HCA: Robert Franks named Pac-12 most improved player of the year

Washington State Junior Robert Franks was announced on Monday as the Pac-12 most improved player of the year. While this basketball season may not have been the best as a whole, the forward from Vancouver, Washington improved his game immensely.

Franks’ shooting has seen a great improvement from last season when he averaged 6.3 points per game to 17.4 this year. Most of that scoring came from him tripling his made shots from deep going from 19 threes last season to 64 this year while shooting .403 from behind the arc. Franks leads the team in points per game and finished the regular season ranked seventh in the conference.

He wasn’t all about shooting the ball himself this year however as he increased his assists from 24 last year to 58 this year. Franks shooting and sharing the ball allowed the Cougars to become the seventh team in conference history to make 300-plus threes in a season. They sit at 334 with the Pac-12 conference tournament remaining.

He was also second on the team and 15th in the conference in rebounds per game this year with 6.7. An improvement from his previous 3.3 RPG last season.

This improvement is not necessarily new to him as he has continuously shown progress in his game at Washington State. In the 29 games this season he has more than doubled his point total (245 to 505) and his made threes (25 to 64) from his previous two years combined.

Franks also was named to the All-Pac-12 honorable mention on Monday.

The Cougars look to finish this season off on a high note on Wednesday as they take on the 6th seeded Oregon Ducks at 8:30 pm. The game can be seen on Pac-12 Networks.

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Basketball:

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Washington State forward Robert Franks named Pac-12’s Most Improved, earns honorable mention | The Spokesman-Review
Franks became a full-time starter for the Cougars this season, doubling his minutes-per-game average from 16.4 as a sophomore to 32.7 as a junior. The Vancouver, Washington, native nearly tripled his scoring average, from 6.3 points last season to 17.4 this year, and grabbed 6.7 rebounds per game after mustering 3.3 in 2016-17.

2017-18 Pac-12 Men's Basketball All-Conference individual honors | Pac-12
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Football:

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Tennis:

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Washington State University tennis posted its 10th sweep of the season following a 7-0 victory at Boise State Monday. With the win, the Cougars improve to 14-1, the best start in program history. For the 13th time in 14 matches this season, the Cougars captured the opening doubles point.

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Soccer:

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Playing their first true exhibition of the spring season, the Cougar soccer team wasted little time asserting itself against the University of British Columbia as a goal in the seventh minute by Makamae Gomera-Stevens set the tone on a chilly March night in Martin Stadium.

Golf:

Cougars in Top Ten at Meadow Club Women's Collegiate - Washington State University
The first round of the Meadow Club Women's Collegiate concluded on Monday, with the WSU women's golf team sitting in eighth out of the 16-team field.