May 6, 2009
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State head coach Beth Burns announced the addition Wednesday of guard Courtney Clements (Long Beach, Calif.) and center Malia Nahinu (Hayward, Calif.) to the Aztec basketball roster. The pair of sophomores transferred after playing one season at Arizona and will have three years of eligibility remaining at SDSU starting with the 2010-11 campaign.
"We are pleased to welcome Courtney, and her parents MarJean Clements and Reginald Fields, and Malia, and her mother Yvette Nahinu, to our Aztec family," Burns said. "Courtney and Malia are the first two Aztecs in our 2010 recruiting class, and will be ready to compete in the 2010-11 season."
A 6-0 guard, Courtney Clements was Arizona's second-leading scorer last season, averaging 10.2 points per outing. She was the team's top three-point threat (32 triples) and free-throw (88.9 percent) shooter and also added 3.5 rebounds a game and 26 steals to garner Pac-10 all-freshman accolades. Clements scored in double-figures in 11 of her final 13 contests, while starting 19 times.
"We had targeted Courtney as one of the top preps in 2007-08, and we are not surprised at all with her successes this past season as a college freshman," Burns said. "Courtney is very skilled; she can handle, score from face-up or the paint, runs the floor and gets on the glass. She has great size and physicality and will be able to get out and guard people. Most importantly, Courtney is driven - absolutely committed - to becoming a great player. She isn't afraid of work and will put the time in to reach her goals.
"Her competitiveness and skill set will challenge our team next season as she pushes us in practice, as well as enable Courtney to really improve her game and hit it hard when she puts on the Red and Black in 2010. With our starting backcourt (Quenese Davis and Jene' Morris) both being seniors next year, to add a guard of Courtney's caliber is very exciting for our program."
Clements teamed with current Aztec center Kalena Tutt at Millikan High School in Long Beach, Calif., as a senior, helping the team to a 28-5 overall record and a league title. She averaged 17.7 points and 12.2 rebounds for the Rams, under coach Lorene Morgan, en route to conference co-MVP, all-CIF and first-team Cal-Hi all-state honors. She was also tabbed an all-Southland pick by the Los Angeles Times.
"I really liked the coaching staff and (SDSU) just seemed like the right fit," Clements said. "I knew that what I wanted to accomplish, I can accomplish it at San Diego State."
Clements played her first two years of high school at Artesia High School in Lakewood, Calif., where she was a two-year starter and all-CIF selection. She competed during the summer as a prep for Finest Basketball Club and intends to major in sports medicine at San Diego State.
A 6-6 center, Malia Nahinu (pronounced nuh-HEE-noo) shot 62.5 percent from the field and a perfect 1.000 at the free-throw line at Arizona in 2008-09. In the Wildcats' final home game against Washington, she had a career-best 13 points, six rebounds, two blocks and a steal in only 16 minutes of action.
"As with Courtney, we had tracked Malia hard since our arrival at SDSU, mostly for the uniqueness she has in her game," Burns said. "Obviously her size, at nearly 6-6 gives us a dimension that we do not currently have. It is her face up and offensive skill - she is a pretty consistent 3-point shooter - that we feel will really mesh well with our young power `Bigs'. She can make you pay for a double team. Defensively, she will be able to use her length in the full court, and complement our pressure style with the ability to block shots.
"Malia is young (entering college at age 17) and we feel she has a tremendous upside. She will really benefit from a year of strength and conditioning and skill development, and will also help us in practice next season."
A four-year letterwinner at Moreau Catholic High in the Bay Area, Nahinu scored 1,615 points as a prep, ranking third all-time in school history. Her senior campaign she led the Mariners to a 25-3 record and a league championship, averaging 25 points, 12 rebounds and six blocked shots. Nahinu was a McDonald's All-America nominee, Hayward Area Athletic League Player of the Year and two-time Cal-Hi Sports all-state player in Division IV.
"SDSU was in my final two (choices) coming out of high school," Nahinu said. "When I decided (to transfer from Arizona), I remembered how much I loved the coaching staff at San Diego State, the basketball program and the (school's) location. Coach Burns is an awesome coach and person and it's a team that's on the rise."
Nahinu played club basketball for the East Bay Explosion and was a four-year honor roll member at Moreau Catholic. She plans on majoring in communications at SDSU.