Week 4 of the regular season has come and gone. Man, we are 41 days away from WAC Vegas. That is crazy, right?
And as Seattle U head coach Chris Victor said yesterday on the podcast, “there is still a lot of basketball to be played.”
Victor is right. But, that doesn’t mean we can’t focus on the week that was. The Redhawks continued to win. ACU got its swag back, at least for a night. Jason Hooten and Jon Judkins hit some big time coaching milestones. UVU did something only one other team has done this season. CBU continued to play well. And Utah Tech welcomed back its starting point guard.
Oh, and did I mention that New Mexico State is still winless in WAC play? That is a crazy thought, in and of itself.
So, let’s get to a few thoughts on Week 4 around the WAC.
Grigsby’s Big Second Half Leads Redhawks to Big Win
Seattle U guard Riley Grigsby has been around the WAC for a long time. The 5th-year senior has also been putting on a clinic the past two weeks. Over his last four WAC games, Grigsby is averaging 23.0 points and 7.5 rebounds. In a pair of wins this week, Grigsby shot 65 percent from the field and had a career-high 33 points in Saturday’s win over Southern Utah.
In Saturday’s win, Grigsby went off in the second half. 24 of his 33 points came after halftime. And most of those came during a 6-8-minute stretch. Along with that, Grigsby did not attempt a free throw during that career night.
Grigsby’s big performance led Seattle U to a big win to remain unbeaten in WAC play. Seattle U is 16-4 overall and 7-0 in WAC play. The Redhawks have won eight straight and are a perfect 9-0 at home this season.
Seattle U was in a similar spot last season. The Redhawks opened WAC play with eight straight wins. Then, the road trip to GCU and New Mexico State brought them back to Earth. Will a road trip to Sam Houston and SFA this week result in a similar outcome?
Lots of talk surrounding the Redhawks right now. And for good reason.
Daniels, ACU Got Some Swag Back
ACU guard Damien Daniels admitted Saturday that he doesn’t like to be in front of the media. What Daniels does like is flexing after hitting a driving layup and drawing a foul. It is all part of getting some swag back, according to the senior guard.
Daniels and the Wildcats did that Saturday night at Moody Coliseum in a win over UT Arlington. Knocking down driving layups in transition, forcing scoring droughts, and knocking down shots. ACU played with more freedom and let their defense lead to offense. It was exactly what Brette Tanner has been waiting for.
Airion Simmons and Cam Steele were lights out from the perimeter in the second half. And Brette Tanner wearing sunglasses and sporting a beard appears to have given ACU its swag back.
Hooten, Judkins Reach Milestones
It took a minute for Sam Houston to get going on Saturday afternoon at Johnson Coliseum. Part of that was UTRGV guards Justin Johnson and Will Johnston looking unstoppable. And part of it was it took Sam Houston a moment to hit some shots.
However, once the Bearkats got going, the game was over. And with the 83-64 win over UTRGV, head coach Jason Hooten reached a milestone. Hooten picked up win No. 250 for his career. All 250 wins have come at Sam Houston over a 13-year span. Hooten has a .612 winning percentage and a career record of 250-158. Currently, the Bearkats are 15-5 overall and 5-3 in WAC play. Sam Houston also sits at 51 in the latest NET rankings.
250 and counting 🐐 @CoachJHoot pic.twitter.com/xBIOSaTEQH
— Sam Houston Men's Basketball (@BearkatsMBB) January 22, 2023
Along with Hooten, the all-time winningest collegiate coach in the state of Utah hit a milestone, too. Utah Tech head coach Jon Judkins won his 600th game on Saturday. Cam Gooden, Isaiah Pope and Noa Gonsalves each had a big night to help their coach reach the milestone. Judkins is now 600-302 for his career. And Judkins is just four wins shy of his 300th NCAA-era win at Utah Tech. Since becoming an NCAA institution, Judkins is 296-162. And in his full time at Utah Tech, Judkins is 316-174 overall.
What 600 wins looks like. Congrats Coach @JonJudkins1 🥳#UtahTechBlazers | #WACmbb | #WAChoops pic.twitter.com/Kwh9p5fYXj
— Utah Tech Men's Basketball (@UtahTechMBB) January 22, 2023
Other News and Notes from Around the WAC in Week 4
There were other things that happened in Week 4 that are newsworthy.
- Le’Tre Darthard, Trey Woodbury and Utah Valley did something only one other team has done this season. The Wolverines won at GCU Arena. Darthard had a game-high 25 points, Woodbury finished with 19 points and Utah Valley held off a late rally by GCU in the 76-74 win. Ray Harrison had a team-high 18 points in the loss. The only other team to beat GCU at GCU Arena this year was Loyola Marymount on Dec. 7.
- Cam Gooden returned for Utah Tech on Saturday night. And in his return, Gooden had 17 points and knocked down a trio of 3-pointers. Prior to Saturday, Gooden had missed the last five games due to a leg injury. It was a good time to come back as the Trailblazers beat New Mexico State for the first time in five tries.
- When the California Baptist men’s basketball team scores 70-plus points, they win. It’s a simple gesture. On Saturday, the Lancers improved to 7-1 when they score 70-plus points in a rout of Tarleton. The Lancers hit 13 3-pointers in the win to improve to 12-8 overall and 4-3 in WAC play.
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