ELMHURST, Ill.- The Summit League announced today that Western Illinois junior point guard Emily Clemens is the 2016-17 Summit League women’s basketball Player of the Year. On the coaching side, Western’s JD Gravina is the Summit League women’s basketball Coach of the Year. It it his first time in his six seasons as head coach winning the award.
Clemens leads the league in points per game (19.2), assists per game (7.1) and total steals (73) while running the show for high powered WIU offense.
Gravina has steadily built a successful program and currently has a 97-86 overall record at Western.
Junior guard Morgan Blumer joins Clemens on the All-Summit League First team and is the Transfer of the Year after coming to Western from Florida Gulf Coast. Blumer averages 16.8 points per game and earlier this season she set the Leatherneck program record for three-pointers made in a single season.
Blumer is also on the All-Newcomer team with teammate and junior forward Olivia Braun who leads the Summit League in blocks with 85 this season.
Taylor Higginbotham (14.6 points per game and 5.5 rebounds per game) lands herself on the All-Summit League Second team.
The Leathernecks (23-6 overall and 13-3 in Summit League play) are Summit League regular season champions and own the number one seed in the Summit League tournament.
Western Illinois begins its quest for a tournament title on Saturday, March 4 at noon against Denver inside the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
