UAA signs Nome star Christian Leckband

ANCHORAGE (May 10) – Another of the state’s top high school basketball stars has chosen to play for the Seawolves as Alaska Anchorage men’s basketball head coach Rusty Osborne announced Tuesday that Nome’s Christian Leckband has signed a National Letter of Intent for the 2011-12 campaign.

The 6-5, 185-pound forward was last year’s Alaska 3A Player of the Year and the Western Conference MVP after posting 22.9 points and 9.0 rebounds per game and shooting 53 percent from the field, 43 percent on three-pointers and 80 percent at the free-throw stripe.

 

Leckband helped the Nanooks to a 70-17 combined record and three State Tournament appearances over his three years as a varsity starter, including a current 40-game home winning streak. His sophomore and junior seasons included state runner-up finishes, and last year Leckband averaged 24.5 points against Class 4A competition, including 34 points against eventual state champ Bartlett.

 

 “Christian is a tremendous addition to our program,” said Osborne, who led UAA to a 24-10 record and an NCAA Second Round appearance last year. “Although he has had a lot of success already, we truly believe that his best days are ahead of him. He is a very good athlete who can shoot the ball, but also attack the basket. As he continues to mature physically and puts on weight and strength over the next few years, we expect him to develop into one of the better players in our conference. We cannot be more excited that he decided to stay home and join the Seawolf family.”

 

After spending his freshman season as the team’s cameraman, Leckband went on to start every game over the next three campaigns, averaging 14.0 points on 56 percent shooting. He tallied eight 30-point and seventeen 20-point performances at Nome, finishing with 1,056 career points.

 

Leckband becomes the first 2011-12 signee for the Seawolves, who lose three seniors – all starters – from last season’s Great Northwest Athletic Conference runner-up team. He is now the fourth Alaska 3A or 4A Player of the Year on the UAA roster, joining senior Lonnie Ridgeway (2007 3A, Heritage Christian), and sophomores Kyle Fossman (2010 3A, Haines) and Travis Thompson (2010 4A, Dimond).

--GoSeawolves.com--

 

Nate Sagan
Sports Information Director

University of Alaska Anchorage
3211 Providence Dr. / Anchorage, AK 99508
(907) 786-1295 / Fax: (907) 563-4565
GoSeawolves.com