Muse Named MW Defensive Player of the Year

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Abby Muse has been named the Defensive Player of the Year, the Mountain West announced, Sunday. She is the first Bronco to win the award since the team joined the conference in 2011.

Muse was one of four Boise State players recognized by the conference. Elodie Lalotte and Muse were both named to All-MW Honorable Mention team, while Dani Bayes and Natalie Pasco earned spots on the All-Freshman Team. As the winner of the Defensive Player of the Year honor, Muse earned a spot on the All-Defensive Team.

Muse is having a historic season for the Broncos. The Brentwood, Calif. native enters the MW Tournament ranked fifth nationally in blocked shots (89) and seventh in blocks per game (2.87), and became both the program's single-season block leader and career-block leader during the season. Her rim protection anchored the defense for the Broncos, who lead the league in opponent field goal percentage (36.9%) and opponent 3-point percentage (27.5%). Muse is currently ranked second in the MW in rebounds per game (8.4) and total rebounds (151), and needs 24 rebounds to become the Bronco single-season rebound leader.

Lalotte was named All-MW Honorable Mention by the MW, scoring 10.2 points per game on 51.5% shooting, both team-highs. The junior is ranked fifth in the MW in rebounds per game (7.1) and total rebounds (128). After notching career-highs in back-to-back games, Lalotte was named the MW Player of the Week on Nov. 21. The Paris, France native has scored 15 or more points seven times on the season.

Bayes was recognized by the conference after scoring 8.2 points per game while shooting 36.3% from deep. The Brisbane, Australia native, who was named the MW Freshman of the Week twice (Jan. 2 and Jan. 23), is ranked seventh in the conference in 3-pointers per game (1.5) and total 3-pointers (26). Bayes has scored in double figures 11 times on the year, including five games with 15 or more points. She notched a career-high 19 points against San Jose State on Dec. 31.

Pasco was also named to the All-Freshman Team. She was named the MW Freshman of the Week four times on the year (Nov. 21, Dec. 26, Feb. 6 and Feb. 20), the second most of any player in the conference. The Danville, Calif. native scored a career-high 29 points against Utah State, the most a MW freshman has scored in a conference game all season. Pasco has scored in double figures 12 times on the year, including four games scoring over 15 points. The freshman has hit three or more 3-pointers four times this year, including hitting seven against Eastern Washington, one short of a program record. Pasco is also consistent from the charity stripe, hitting 27 of her 29 attempts (93.1%) on the season.

The Broncos will kick off the Mountain West Women's Basketball Championship tonight at 8 p.m. MT. Boise State, who enters the tournament as the No. 6 seed, will face off against No. 11 Utah State. The game will be broadcast on the MW Network.

Players Mentioned

Dani Bayes

Elodie Lalotte

Abby Muse

Natalie Pasco

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