Trio Of Rainbow Warriors Gain All-Big West Honors

IRVINE, Calif. —The Big West Conference announced its men's basketball all-conference selections Monday as picked by the league coaches with a trio of Rainbow Warriors gaining recognition. JoVon McClanahan was named to the all-conference second team, while Noel Coleman and Kamaka Hepa earned honorable mention.

The trio have been instrumental in leading UH to a 22-win season while keeping the 'Bows in contention for a share of the Big West title all the way up until the final game of the regular season.

McClanahan enjoyed a breakthrough junior campaign for the Rainbow Warriors, The native Vallejo, Calf., led the team in scoring in Big West games averaging 13.5 ppg,.while also leading the team in overall games with 3.5 assists per game. The 5-10 guard helped UH get off to a 5-1 league start by scoring in double-digits in each of the first eight games of Big West play, including 23 points in the opener versus UC Davis. He also exploded for a career-high 27 points in a dramatic win over UC Irvine in UH's home finale.

Coleman, who earned second team honors last season as a sophomore, is the team's leading scorer for the second straight season (12.2 ppg). He's also taken the role of top defender (team-high 33 steals) and a workhorse who ranks second in the Big West in minutes per game (34.3). The native of Belgium also led the Big West in free throw percentage (.919) in league games. His best offensive game came when scored a season-high 25 points and took over late in a home win over Long Beach State.

Hepa, a graduate transfer and team captain, developed into one of the team's most consistent players, particularly in league play. The native of Alaska scored a game-high 29 points in UH's road win at Cal Poly on February 4 and along with his career-high 30 points versus Saint Francis on Dec. 11, owns the top two scoring games by Rainbow Warrior this year. Hepa leads the team in three-pointers (66) and three-point field goal percentage (.393), while also notching a team-high five double-doubles -- three of them coming in conference play. For the season, Hepa ranks second on the team in scoring (11.7), rebounding (6.4) and blocks (26).

Ajay Mitchellt of regular-season co-champion UC Santa Barbara took home Big West Player of the Year honors while UC Riverside's Mike Magpayo was tabbed as Coach of the Year.

UH now gets ready for the 2023 Hercules Tire Big West Championship, March 9-11, at The Dollar Loan Center in Henderson. Nev. The No. 5 seed Rainbow Warriors will open against No. 4 seed Cal State Fullerton in the quarterfinals on Thursday, March 9 at 2:30 p.m. PT/12:30 p.m. HT.

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Players Mentioned

#4 Noel Coleman: G; 6' 2"; Junior

#44 Kamaka Hepa: F; 6' 10"; Senior

#3 JoVon McClanahan: G; 5' 10"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#4 Noel Coleman
: 6' 2"; Junior
: G

#44 Kamaka Hepa
: 6' 10"; Senior
: F

#3 JoVon McClanahan
: 5' 10"; Junior
: G

Players Mentioned

#4 Noel Coleman

#44 Kamaka Hepa

#3 JoVon McClanahan

Players Mentioned

#4 Noel Coleman

#44 Kamaka Hepa

#3 JoVon McClanahan