WESTERN WINNING: Western Oregon and Western Washington both remain undefeated heading into the third week of the regular season. The Wolves have picked up three wins to start their 2023-24 campaign, including a 50-33 victory over George Fox on Tuesday. They are set to play two more games this week against CCAA competition as they travel to Lacey for the SMU Tournament. Western Oregon will face Chico State on Friday and Sonoma State on Saturday.

The Western Oregon offense has been led by senior guard Cali McClave with an average of 16 points per game. She opened her week with 11 points, eight rebounds, five steals, three assists and a block in the win over George Fox. Meanwhile, younger sister and junior guard Ana McClave has been the top rebounding player for WOU, pulling down an average of nine boards per game.

Senior forward Brooke Walling led Western Washington to a perfect 2-0 start at the Vikings’ own WWU Veterans Day Classic. Walling was named the tournament MVP and the GNAC Player of the Week after averaging a double-double of 20.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per game against Cal State Dominguez Hills and Cal State LA. Walling had her biggest performance of the week against the Golden Eagles last Saturday, finishing with 26 points, 13 rebounds, six blocks, two steals and two assists while shooting 52.4% from the field.

The Vikings will travel to Azusa, Calif., this week for the Cougar Shootout on Friday and Saturday. They will face Cal State San Marcos to open the tournament before capping off the week against host Azusa Pacific on Saturday.

PLAYING IN THE PAVILION: Central Washington also got its week started early, facing Cal State LA on Tuesday in Ellensburg where CWU fell 90-77. The Wildcats have had an even start to the season going 3-3 through the opening stages of their non-conference schedule. They will remain home for the rest of the week to face Westmont on Saturday.

Sophomore guard Asher Cai leads not only the team but the GNAC with an average of 22 points per game and ranks second in the conference with 10.5 rebounds per contest. Cai led all players against the Golden Eagles with 28 points to go with eight rebounds and two assists while going 10 for 25 from the field and knocking down five 3-pointers.

BALLING IN BILLINGS: Montana State Billings has been one of the top teams in the GNAC through the start of non-conference play, going 4-1 to start the season, including four in a row. The Yellowjackets swept their trip to the GNAC/PacWest Crossover at Hawaii Pacific last week, defeating Hawaii Hilo 63-51 and claiming a 57-54 win over the host Sharks. This week sees MSUB face Rocky Mountain for an exhibition game on Wednesday followed by a Saturday tile at Minot State.

Senior forward Kola Bad Bear has provided an immediate boost for MSUB since transferring from Division I Montana State. Bad Bear leads the Yellowjackets and is tied for seventh in the GNAC with an average of 16 points per game while shooting 50.9% from the field. Junior forward Dyauni Boyce follows Bad Bear with 13.4 points per game and also leads the team with 1.6 steals per contest.

HOMECOURT ADVANTAGE: Northwest Nazarene picked up its first win of the season on Monday, defeating Cal Poly Humboldt 83-71 in Nampa. The Nighthawks had four players score in the double-digits led by junior Madeline Gebers with 21 points, including 5 for 7 from 3-point range. Gebers was followed by the three Clark sisters, Kendall, Emma, and Kate with 19, 15 and 10 points, respectively. The Nighthawks will be in familiar territory as they travel to Ellensburg to face Westmont on Friday in a neutral site contest before returning home to host Whitworth on Saturday.  

Gebers leads NNU on the season with 19.3 points per game and a .625 3-point percentage. Freshman Kendall Clark has had a strong start to her collegiate career, also averaging double-digit scoring with 13.3 points per game. Kendall also leads the team with a .577 field goal percentage and is third for NNU with 4.3 rebounds per contest.

FROZEN FACEOFF: After opening the regular season 2-1, Alaska Anchorage will host the ASRC/ConocoPhillips Great Alaska Shootout this week on Saturday and Sunday. The Seawolves will face one of the top teams in Division II to open the tournament as it takes on No. 4 Utah State on Saturday. On Sunday, UAA will face either Eastern Kentucky or the University of Alabama at Birmingham Blazers.

Junior guard Jazzpher Evans has lived up to her preseason all-conference selection and leads the Seawolves with 15.7 points per game while shooting 52.9% from the field. Evans was also named the MVP of the GNAC/PacWest Crossover in Hawaii after leading the team to a 2-0 performance at the tournament.

CALIFORNIA DREAMING: Seattle Pacific and Simon Fraser both hit the road for California to play in tournaments this week. The Falcons will compete in the Cougar Shootout in Azusa, Calif., where they will take on host Azusa Pacific on Friday and Cal State San Marcos on Saturday. The Red Leafs will head to Turlock, Calif., where they will face Cal State East Bay and host Stanislaus State in the 2023 Warrior Classic.

Seattle Pacific has been led by junior forward Olivia Mayer with an average of 14 points per game while shooting 51.9% from the field. Mayer also pulls down an average of 9.5 rebounds per game and leads the team with 5.5 defensive boards per contest.

The Red Leafs’ offense has been spearheaded by senior guard Jessica Wisotzki with 17.4 points per game. Wisotzki has also played a role on the boards, pulling in an average of five rebounds per contest while playing a team-leading 33.6 minutes per game.

TOURNAMENT TIME: Saint Martin’s will host its own tournament this week as it faces Sonoma State on Friday and Chico State on Saturday. The Saints are still looking for the first win of their young season after opening the non-conference slate against Westmont and Academy of Art last week. Sophomore forward Sarah Lamet has been the driving force in the SMU offense to start the year, ranking third in the GNAC with an average of 19.5 points per game. Lamet has also been one of the most efficient shooters in the conference to start the season, ranking third with a .613 field goal percentage.

THREE ON THE ROAD: Alaska is also looking to put itself in the win column for the first time this season and will have three opportunities to do so this week. The Nanooks open their week on Wednesday at Division I Southern Utah before heading to Salt Lake City for a pair of games against Westminster (Utah). Junior guard Destiny Reimers has been the leading scorer for UAF, ranking 19th in the GNAC with 11.6 points per game while senior forward Emma Wass is tied for fourth in the conference with nine rebounds per game.

Kola Bad Bear - Montana State Billings

A veteran transfer from Division I Montana State, Bad Bear figures to be among the best players in the GNAC this season and has set the tone through MSUB’s first five non-conference games. Bad Bear leads the Yellowjackets and ranks seventh in the conference with 16 points per game while shooting 50.9% from the field and pulling in an average of five rebounds per contest.

Bad Bear notched the first double-double of her MSUB career against Hawaii Hilo last Friday, finishing with 21 points and 11 rebounds to go along with a block and a steal. The Yellowjackets will hope to see many more performances like that down the line after being picked as regular season champions in the preseason coaches poll. The road to that ultimate goal continues on this week as Bad Bear and the Yellowjackets face Minot State on Saturday.

The WBCA Division II preseason rankings came out on Oct. 31 with Montana State Billings ranked No. 15 after being predicted to win the GNAC regular season title. Western Washington also received votes as it comes into the season on the back of its own championship.

The first D2SCS rankings came out on Nov. 14 with both the Vikings and Yellowjackets ranked in the Division II top 25. Western Washington led the way at No. 10 followed by Montana State Billings at No. 21. Four of the conference’s 10 teams made in appearance in the regional rankings, led by WWU at No. 1 with two first-place votes. Montana State Billings is No. 3 with two first-place votes of its own while No. 7 Alaska Anchorage and No. 9 Central Washington also made the top 10 in the west.

The 2023-24 GNAC Women’s Basketball Championships will be held March 7-9 at Nicholson Pavilion on the campus of Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Wash. The top-six teams in the final GNAC regular-season standings will advance to the single-elimination tournament. The winner of the event will earn the conference’s automatic berth into the NCAA West Region Championships.

 Points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.