Men’s Basketball
TOP 10 TUESDAY: Reigning women’s basketball champ McGill returns to familiar No.1 ranking
Manny Diressa from the Ryerson Rams and Kate Pexman of the Calgary Dinos are the U SPORTS Male and Female Athletes of the Week for the period ending Jan. 21, 2018.
Diressa was unstoppable from the floor this week, collecting 77 points and 23 rebounds in a pair of Rams wins. To start the week, Diressa came up just shy of breaking the Ryerson and OUA scoring record (52) when he poured in a monstrous 50 points in Wednesday's win over York. Diressa also had 15 rebounds, four assists, three steals, and two blocks, while pouring in double digit connections from downtown (10-20 3PT%), in an all-around impressive performance. Two days later, Diressa followed up his career day by notching 27 points, eight rebounds, and three assists as the Rams defeated the Queen's Gaels. The fifth year guard now sits fifth in the U SPORTS scoring race, averaging 23.7 points per game this season.
MBB | And with that shot Ammanuel Diressa has a career-best 35 points on the night thus far. #weRrams #TameTheLions pic.twitter.com/5BBhbfNuI2
— Ryerson Rams (@ryersonrams) January 18, 2018
Playing a full 10 sets this weekend in Edmonton against the University of Alberta Pandas, third-year outsider hitter Pexman made a massive impact, helping the Calgary Dinos earn a split. On both Friday and Saturday night, the Dinos struggled early and found themselves in 2-0 holes, only to recover and force deciding sets. Pexman was key in both rallies, leading Calgary in kills during each game. In a 3-2 loss on Friday, Pexman collected 20 kills while contributing defensively with 18 digs – one off her season high. Saturday’s contest was the Calgary native’s top performance of the year as she notched a season-high 24 kills. Pexman also added 11 digs in the 3-2 win. Pexman’s totals this weekend move her into fourth in the U SPORTS rankings for kills per set at 3.87.
With 44 kills, including a season-high 24 on Saturday night, Kate Pexman is your ? Female Athlete of the Week!#GoDinos #WeAreAllDinos pic.twitter.com/uFLmIiMmKu
— UCalgary Dinos (@UCDinos) January 23, 2018
Male nominees:
- CW: Jordon Cooke, hockey, Saskatchewan
- OUA: Manny Diressa, basketball, Ryerson (Winner)
- RSEQ: Christopher Adu, basketball, UQAM
- AUS: Tyler Immel-Herron, swimming, Dalhousie
Female nominees:
- CW: Kate Pexman, volleyball, Calgary (Winner)
- OUA: Emma Pye, hockey, Waterloo
- RSEQ: Mara Marchizotti, basketball, Bishop’s
- AUS: Kiera Rigby, basketball, UPEI
- Player bios courtesy U SPORTS member conferences