Purcell picks up second straight WCC Player of the Week

SAN BRUNO, Calif.– The West Coast Conference has named its Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for January 18, 2016.

Kalani Purcell, a 6-foot-2 junior forward from Hamilton, New Zealand, is the WCC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the second straight week. She finished the week of league play averaging a double-double and led BYU to a tie for first place in the conference standings with an upset win over the reigning WCC regular season champion, Gonzaga.

Purcell averaged 15.5 points, 13.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 3.5 steals per game while shooting 52.4 percent from the field, 33.3 percent from 3-point range and 53.3 percent from the free throw line. She had back-to-back double-doubles in the upset win over Gonzaga on Thursday night and in the win over Portland Saturday afternoon when she nearly posted a triple-double. 

Against the Bulldogs, Purcell tied her season high in points with 17 and pulled down a game-best 16 rebounds. She added two assists and one steal in the game. In the win over the Pilots, Purcell scored 14 points and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds for her eighth double-double of the year and the fourth in WCC action. She nearly had a triple-double from eight assists along with a career- and game-high six steals. Purcell also added one block in the win over Portland. 

For the week, Purcell totaled 31 points, 27 rebounds, 10 assists, seven steals and one block.

The Cougar women are home this week hosting LMU and Pepperdine on Thursday and Saturday, respectively.