W&M News and Notes
- W&M and JMU meet for the 100th time on Saturday. It will also be the last game in the history of the Convocation Center, which opened in 1982. The Tribe has won five games in a row and 12 of the last 14 vs. the Dukes. Six of the last seven games between the teams have been decided by seven points or fewer, including two OT games.
- The Tribe won its 19th game on Thursday at Towson, which ranks 10th in program history. W&M owns nine 20-win seasons in school history and 20 wins would rank fourth in program lore.
- W&M sits in second place in the CAA standings at 11-5. It marks the seventh-straight season that the program claimed double-digit league victories. The Tribe became the fourth CAA program and only current league member to produce seven-straight seasons of 10 or more CAA wins. VCU holds the league record with 11-straight seasons (2002-12) followed by ODU's nine (2004-12) and George Mason's eight (1999-06). The Tribe won 11 CAA games for the sixth time in school history and the program record is 13 set in 1997-98.
- Defensively, the Tribe turned in one of its top performances over the last decade. W&M held Towson to just 27.4% shooting, which was the lowest in a CAA game this season and the worst for a Tribe league opponent since Drexel shot 24.1% in 2010. The 51 points were the fewest for a Tribe CAA foe on the road since 2014 when UNCW scored 50. On Thursday, W&M limited the Tigers to 0.82 points per possession. It was the Tribe's best defensive CAA effort since holding Towson to 0.80 in 2015. Defensively in league play, W&M ranks first in blocked shot rate (10.9), second in 2-point FG% (46.4), third in effective FG% (49.2) and field goal % (43.0) and fourth in points allowed (68.5).
- For a league-leading and W&M-record fourth time this season, senior
Nathan Knight was named the CAA Player of the Week on Monday. After tallying 28 points, seven rebounds and seven blocked shots vs. Drexel, he scored a season-high 33 points to go with 12 rebounds vs. Delaware. His seven career honors are also a program record.
- Knight was also selected as the Lute Olson National Player of the Week by CollegeInsider.com for his efforts last week. He was named to both the mid-season watch lists for the Luke Olson National Player of the Year and the Lou Henson Mid-Major National Player of the Year earlier this season.
- Offensively, W&M ranks 24th nationally in 2-point field goal % (54.1), 40th in effective field goal % (53.1), 52nd in field goal % (46.2) and 64th in free throw % (74.2).
- Knight moved up the CAA career records recently. He currently ranks eighth in CAA history in free throws made (530), 10th in blocked shots (216), 14th in scoring (2,085) and 15th in rebounding (942).
- Knight leads the country in double-doubles with 22. As of Feb. 20, he also tops the country in player efficiency rating (36.0), total defensive rebounds (235) and 20-point, 10-rebound double-doubles (11). Knight ranks seventh, among players with a 28% or higher usage, in offensive rating according to KenPom.com (115.2).
- On Feb. 13, Knight was one of 30 players named to the midseason list for the 2020 Citizen Naismith Trophy Men's Player of the Year presented by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. The 10 semifinalists will be announced on March 5, the finalists will be revealed on March 17 and the winner announced on April 5.
- For the second-straight season, Knight was selected one of 10 national finalists for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year presented by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Feb. 7. In 2019, Knight went on to be one of five finalists for the honor, which will be named in March.
- Knight added to his list of accolades on Feb. 5 being named one of 10 national finalists for the Senior CLASS Award, which recognizes excellence in community, classroom, character and competition. He is only the second Tribe player and first since Quinn McDowell '12 to be named a finalist for the prestigious honor.
- Knight is currently one of only two men's players in the country averaging 20 points and 10 rebounds per game this season. He would be the first W&M player since Bob Sherwood in 1968 to produce such a season and the first in the CAA since Kenny Sanders in 1988 to do so. He ranks 11th nationally in rebounding (10.9) and 16th in scoring (20.9).
- Freshman
Miguel Ayesa was a perfect 4-of-4 from 3 in the win at Delaware on Jan. 16. It tied a school record, which Ayesa equaled at Wofford as well. He is one of only two players in W&M history, along with Daniel Dixon '17, to have multiple games of four made 3's without a miss. In league play, he ranks 11th in the CAA at 40.7% (22-of-54) from 3.
- Knight and
Andy Van Vliet have been double trouble for Tribe opponents. They are one of only two pairs of teammates in the country averaging 13 points and eight rebounds per game. Knight and Van Vliet are also one of only four pairs of teammates in the country with at least nine double-doubles apiece. Van Vliet is 55th nationally at nine double-doubles and 78th in rebounding (8.7). They both tallied a double-double in the same game six times.
- Junior
Luke Loewe is enjoying a breakout season. He ranks second in CAA in 3-point % (42.4) and sixth in field goal % (52.9). According to KenPom.com, he is 33rd nationally in effective field goal % (62.6), 37th in true shooting % (64.2) and 3-point % in DI games (43.9). Loewe has more than doubled his scoring from last season to 10.6.
- W&M ranks sixth in the nation with nine road wins. The Tribe became the first program in CAA history to start 3-0 with all three wins on the road. The nine road wins are second in W&M annals, trailing only the 10 of the 2010 team.
- The university unveiled plans on Feb. 1 for a reimagined W&M Athletics Complex. The $57-million project includes a revitalize Kaplan Arena and a 36,000-square-foot Sports Performance Center, featuring a strength and conditioning area, a sports medicine space and practice facility. The majority of $41 million already committed was provided by leadership gifts from Katie Garrett Boehly '95 and Todd Boehly '96, as well as Jennifer Tepper Mackesy '91 and D. Scott Mackesy '91. Construction is expected to begin in fall 2020 and conclude in fall 2022.
- In 19 of its 29 games, the Tribe has outrebounded its opponent and W&M is 14-5 in those contests. The Tribe ranks second in the CAA and 63rd nationally in rebounding margin (+4.1). W&M ranks second in the CAA in defensive rebounding % (76.8) and defensive rebounds per game (27.9), which rank 27th and 36th in the country.
- The 19 wins for head coach
Dane Fischer and the Tribe are the fifth-most among programs with coaches in their first seasons, as Feb. 20. He is one of five first-year coaches with 19 or more wins this season. Jeff Goodman of Stadium rated Fischer seventh in his power rankings for national coach of the year in early January.
