JOHN LINDROOS
Dons basketball ramps up with West Coast Conference (WCC) matches, as both the men’s and women’s teams are on the hunt for top seeds in the conference.
The men’s team currently sits third in their conference behind the Saint Mary’s College Gaels and the Gonzaga University Bulldogs, with a 7-3 conference record, and a 17-6 overall record. The Dons went 5-3 in the month of January, with their latest win being an 81-69 home win over the University of San Diego on Jan. 25. Center and grad student Carlton Linguard Jr. led the team with 13 points, eight rebounds, and made three triples.
Senior guard Malik Thomas is having a career year, leading the WCC in points at 19.7 a game, in addition to 3.6 rebounds per game and 2.3 assists per game. His top performances include a career high 35 points on 11-16 shooting against the Loyola University Chicago Ramblers on Dec. 15 at the Fiserv Forum, home of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks. USF won 76-66. Thomas continued his strong play, recording two 34 point outings in an overtime win vs Santa Clara on Dec. 30, and in a loss at Washington State on Jan. 4.
Following this strong week, Thomas was named the United States Basketball Writers Association Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week.
In the Points in the Paint Podcast with Dave Flemming and Sean Farnham, released on Jan. 21, Thomas talked about what has contributed to his dominant season. “I dedicated this summer to changing my game, changing my lifestyle, my eating habits, my routines, and it just came with a lot of hard work and dedication,” he said. Thomas emphasized the importance of eating healthy, and thanked his girlfriend for providing him with home cooked meals. Thomas said, “Last year was a lot of door dashing for sure.”
Besides diet, Thomas added that he worked on pacing and footwork during the offseason, which has helped him slow down his game.
The Dons continue their WCC run facing Washington State University on the Hilltop on Feb. 1.
The women’s team is in the middle of the pack with a 10-10 overall record and a 7-4 conference record, placing them at sixth in the WCC standings. Their two latest games include conference wins over Oregon State University and the University of San Diego.
Against Oregon State (54-52) on Jan. 23, Senior guard Freja Werth led the scoring input with 20 points, along with four triples. Senior guard Luana Leite dished out nine assists and scored seven points. Werth followed up her strong performance with a career high of 26 points at San Diego on Jan 25. USF won 63-56. Werth adds onto her impressive season, leading the Dons with 16.3 points per game and leading the conference with a 92.6% free throw percentage on 4.1 attempts.
Their next two games consist of home games vs Loyola Marymount University on Jan. 30 and Santa Clara University on Feb. 1.
Editor-in-Chief: Jordan Premmer, Chief Copy Editor: Sophia McCrackin, Managing Editor: Jordan DelFiugo, News Editor: Deeya Gupta, Sports Editor: John Lindroos
