DUKE’S FLAGG HEADLINES USBWA MEN’S NATIONAL WEEKLY HONORS

INDIANAPOLIS (USBWA) – The U.S. Basketball Writers Association has named five Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week for games of the week ending Sunday, Jan. 12.

For the 2024-25 season, the USBWA continues its national player of the week program that has been affiliated with the Oscar Robertson Trophy since the 2009-10 season. Prior to last season, the USBWA had recognized just one player each week.

Each Tuesday during the regular season, designated USBWA board members will select five standouts from the 31 Division I conference players of the week to be recognized. This week’s selections were chosen from a list of the conferences that named a player of the week on Monday.

Following are the five players selected for performances this past week:

AJ Clayton, Ohio (Mid-American Conference)
The senior forward scored his 1,000th career point and led the Bobcats to a 2-0 week and a 3-0 start to MAC play. Clayton averaged 29.0 points per game, while going 20-of-30 (.667) from the field, 13-of-18 (.722) from three and 5-of-8 (.625) from the line. He also averaged 5.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game. Clayton’s week started last Tuesday at Buffalo, where he led all scorers with 27 points, going 10-of-18 from the field, 4-of-8 from three and 3-of-4 from the line. He also added seven rebounds, three blocks and one steal in Ohio’s 88-77 road victory. Clayton returned to action on Saturday and picked up right where he left off, hitting a three two minutes into the game to record his 1,000th career point. Clayton scored 31 points, going 10-of-12 from the field, 9-of-10 from three and 2-of-4 from the line in the 108-70 win over NIU.

Cooper Flagg, Duke (Atlantic Coast Conference)
In wins against Pitt and Notre Dame, the freshman averaged 30.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.0 steal and 1.0 blocked shot, while shooting 18-of-25 (72%) from the field, 5-of-8 (62.5%) from behind the arc, and 20-of-23 (87%) from the free-throw line. Flagg broke the Duke and ACC freshman scoring records with 42 points against Notre Dame last Saturday, while adding seven assists, six rebounds and a steal in an 86-78 victory. He shot 11-of-14 from the field, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range, and connected on 16-of-17 free throws. Last Tuesday against Pitt, Flagg registered his sixth double-double of the season with 19 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, two blocked shots and a steal during a 76-47 win. He has earned the USBWA national honor for a second straight week.

Yaxel Lendeborg, UAB (American Athletic Conference)
Lendeborg led the Blazers to a pair of wins by averaging 23.5 points, 11.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists. Against Tulane last Tuesday, the senior scored 25 points while adding 13 rebounds and eight assists. Sunday at Florida Atlantic, Lendeborg added 22 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.

Issac McBride, Oral Roberts (The Summit League)
The ORU guard averaged 36.0 ppg, 3.5 apg and shot 60 percent from the floor as the Golden Eagles split a pair of Summit League home tilts. The Summit League Preseason Player of the Year scored a career-high 44 points and went 8-for-12 from 3-point range in a 110-96 loss to North Dakota State. His 44 points were also the second most scored by a Division I player in a game this season. In ORU’s 83-79 victory over North Dakota, McBride led all scorers with 28 points and finished 10-for-19 from the field.

Lamar Washington, Pacific (West Coast)
Washington propelled Pacific to a 95-94 overtime win at Washington State as he drilled a three-pointer at the buzzer to win the game, capping off his career-high 40-point night. Washington was 16-for-22 from the field and 4-for-6 from the three-point line. Washington followed up with a double-figure scoring performance Saturday against Oregon State.

Since the 1958-59 season, the USBWA has named a National Player of the Year. In 1998, the award was named in honor of the University of Cincinnati Hall of Famer and two-time USBWA Player of the Year Oscar Robertson. It is the nation’s oldest award and the only one named after a former player.

At the conclusion of the regular season, the USBWA will name finalists for the award, which is voted on by the entire membership. The winner of the award will be announced at the 2025 Men’s Final Four in San Antonio, Texas, with the formal presentation to follow at the annual USBWA Awards Luncheon hosted by the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis.

The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 800 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. It has selected an All-America team since the 1956-57 season. For more information on the USBWA and the Oscar Robertson Trophy, contact executive director Malcolm Moran at 814-574-1485.

2024-25 USBWA Men’s Weekly Honors
• Week ending Nov. 10: JaKobe Coles, Grand Canyon; Tyson Dunn, Buffalo; TY Johnson, UC Davis; Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton; Justice Shoats, Siena.
• Week ending Nov. 17: Abdi Bashir, Monmouth; Jaron Pierre, Jax State; Maxine Raynaud, Stanford; John Tonje, Wisconsin; Sonny Wilson, Toledo.
• Week ending Nov. 24: Mason Falslev, Utah State; Cooper Flagg, Duke; Chaz Lanier, Tennessee; Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa, Columbia; John Tonje, Wisconsin.
• Week ending Dec. 1: Johni Broome, Auburn; Chucky Hepburn, Louisville; Tyrese Hunter, Memphis; Trey Kaufman-Renn, Purdue; Javon Small, West Virginia.
• Week ending Dec. 8: Devin Haid, Central Connecticut; Tyler “Chip” Johnson, Mercer; Ian Schieffelin, Clemson; Sean Smith, Western Illinois; Sebastian Thomas, Rhode Island.
• Week ending Dec. 15: Lamont Butler, Kentucky; Tarence Guinyard, UT Martin; Jamichael Stillwell, Milwaukee; Taryn Todd, Arkansas State; Brice Williams, Nebraska.
• Week ending Dec. 22: Donovan Dent, New Mexico; Treysen Eaglestaff, North Dakota; Caden Pierce, Princeton; Erik Reynolds II, Saint Joseph’s; Bruce Thornton, Ohio State.
• Week ending Dec. 29: Eric Dailey Jr., UCLA; Mason Falslev, Utah State; Connor Kochera, Davidson; Ahmad Robinson, Mercer; Brice Williams, Nebraska.• Week ending Jan. 5: Leo Colimero, Queens; Melvin Council Jr., St. Bonaventure; Cooper Flagg, Duke; Chaz Lanier, Tennessee; Malik Thomas, San Francisco.
• Week ending Jan. 12: AJ Clayton, Ohio; Cooper Flagg, Duke; Yaxel Lendeborg, UAB; Issac McBride, Oral Roberts; Lamar Washington, Pacific.