BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Coming off a pair of convincing victories to open the Great Northwest Athletic Conference slate, the Western Washington University men’s basketball team has been named as one of the first honorees in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) new National Team of the Week program.
The Vikings rolled to a 2-0 record last week, winning a pair of games by a combined 54 points. The impressive week started on Thursday with a 99-72 victory over Concordia in the GNAC opener, with junior guard Trey Drechsel leading the way with a 32-point, 17-rebound double-double.
Western added another dominating performance on Saturday by handing previously unbeaten and nationally-ranked No. 13 Western Oregon an 85-58 defeat.
In the two games the Vikings combined to shoot 58.5 percent from the field (72-for-123), including 44.4 percent from 3-point range (16-for-36) and dominated the boards with an 89-46 advantage in rebounding. Overall WWU averaged 92.0 points per game in the two games, while combining to outscore its opponents 184-130.
“I felt like our team found a good rhythm this weekend and I am hoping that our confidence grows with every practice and game. Staying healthy and maximizing our effort is a definite key for our group” said head coach Tony Dominguez, in his 6th year leading the program and 23rd overall at WWU. “We battled some early season injuries, but this team is very talented and as they get more repetitions as an entire group, I believe our confidence and overall play will continue to improve.”
Western Washington leads Division II in rebound margin (16.0), are 4th in field goal percentage (.531) and 8th in free throw percentage (.794), leading the GNAC in each category. The Vikings also lead the GNAC and ranked 12th nationally averaging 91.6 points per game.
The other recipients of NABC Team of the Week awards are Presbyterian (Division I), Wisconsin-Oshkosh (Division III) and Truett McConnell (NAIA).
About WWU Basketball:
One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, recording a 20-win season in seven of the last nine seasons. WWU is a six-time Great Northwest Athletic Conference champion and has appeared in the NCAA II Elite 8 three times. The Vikings won the 2011-12 NCAA Division II National Championship and advanced the following season to the NCAA II Final Four. Western is coming off a 2016-17 season where the program went 25-6, winning the GNAC regular season and conference championships title, and advanced to the NCAA Division II Championships as the No. 3 seed in the West Region. The program enters its 116th season, having combined for 1,463 victories and a .590 winning percentage.
— @WWUHoops —
