FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Birgitta Gray O: (406) 896-5917 E: birgitta.gray@msubillings.edu February 27, 2017 Record-breaking night earns Hanson Player of the Week MSUB Women’s Basketball on Facebook | MSUB Women’s Basketball on ISSUU | GNAC Release
MSUB’s Tiana Hanson finished her collegiate career as the GNAC’s No. 4 all-time in free-throw percentage.
A record-breaking night at the free-throw line earns MSUB’s Tiana Hanson GNAC Player of the Week honors. BILLINGS, Mont. – Senior Tiana Hanson finished her MSUB career with an outstanding final week as the Shepherd, Mont., native earned Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Week honors announced Monday. The 6-foot forward capped off her time in a Yellowjacket uniform with some of the best performances in her two seasons at MSU Billings. Over the course of the final three weeks and six conference games, including three against nationally-ranked opponents, Hanson averaged 23.5 points and 9.2 rebounds. She shot 44 for 78 from the field for 56.4 percent. On defense, she averaged 2.0 blocks and 1.8 steals. “It is great to see Tiana honored for her great play last week against CWU and NNU,” MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin said. “She has been an excellent leader both on and off the court for our team this season. The improvements she made from last year to this year were simply amazing.”
Hanson finished her career in the GNAC with two of her best games in a Yellowjacket uniform. Double and triple-teamed she fought for points in the paint, posting her seventh double-double of the season in the game against Central Washington. Heading into the week and knowing she was .1 percent behind the all-time record holder in career free-throw percentage at MSUB, Hanson missed just one shot at the free-throw line, 17-18, to push her ahead to become the alltime leader, including a 14 for 15 performance during Senior Night against Northwest Nazarene last Saturday. For her career at the free-throw line, Hanson was 228 for 263 recording a final 86.7 percent, .5 percent higher than Alira Carpenter (2006-09) at 86.2 percent. That number is also the fourth-highest in GNAC history. Last Thursday against Central Washington, Hanson shot 12 for 20 from the field for 28 points, one behind her careerhigh of 29. She also recorded career-highs of four steals and five blocks on defense and posted a double-double pulling in 11 rebounds. On Senior Night against Northwest Nazarene, Hanson was 5 for 8 from the field and shot 93.3 percent from the free-throw line, finishing 14 of 15 attempts. For the week, Hanson earned 53 points on 61.3 percent shooting, was 2-2 from 3-point territory and 17-18 from the free-throw line. She recorded four steals and seven blocks. At MSUB, Hanson amassed 657 points, 287 rebounds, and 59 assists. She shot 47.8 percent from the field, had 36 steals, and 47 blocks. Besides being a leader on the court for MSUB, Hanson carries a 4.0 cumulative grade point average in elementary education. This year, she led the academic all-GNAC team and became just the seventh woman in Yellowjacket women’s basketball history to be named to the CoSIDA Academic All-Region 8 team. This is Hanson’s first career Player of the Week honor and the final GNAC award for the 2016-17 women’s basketball season. The Yellowjackets ended their season with an overall record of 8-20 and 5-15 in the GNAC. --@MSUBSports | #JacketNation--