Washington Earns Second TIAA-CREF Student-Athlete of Week Award
1/3/2007 12:19:30 PM | Women's Basketball
DAVIDSON, N.C. -- Fresh off helping the Davidson women's basketball team continue its school record win streak with its ninth straight in a 58-48 road victory over College of Charleston on New Year's Day, senior point guard Tia Washington (Charlotte, N.C.) was honored with her second TIAA-CREF Student-Athlete of the Week award as announced by the Southern Conference today for the week ending on Jan. 3 for her excellent work on and off the court. Washington also won the honor on Dec. 13 and has earned the weekly award three times now in her career.
The native of Charlotte, N.C. is a three-time All-SoCon Academic All-Conference team member and has excelled in the classroom as well as on the court this year. She holds a 3.504 GPA and is majoring in sociology.
In the Wildcats only game of the week, Washington was one of two players to score in double figures at College of Charleston as she finished with 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting in 33 minutes of action. She also filled the stat sheet with four rebounds, two assists and one steal. With her two assists in the game, Washington has now dished out at least one or more assists in 46 straight contests dating back to Feb. 7, 2005. She ranks 4th in the league in assists per game (3.86) and paces the conference with a 1.80 assist/turnover ratio.
Washington helped Davidson take control of the game after leading 26-18 at halftime by starting the second half scoring eight of the Wildcats' first 16 points. She finished the half shooting 4-of-5 from the field and Davidson as a team hit 53.8 percent of its shots in the second stanza.
The senior point guard also helped to continue Davidson's dominance over the Cougars, improving to 11-1 under head coach Annette Watts and winning its 10th straight against them. The 'Cats have also won six straight now on CofC's home court and moved their all-time record to 17-4 against the Cougars.
During the 'Cats nine-game win streak, Washington is averaging nine points a game. She is shooting at a 54.2 percent clip from the field and has been just as good at the line, going 18-of-24 (75.0 percent). The senior has also had team highs of 38 assists and 19 steals during the nine-game stretch.
For the season, Washington is fourth on the squad with an 8.4 points per game average and has a team-high 54 assists in 14 games. She ranks sixth in the league with her 47.9 field goal percentage and is 3rd in program history with a career field goal percentage of 50.8.
The Wildcats are off to their best start ever at 12-2 and are 3-0 in league play for the first time since the 1998-99 season. In addition, their 6-1 road record is also a school-best to start a season. They have an RPI of 45th in the nation.
Davidson as a team ranks first or second in the SoCon in nearly every offensive and defensive category. Offensively, the Wildcats are second in scoring (71.8 ppg), while ranking first in field goal (44.4), free throw (74.5) and three-point (35.7) percentages. They also are tops in the league in assists per game (16.93) and assist/turnover ratio (0.98).
On the defensive side of the ball, Davidson is first in scoring (58.1 ppg), opponent field goal (37.4) and three-point (28.9) percentages. The Wildcats have forced an average of almost 22 turnovers a game, while pocketing the third-best steals per game average at 12.57.
Davidson also finds its self among the national leaders too. As of Dec. 31, they are ranked in the top-30 statistically in steals per game (18th) and assists per game (26th), while ranking just outside the top-50 in scoring (63rd). The Wildcats are ranked an even 50th in field goal percentage and are 34th in the nation in free throw percentage. On the defensive side of the court, the 'Cats are ranked 48th in points allowed per game and are 69th in opponent field goal percent.
Davidson looks to make it ten straight when it wraps up a current four-game road swing with a trip to Cullowhee, N.C. to face the Catamounts of Western Carolina. The Wildcats swept the two-game series last season by the identical score of 67-63 in both contests.
