Wildcats Ryan Anderson Named USBWA National Player of the Week

By Francisco Romero

University of Arizona senior forward Ryan Anderson has been nothing but consistent throughout the 205-16 college basketball season.

Last week, his performance helped the Arizona Wildcats obtain a couple of road victories that are key for the Cats in their quest for a Pac-12 title.

The forward averaged 26.5 points and 13.5 rebounds per game while shooting 57.1 percent from the field and 21 of 28 at the free throw line in wins over the Cougars and Huskies. His 31 points and 12 rebounds at Washington State made him the first Wildcat to record a 30-point, 10-rebound performance since Derrick Williams achieved the feat against Duke in the Sweet 16 of the 2011 NCAA Tournament.

His performance earned him Pac-12 Conference Player of the Week as well as the United Stats Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) Player of the Week.

The Long Beach, California native was instrumental in his team’s win over the Huskies in Seattle with 22 points and 15 rebounds as the Wildcats swept the Washington schools twice in the same season for just the second time since the 2002-03 season. Anderson’s 15-rebound performance at Washington was his 12^th double-double of the season and third game of 15 rebounds this season.

Anderson’s conference player of the week honor was the second of his career. He earned ACC Rookie of the Week accolades as a freshman at Boston College in the 2011-12 season.

With the pair of victories on the road, the Arizona Wildcats have an overall record of 19-5 and 7-4 in the Pac-12.

The Wildcats return to McKale Center this weekend.   On Friday Arizona will face UCLA, while the Cats will host USC on Sunday.