BYU hoopsters at the turn; WCC midseason honors


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All ten West Coast Conference teams are making the turn in their conference schedules. Each team has played every other team once, as all have played nine of their 18 league games.

At the midway point, BYU stands in a three-way tie (with Pepperdine and Santa Clara) for third place with a 5-4 conference record—the same mark the Cougars had after nine league games last season, when the WCC slate was unbalanced (BYU had not faced every conference foe during the first half of the conference slate).

Last season, BYU rebounded from a sluggish WCC front half to post an 8-1 mark in the back half and boost its at-large hopes heading into the conference tournament in Las Vegas, where the Cougars won two games and punched their NCAA tournament ticket despite a loss to Gonzaga in the conference tournament finals.

This season, particularly in light of a 77-74 loss at San Diego on the weekend, it appears that a repeat of 2014's resurgence will be required for BYU to retain its at-large aspirations. Saturday's setback at sub-.500 USD was undoubtedly damaging to the Cougars' postseason portfolio, pushing BYU to the very periphery of the bubble conversation with metrics that have BYU straining to remain within shouting distance of the final at-large candidates.

As of Monday, BYU's ESPN RPI stood at 59, its ESPN BPI came in at 37 and its Sagarin rating was 43; BYU's record against top 100 RPI teams is 3-5.

Last year, BYU's pre-Selection Sunday RPI checked in at 32, its season-ending BPI was 49 and its season-ending Sagarin rating was 52; its end-of-season record against top 100 RPI squads was 8-7.

BYU's 15-7 record through 22 games is actually two games better than its 22-game standard last season, when BYU rebounded from a 13-9 to mark to win ten of its next 11 games. In 2014, BYU entered Selection Sunday at 23-11 and earned a 10 seed in the NCAA tournament.

Last season, BYU had a few more marquee wins in its pocket (Stanford, Texas, ranked Gonzaga, St. Mary's twice), helping to balance some questionable in-league losses. This season, BYU again has a resume-boosting win over the Cardinal, but not much else in the news-making victory category, with only two regular-season shots at St. Mary's/Gonzaga remaining. A home win over the Gaels would be helpful, while a road win at the Zags would be most unexpected.

Do expect the Cougars to be competitive in every game they play. BYU's average margin of victory in its seven losses is a mere 4.6 points, with a large defeat margin of only seven points (in an 87-80 home loss to Gonzaga).

The difference between victory and defeat has been a handful of late plays at the end of every loss, underscoring the Cougars' frustration factor in a season filled with injury issues and resultant personnel and tactical modifications.

There is yet time for BYU to make a run, but the margin for error is as narrow as the Cougars' average margin of defeat. Any late-season surge must begin with home wins this weekend against San Francisco and Santa Clara, two teams BYU handled easily on the road earlier this month.

*******

The midway point of the conference campaign offers the opportunity to assess the league landscape and hand out some midseason honors.

Mirroring the awards that will be presented at the end of the season, here are my picks for individual and all-conference citations (Note: only conference stats are considered and listed) --

Player of the Year: Kevin Pangos, Gonzaga

Ranked in the WCC top ten in scoring (14.4 ppg), assists (4.9 apg), assist-to-turnover ratio (4.0-to-1), FG% (50.6) and 3PFG% (52.0), the senior from Canada is the engine who makes the 3rd-ranked Zags go.

In the Zags' game at BYU, the visitors trailed by six points in the second half when Pangos almost single-handedly keyed the run that put Gonzaga in front to stay--he's that kind of player.

Defensive Player of the Year: Gary Bell, Jr., Gonzaga

Bell doesn't have gaudy steal numbers, but Gonzaga's wings are defensive specialists, and Bell's presence on the perimeter helps make Gonzaga the conference's best defensive squad.

Bell is regularly deployed to guard the opponent's most productive guard, and is consistently up to the task of locking down dangerous perimeter players.

Newcomer of the Year: Kyle Wiltjer, Gonzaga

Wiltjer was a transfer redshirt in 2013-14, and like former Zag redshirt Kelly Olynyk, he used his year on the sidelines to refine his considerable shooting skills.

Wiltjer leads Gonzaga in scoring at 14.6 points per game in league play, on 50.5% FG and 41.9% 3PFG. At 6'10" and 240 pounds, Wiltjer blends big-man proportions with guard-like abilities.

Coach of the Year: Mark Few, Gonzaga

Not much needs to be said about a coach whose program continues to set every league standard, from recruiting, to visibility, to on-court performance and postseason credentials.

Few has his team pacing for a 13th WCC regular-season crown in the last 14 years, and a second NCAA tournament 1 seed in the last three seasons.

--

All-Conference Team

Kyle Collinsworth, BYU: 14th in scoring (12.3 ppg), 2nd in rebounding (9.3 rpg), 1st in assists (6.3 apg), 4th in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.9-to-1), 15th in FT% (76.2). Arguably the league's most impactful all-around player, Collinsworth has recorded two triple-doubles in nine conference games.

Tyler Haws, BYU: 1st in scoring (22.6 ppg), 14th in FG% (48.2), 5th in FT% (89.6). Haws will not defend his WCC Player of the Year honors, but is likely to end his BYU career as the school and conference's all-time scoring leader.

Przemek Karnowski, Gonzaga: "Big Shem" leads the WCC in FG% (73.4), while averaging 12 points and 5 rebounds per game in league play.

Kevin Pangos, Gonzaga: see above

Byron Wesley, Gonzaga: a fifth-year USC transfer, Wesley has had an impact on both ends of the floor; he is averaging 10 points and five rebounds per game in conference play, and is in the top 10 in steals per game.

Kyle Wiltjer, Gonzaga: see above

Stacy Davis, Pepperdine: 3rd in scoring (17.2 ppg), 6th in rebounding (6.2 rpg), 15th in FG% (46.6), 7th in FT% (87.1), 5th in blocked shots (1.3 bpg). A force whether down low or squaring up, Davis has the Waves in position for another top-half finish in the WCC.

Alec Wintering, Portland: 4th in scoring (15.3 ppg), 2nd in assists (5.6 apg), 7th in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.1-to-1), 9th in FT% (80.6), 2nd in 3PFG% (52.6), 10th in steals (1.2 spg). The Pilots have arguably underperformed a bit in conference play, but Portland had to deal with the early-slate of absence of Kevin Bailey and leaned on Wintering, who has become one of the most exciting players in the league. The diminutive Pilot point guard also has a couple of last-second game-winning three-pointers on his résumé.

Brad Waldow, St. Mary's: the Gaels' go-to guy, Waldow is second to Tyler Haws in scoring (19.1 ppg), 3rd in FG% (58.5) and leads the league in rebounding (9.4 rpg). Waldow has played more minutes than any other WCC player, and is extremely hard to guard with a single defender in the post.

Brandon Clark, Santa Clara: 6th in scoring (15.1 ppg), 8th in assists (3.6 apg), 8th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.7-to-1), 6th in FT% (88.1). Teammate Jared Brownridge may get a little more attention, and is a slightly better shooter (particularly from deep), but Clark is the most active player on the floor for the resurgent Broncos, who have won three straight league games at the turn. Clark leads his team in scoring, assists, steals, free throw attempts and makes.

--

All-Freshman Team

Silas Melson, Gonzaga: playing 19 minutes per game off the bench as the Zags' primary reserve wing, Melson is shooting 54% from the field.

Domantas Sabonis, Gonzaga: averaging 8 points and 8 rebounds per game, while coming off the bench; shooting 73.2 percent from the field, second to Karnowski.

Shawn Olden, Pepperdine: playing 32 minutes per game, averaging 11 points per game. Also top 15 in FT%.

Emmett Naar, St. Mary's: leads the league in 3PFG% (55.0), made a late triple that helped seal the Gaels' home win over BYU. Also top 10 in assists.

Devin Watson, San Francisco: averaging 12 points and 3 assists per game; top 15 in FT%, top 10 in steals.

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