Sidelined for 10 games with an injury, Anchorage basketball player Alissa Pili returns to form

No sophomore slump for Anchorage’s Alissa Pili. Just a prolonged absence due to an ankle injury that kept her out of Southern Cal’s first 10 games of the women’s basketball season.

She’s back now, and how.

Pili led the Trojans to their first Pac-12 road sweep of the season last weekend, and Wednesday she claimed the conference’s Player of the Week award.

In victories over Washington and Washington State, Pili dropped in a combined 35 points on 46.2% shooting from the field. She added nine rebounds and was 10 of 11 from the free throw line.

Pili scored 17 points in a 63-54 win over the Washington Huskies on Friday for her first double-digit scoring effort of the season. Two days later, she scored 18 points in an 81-71 win over Washington State.

The games were her fifth and sixth of the season.

A 6-foot forward from Dimond High, Pili is a combative inside force with a soft outside shooting touch. She flourished in the Pac-12 as a true freshman last season, leading USC with 16.9 points and 8.0 rebound per game. She was the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and ranked No. 3 on ESPN’s list of the nation’s top freshmen.

Her sophomore season got off to a bumpy start because of the injury, but she appears to be back in form, which is good news for USC. The Trojans are 9-7 -- t5-5 without Pili and 4-2 with her.

Pili returned to action Jan. 15 during an 81-77 overtime victory over Washington State, which ranked 25th in the nation at the time. According to USC’s recap, Pili checked into the game, quickly drained a 3-pointer and then blocked a shot.

She’s averaging nearly 10 points through six games, including a five-minute appearance against Stanford on Jan. 24 when she again injured her ankle. She was back in the lineup the next week.