Purdue’s Loyer headlines Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association has named five Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week for games of the week ending Sunday, Dec. 17.
For the 2023-24 season, the USBWA has expanded its national player of the week program that has been affiliated with the Oscar Robertson Trophy since the 2009-10 season. In past seasons, the USBWA has recognized just one player each week.
Each Tuesday during the regular season, designated USBWA board members will select five standouts from the 32 Division I conference players of the week to be recognized.
Following are the five players selected for performance this past week:
Tyler Cochran, Toledo (Mid-American Conference)
The 6-2 junior guard from Bolingbrook. Ill, exploded for a career-high 33 points and also racked up eight rebounds, five assists and four steals in Toledo’s 88-87 victory over Marshall last Wednesday in the Rockets’ lone game of the week but their third straight win. Cochran knocked down 13-of-16 shots (.813) from the field, 2-of-3 from three-point range and a perfect 5-of-5 from the free-throw line.
Kevin Cross, Tulane (American Athletic Conference)
Cross, a 6-8 senior forward from Little Rock, Ark., recorded back-to-back triple-doubles against Furman and Southern, becoming the first player to have a triple-double in consecutive games against Division I opponents in 15 years and joining Penny Hardaway as the only Division I players with consecutive 20-plus point triple-doubles since assists became official in 1984. Cross was also only the eighth Division I player to record a back-to-back triple-double. Cross tallied 25 points, 12 rebounds, 12 assists and a career-high six steals to help Tulane outlast Furman for a 117-110 victory in double overtime on Thursday. He also forced the first overtime by sinking three clutch free throws with under one second remaining to knot the score at 92. On Saturday, Cross posted 20 points, 11 assists and 10 boards in a 105-81 win over Southern. For the week, he averaged 22.5 points, 11.5 assists and 11.0 rebounds.
Fletcher Loyer, Purdue (Big Ten Conference)
The 6-4 sophomore guard from Fort Wayne, Ind., scored 27 points to go with four steals and three assists to lead Purdue to a 92-84 win over top-ranked Arizona and elevate the Boilermakers back to the top spot in the AP poll. Loyer was 11-for-18 from the field, including 5-for-9 from three-point range and his 27 points and four steals marked career highs.
Ian Martinez, Utah State (Mountain West Conference)
A 6-3 senior guard from Heredia, Costa Rica, Martinez averaged 24.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.0 steals while shooting 52.0 percent (13-for-25) from the field, 41.7 percent (5-of-12) from behind the arc and 81.0 percent (17-of-21) at the free throw line in two close non-conference wins. At Santa Clara, Martinez led the Aggies with a career-best 28 points in an 84-82 win before scoring 20 points to go with eight rebounds and five steals in a 54-53 win over San Francisco in Salt Lake City.
Mitchell Saxen, Saint Mary’s (West Coast Conference)
The 6-10 senior center from Seattle, Wash., nearly single-handedly willed the Gaels to victory over UNLV in the Jerry Colangelo Classic in Phoenix. With career highs in points (23) and rebounds (16), Saxen hit the game-winning layup as time expired in double OT to secure the third consecutive victory for the Gaels. Saxen scored all 10 of his team’s points in the second overtime.
Marquette’s Karlen headlines Ann Meyers Drysdale National Players of the Week
While the bulk of teams in the Associated Press women’s poll are affiliated with the Power 5 conferences meaning a lot of movement will be occurring once league races get under way with the arrival of the 2024 portion of the season schedule, quiet as it is now due to finals and less games, it still was not difficult to find standout performances from which to select the five USBWA Ann Meyers Drysdale National Players of the Week, the Tamika Catchings freshman award and the National Team of the Week for the period ending Sunday, Dec. 17.
Three national honorees came out of the Big East, one from the Sun Belt, the team of the week is affiliated with the Atlantic 10, and the SEC is represented with one national winner and the freshman honor.
The USBWA women’s awards, organized under Mel Greenberg, the USBWA Vice President for women’s basketball, are drawn from weekly conference honors as well as at-large additions.
For their performances in the past seven days, this week’s five Ann Meyers Drysdale honorees are Seton Hall guard Azana Baines, Marshall guard Breanna Campbell, Mississippi State center Jessika Carter, UConn guard Aubrey Griffin, and Marquette forward Liza Karlen.
The Tamika Catchings freshman award goes to LSU’s Mikaylah Williams, while VCU is the National Team of the Week.
Before noting the accomplishments, a quick congratulations to a past USBWA national coach of the year, Notre Dame’s Muffet McGraw, now retired, who had a statue unveiled in front of the Purcell Center prior to Sunday’s game between the Irish and Purdue.
Baines, a 6-1 graduate guard-forward out of Blackwood, N.J., who has previously played at Duke and Virginia Tech, led Seton Hall to a stunning upset at home in Walsh Gym of then-No. 23 UNLV, knocking the Rebels (then 9-0) out of the unbeaten column and on Monday out of the poll after a one-week stay. Barnes scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in a lopsided 84-54 victory. She currently leads her team with a 15.7 average and 6.5 rebounds.
Campbell, a 5-5 senior guard out of Largo, Fla., in a 3-0 week for Marshall (including two wins on the road), averaged 19 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 3.6 steals. Against Jacksonville, she scored 29 points. She leads to Thundering Herd in shooting from the field, 40-for-73 for .541 percent as well as shooting from deep 11-for-22 at .500, while she is third in scoring with a 14.9 average.
Carter, a 6-5 graduate center out of Waverly Hall, Ga., factored in a three-win week for Mississippi State averaging 21.6 points, 14.6 rebounds, and 3.6 steals. Her 15.2 average is second on the Bulldogs, while her 9.6 rebounding mark is tops.
Griffin, a 6-1 senior guard, had her best outing, coming off the bench on Saturday in a win over then-No. 18 Louisville at the Huskies’ second home in Hartford, scoring 25 points, shooting 9-for-11 from the field, with five rebounds and two assists. The Huskies, who have been riddled with injuries, won their third straight. The performance was above her average, 9.9 points, which is fourth, though technically third with Azzi Fudd, just above her, lost for the season with a knee injury. She is second in rebounding at 6.4 while also having 19 steals, which is second on the Huskies.
Karlen, a 6-2 forward out of St. Paul, Minn., in a game between two ranked Big East teams in a league opener kept Marquette unbeaten by beating then-No. 20 Creighton, 76-70, at home, scoring 25 points and grabbing 12 rebounds for her second double-double on the season. She helped the team break away from a 64-64 tie late in the game with two of the three straight baskets. The Golden Eagles are off to their best start in program history at 11-0, extended with a 99-91-win Sunday over App State as she shot 7-for-14 to score 24 points behind teammate Jordan King’s 29. On Monday, she was named the Big East player of the week.
In two games, Williams, a 6-0 freshman guard from Bossier City, La., had 26 points, shooting 11-for-15, and dealt six assists in a program record-setting 133-44 win over McNeese and on Sunday followed with 14 points and and five rebounds in an 81-36 rout of Northwestern State. The SEC Freshman of the Week is third in scoring on the team behind Angel Reese and DePaul transfer Aneesah Morrow with an 18.2 average with 4.6 rebounds.
Earning the team award, VCU completed a 2-0 week Sunday for the Rams’ seventh straight win (10-1), in the process at home in Richmond, taking down nearby Old Dominion (8-1) from the list of unbeaten teams in the nation. It’s the best start since 2013-14 and the 64-50 victory over the Lady Monarchs saw VCU overwhelm the nation’s leading defense from ODU, which had been allowing 46.1 points per game. Sarah Te-Biasu scored 13 points with three shots from deep, while Timaya Lewis-Eutsey. Earlier in the week, VCU beat Delaware 64-55 at home in the Siegel Center as Mary-Anna Asare scored 19 points, Te-Biasu scored 16, while Mykel Parham and Jennifer Ezeh each grabbed 10 rebounds, Ezeh completing a double-double with 10 points.
Bryant Smith of Manchester University (North Manchester, Ind.) and Mary Schleusner of Washington and Lee University (Lexington, Va.) were named the U.S. Basketball Writers Association Division III National Players of the Week for the week ending December 17.
Smith, a 6-0 junior guard from West Lafayette, Ind., scored the most points in the NCAA this season, regardless of division, as he led Manchester to a victory in its only game of the week. In the Spartans’ 102-78 win over Berea on Saturday, Smith scored a career-high 52 points (15-of-23 FG, 11-of-11 FT, 11-of-18 3FG), the second-highest total in school history, while adding five rebounds, an assist, and a steal. The 11 three-pointers made is also highest this season among all three NCAA divisions. For his efforts, Smith was also named the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Player of the Week.
Schleusner, a 6-1 sophomore forward from Charlotte, N.C., averaged a double-double in leading No. 15/17 (WBCA/D3hoops.com) Washington and Lee to a pair of victories at the TownePlace Suites Classic hosted by Oglethorpe. On Saturday, she scored 22 points (8-of-16 FG, 5-of-6 FT, 1-of-2 3FG), and added 12 rebounds, an assist, a steal, and three blocks as the Generals defeated Centre 76-72. Then, against host Oglethorpe on Sunday, Schleusner totaled 18 points (8-of-12 FG, 2-of-6 FT), 14 rebounds, three assists, a steal, and three blocks in her team’s 89-52 victory. For the week, she averaged 20.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 steals, and 3.0 blocks while shooting 57.1 percent (16-of-28) from the field, 58.3 percent (7-of-12) from the foul line, and 50.0 percent (1-of-2) from three-point range. For her efforts, Schleusner, who is currently second in NCAA Division III with 41 blocks, was also selected the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Player of the Week.
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