points per game at one guard spot while 6-2 freshman Scottie Reynolds is averaging 8.1 points and 2.2 rebounds per game.

“They’re replaced those good players with some key recruits and I have a lot of respect for what a good player Mike Nardi has become, but Curtis Sumpter has been that type of 4-man that coaches dream of having,” said West Virginia coach John Beilein. “He shoots from 3, he rebounds, he defends and he does all the things you always look for a forward to do.”

The Wildcats are expected to start a pair of 6-8 players down low in senior forward Wil Sheridan and sophomore forward Dante Cunningham. Both are combining to average 15.7 points and 10.3 rebounds per game.

Wright is also getting 9.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game off the bench from 6-7 sophomore forward Shane Clark.

“Right now they are playing a similar style although they are a little bit longer so they probably might trap a little bit more,” Beilein said. “What Jay’s team will do is to try to keep us off balance; try to force turnovers.

“The key to last year’s game was we had nine turnovers against that pressure the whole night,” Beilein said. “That’s big that we don’t turn it over again. Unfortunately we don’t have that IQ for the game that we had last year right now but in the long run we’ll adapt.”

Villanova’s two losses this year have come against Xavier on Nov. 19 and at home against Drexel on Dec. 9. Villanova is 5-0 on the road this year including a 67-51 win at Oklahoma on Dec. 6.

West Virginia, meanwhile, broke into the Associated Press Top 25 this week after knocking off No. 12-rated Connecticut 81-71 at the WVU Coliseum last Saturday afternoon.

Senior forward Frank Young scored a season-high 22 points and Da’Sean Butler came off the bench to contribute 16 for the Mountaineers, now 11-1. Young (13.9 ppg.) and 6-8 sophomore forward Joe Alexander (12.6 ppg.) are the only two West Virginia players averaging double figures.

The Connecticut win last Saturday was the 16th time Coach John Beilein has topped a nationally ranked team at West Virginia (12 of those have come on the road).

“I saw a game as a fan that West Virginia had played down in Florida, I think it was Western Michigan, but I was watching them that game and I just said, ‘Wow.’ Potentially they are a better defensive team than last year and you as they get more comfortable with the system the pieces are there.

“The overall length and mobility of this team is scary and you know John is going to get them to play hard and smart; they’re going to be a real force in the Big East this year," Wright said.

West Virginia and Villanova have hooked up for some classic games in the past. Last year, West Virginia overcame a 15-point second-half deficit to knock off the No. 3-rated Wildcats 91-87 at Villanova.

“They are classics except we lose them,” said Wright. “We’ve had some great games and even before that when we started getting things going we had a great game at our place. We’ve had really contrasting styles and all of the games have come down to a battle of wills and both teams have to stick to what they do.”

Two years ago in the semifinals of the Big East tournament at Madison Square Garden, Mike Gansey hit two free throws with 0.2 seconds left on the clock to lift the Mountaineers to a 78-76 victory over the No. 19-rated Wildcats.

And the last time in Morgantown on Feb. 14, 2004, West Virginia outlasted Villanova 67-60 on Tyrone Sally’s game-high 20 points. This is the 36th time these two teams are meeting in all-time series play. West Virginia is 10-3 against Villanova in games played in Morgantown.

“I like when there isn’t a lot of people in here,” laughed Wright. “When we show up all those crazy West Virginia fans … they’re wild. This is one of the unique places to play in college basketball and it probably doesn’t get the credit it deserves.”

Tip off is slated for 7:30 pm and the game will be televised on ESPN Plus (Fox Sports Pittsburgh locally). Fans can also follow the game on Sirius Satellite Radio channel 121 or through the Internet on CSTV All Access.

Tickets still remain for the game and can be purchased by calling the Mountaineer Ticket Office toll-free at 1-800-WVU GAME or by logging onto WVUGAME.com.

Mr. MVP

By John Antonik for MSNsportsNET.com
January 2, 2007

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The person holding the Toyota Gator Bowl MVP trophy on the field at Alltel Stadium late Monday afternoon certainly earned it. And Patrick White is most likely a very sore man today.

	West Virginia's Patrick White displays his Toyota Gator Bowl MVP trophy he earned in the Mountaineers' 38-35 comeback victory over Georgia Tech Monday at Alltel Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. All-Pro Photography/Dale Sparks

“He’s a warrior,” said WVU assistant athletic trainer Tony Corley.

The admiration for what White endured Monday runs deep in the West Virginia program and starts with the man at the very top.

“Patrick White is swollen all over his body. He kind of willed us to victory,” said Mountaineer coach Rich Rodriguez, now 50-24 in six seasons at WVU. “We had some guys give some absolutely courageous performances – some of the best I’ve ever seen.”

White missed the Rutgers game with both a sprained ankle and turf toe suffered in the Pitt win on Nov. 11 and re-injured in the loss to South Florida. By halftime of yesterday’s Gator Bowl, White had re-re-injured his ankle, hurt his neck after absorbing a crushing hit and his throwing hand was swollen to the point that he was having trouble holding onto the football.

“I think he kind of got rolled up a little bit and he fought that off. He got hit on the hand and at the end he could hardly grip it. And then his neck got bent over a little and his neck was swelling up,” Rodriguez said. “The trainers checked him out and he just kept fighting through it. If you notice at the end we kept putting the ball in his hands.”

“I was hurting a lot, but I had to block it out. I had to play ball,” White said. “It makes me want to play harder — when I'm injured I get a little angry.”

Yeah, like a wounded tiger.

White carried four straight times and eight overall on West Virginia’s 5:02-eating drive to win the game. In between timeouts, White was getting medical treatment from teammate Steve Slaton, who was banged up himself with a deep thigh bruise that forced him to leave the game in the second quarter.

“At the end of the game Pat’s hand was swelling up. He took a shot on it and Steve was making him grip it during timeouts because he knew we were going to run it and he wanted to make sure he could grip the ball,” Rodriguez said. “Steve is in there shaking his hand saying, “Grip my hand.’ He was working like a trainer.”

At one point Rodriguez seriously considered removing his star quarterback.

“We were getting Jarrett (Brown) loose particularly because of the ankle,” Rodriguez said. “I know Pat pretty well and he’ll go through just about anything and when I asked him ‘are you OK?’ and he hesitates a little bit then that makes me nervous. He shook it off and once the adrenaline is going Pat is a tremendous competitor. He made some huge runs and throws for us.”

White was responsible for all three third-quarter touchdowns that turned what looked like a Georgia Tech runaway victory into a Mountaineer lead – all in a span of about seven minutes. After Tanard Choice’s 5-yard touchdown run gave the Yellow Jackets a 35-17 lead, White took over.

“When you've got Patrick White in the backfield,” Tech linebacker KaMichael Hall said, “there's a lot that can happen.

“The kid is tough,” Hall continued. “There were a couple times on the field you could hear him scream out or you see him limping, but he played the whole game. He ran around like there wasn't anything wrong with him and that's all heart.”

White fired a 57-yard touchdown pass to Tito Gonzales on a ‘freeze play’ that looked like something from a backyard two-hand-touch game; he found Brandon Myles in the corner of the end zone for 14 yards, and called his own number, weaving his way through the Georgia Tech defense for 15 yards and the go-ahead score with 5:57 left in the third quarter.

The game’s final drive was reminiscent of last year’s Sugar Bowl victory when White carried the ball right through the teeth of the Georgia defense, getting crucial first down after first down.

Against Georgia Tech, White had runs of 13, 12 and 9 yards to move the sticks and force Tech to burn all three of its timeouts. His final scramble covered 10 yards and consumed the remaining six seconds to preserve a 38-35 victory.

White was able to do this without the country’s best diversion in Slaton, a consensus All-America runner who gained 1,744 yards this year and finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy balloting. The star sophomore carried three times for 11 yards and caught two passes for 20 yards before heading to the sidelines. That meant the entire Georgia Tech defense was locked in on White and they still couldn’t stop him.

“Pat White is one of the best football players in America,” beamed Rodriguez.

White’s final stats read 22 carries for 145 yards and a touchdown and 9 of 15 passing for 131 yards and two scores. Those numbers pale in comparison to Georgia Tech quarterback Taylor Bennett’s surgical 19-of-29, 326-yard, three-TD performance.

One Georgia writer made note of Bennett’s gaudy passing numbers, mentioning that they were far superior to White’s. The difference, however, is that it was White holding the trophy at the end of the game.

Unless you’ve been out there -- or were out there -- you can’t fully appreciate the courage White displayed Monday afternoon getting all those yards and touchdowns.

He truly was the game’s most valuable player.



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