Friday, March 10, 2023

PORTLAND, Ore. – Four First Team All-GNAC performers are also being considered among the best in the West with selection to the Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) Men’s Basketball All-West Region Team.

Seattle Pacific junior forward Shaw Anderson and Montana State Billings senior guard Carrington Wiggins received first-team selections finishing first and second in the GNAC in scoring this season. Western Oregon senior guard Cameron Cranston and MSUB senior forward Bilal Shabazz were both named to the second team. It is the first all-region selection for all four players.

Anderson finished the season as the conference’s leading scorer, averaging 20.1 points per game to help lead Seattle Pacific to a 17-11 overall record. He also ranked sixth in the GNAC with a .853 free-throw percentage and 10th with a .412 three-point percentage. Anderson finished with 12 games of 20 or more points, including a 32-point effort against Cal Poly Pomona on Nov. 12 and 29 points in the GNAC Championships against Northwest Nazarene on Mar. 12.

The GNAC Player of the Year, Wiggins is second in the GNAC in scoring at 17.9 points per game and helped lead Montana State Billings to its first NCAA West Regional berth since 2012. Wiggins ranks seventh among Division II players with a .921 free-throw percentage (117-127). He also leads the conference with 1.9 steals per game and ranks seventh with two three-pointers made per game. Wiggins has 12 games of 20 or more points on the season, topped by 29 points at Western Washington on Feb. 4.

Cranston finished third in the GNAC in scoring at 16.6 points per game as Western Oregon finished the season with a 12-14 record. The GNAC Preseason Player of the Year, Cranston ranked third in the GNAC with 33.5 minutes played per game and fifth with a .855 free-throw percentage. Cranston scored in double figures in 15 of his 19 games, paced by a 32-point performance at Montana State Billings on Feb. 9.

The GNAC Defensive Player of the Year, Shabazz leads the GNAC with 8.7 rebounds per game and ranks 10th with 12.9 points per game. He is one of two players to rank in the GNAC’s top 10 in both scoring and rebounding. Shabazz is second in the conference with 1.3 blocked shots per game and 10th with 1.8 three-pointers made per game. He also ranks 24th in Division II with 11 double-doubles on the season. Shabazz’s season ledger includes a 31-point, 10-rebound performance at Western Oregon on Feb. 9.

With their first team selections, Anderson and Wiggins are now eligible for consideration for the D2CCA Men’s Basketball All-America Team, which will be announced on Sunday, Mar. 19.