Hoops Report: Moses looks marvelous; Griffin scores WNBL-high 33 points; Green hits five 3s for Regis; Williamson ranks among ACCAC FG% and assist leaders

Isaiah Moses

After stubbing his toe against the Tar Heels last week, Isaiah Moses of Anchorage kicked it into high gear and produced the finest two games of his young NCAA Division I career.

The UC Riverside sophomore guard posted career highs in points (22) and assists (6) Tuesday against Green Bay before canning a career-high five 3-pointers Wednesday against Montana State.

Last week, Moses fulfilled any Alaskan’s hoops dream by taking the court against ultimate blue blood North Carolina in Chapel Hill. He was held scoreless on 0-for-4 shooting in addition to having more turnovers (6) than assists (5) in a 77-52 loss.

That humbling experience no doubt drove his bounce back performance this week. Great players respond to adversity, not run from it.

In a 74-68 win over Green Bay, Moses had a hand in 11 points during a game-ending 22-16 run that helped UC Riverside break away from a 52-52 tie. He assisted on a 3 that gave his team a 60-52 lead. He also went 6-for-6 from the free-throw line in the final 1:02.

That was followed by a game against Montana State, which a week ago looked like a dream matchup for Alaska as it pitted two former Gatorade Players of the Year in Moses (2020) and former Colony star Patrick McMahon (2021).

Anchorage’s Isaiah Moses laced ’em up at the iconic Dean Dome. Photo by Keith Lucas

It’s a rarity to see a DI game featuring two Alaskans playing such predominent roles, but this game had it as Moses and McMahon both averaged double figures and worked their way into the starting lineup.

Unfortunately, the matchup didn’t happen.

McMahon was on crutches for his team’s 69-68 victory due to a recent right foot injury and did not play. The 6-foot-7 junior from Palmer had bagged double figures in three consecutive games for the first time in his career, capped by a 10-point performance against Cal-Berkeley.

Moses looked marvelous from the jump as he fueled a 10-4 lead behind a beautiful entry lob assist and 3-pointer. Later he assisted on a bucket to put the Highlanders ahead 29-28 at the end of the first half and then drilled a 3-pointer 11 seconds into the second half as the lead swelled to 32-28.

Moses’ fourth 3-pointer gave UC Riverside its final lead at 61-60 and his fifth trey came at the horn.

The former NJCAA All-American out of Dimond High raised his scoring average from 7.5 to 11.5 points with this two-game heater and improved his assist-to-turnover ratio to 25-11.

Kelsey Griffin

In Australia, former Chugiak High star Kelsey Griffin has enjoyed sensational success in the WNBL, winning four titles and a league MVP award since 2013.

But she did something new on Sunday, netting 33 points for her highest WNBL scoring game.

Griffin, 36, knocked down 12-of-19 shots from the field and 5-of-7 from the line.

This was the first game back for the 6-foot-2 captain after returning from a hamstring injury.

“Kelsey is a class act,” coach Kennedy Kereama told the Bendigo Times. “It was awesome to have her back on court and playing as brilliantly as she did.”

Pearle Green

At Regis University, Galena’s Pearle Green dropped in five 3s on her way to scoring 17 points – her first double-digit effort since Feb 12, 2022.

The former UAF standout who sat out last season came off the bench for Regis to knock down 6-of-10 shots in an 89-65 win over Point Loma in Denver.

Green hit 5-of-8 3s to go with three rebounds, three assists and two steals.

Two days later, she struggled with her stroke and went 0-of-8 from range to snap her 3-point shooting streak at 21 games.

In the Arizona Community College Athletic Association, Zach Williamson of Anchorage doesn’t take a ton of shots, but he makes a ton.

Zach Williamson

The 6-foot-4 sophomore guard for Pima ranks third in the conference with a .762 field goal percentage on 16-of-21 shooting in five games.

Williamson sank 5-of-7 shots for 10 points in 15 minutes in Tuesday’s 150-82 victory over Phoenix College.

The game before that the former South High standout pulled down a career-high 11 rebounds. He can score, crash the boards and run the floor.

Williamson has furnished seven assists in each of the last two games and ranks fourth in the ACCAC with 5.4 assists per game.