PSAC Men's Basketball Athletes of the Week/Weekly Report - 14
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Lock Haven, Pa. - Kutztown's Eric Brennan and IUP's Ashton Smith both earn their second PSAC Athlete of the Week awards of the season after both led their teams to a pair of wins.
Mansfield's Joe Bell earns his third straight East Freshman of the Week award after averaging a double-double while Gannon's Adam Blazek earns his sixth weekly honor of the season - five Freshman of Week awards as well as an Athlete of the Week honor.
PSAC East Athlete of the Week
Eric Brennan, Kutztown
Senior, Forward
Chester, Pa./West Catholic
Brennan averaged 20.5 points and 10.5 rebounds to help lead Kutztown to a pair of wins, which moved the Golden Bears back into a tie with Bloomsburg for first place in the PSAC East with two games to go. Brennan made 13-of-22 shots from the field (59 percent), including 3-of-5 from three-point range, as well as 12-of-16 from the free throw line (75 percent). In Wednesday's 85-59 win over Cheyney, Brennan tallied his 10th double-double of the season as he finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds. He also blocked three shots and went 8-of-10 from charity stripe. In Saturday's 56-55 win over Bloomsburg, he dropped in a game-high 23 points, which were the most of his career with Kutztown, and also added eight rebounds. He made 8-of-14 from the floor, including 3-of-4 from three-point range, and 4-of-6 at the foul line.
PSAC East Freshman of the Week
Joe Bell, Mansfield
Freshman, Forward
Pottstown, Pa./Pottsgrove
Bell averaged a double-double with 24.0 points and 10.0 rebounds in Mansfield's 1-1 week to earn his seventh East Freshman of the Week honor of the season. He enjoyed an outstanding week of shooting from the floor as he made 20-of-30 shots as well as 8-of-13 from the free throw line and he also added 1.5 assists per game. Bell started his week with 14 points and nine rebounds in a loss to Bloomsburg on Wednesday. Then, in Saturday's 94-66 win over Millersville, Bell scored a career-high 34 points and pulled down 11 rebounds to help lead the Mountaineers to their first road win of the season. The 34 points are the third-most in a game by a PSAC player this season and the most points scored by a player at Mansfield since the 2007-08 campaign. Bell has scored in double figures in 15 straight games and in 20 of the last 21 games.
PSAC West Athlete of the Week
Ashton Smith, IUP
Senior, Guard
Scarborough, Ontario/West Hill Collegiate
Smith averaged 24.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists to help lead IUP to a pair of wins last week, which clinched the PSAC West title for the Crimson Hawks. Smith made 14-of-26 from the floor (58.3 percent), including 5-of-9 from three-point range (55.6 percent) and 15-of-16 from the free throw line (93.8 percent). He also committed just one turnover in 73 minutes of action. In Wednesday's 80-72 win over Edinboro, Smith scored 25 points and added three rebounds and two assists, going 7-of-11 from the field, 4-of-6 from beyond the arc and 7-of-8 from the charity stripe. In Saturday's 66-63 win over Slippery Rock, Smith scored 23 points and dished out a season-high eight assists. He also added four boards and went 7-of-15 from the floor and a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line.
PSAC West Freshman of the Week
Adam Blazek, Gannon
Freshman, Guard
Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep
Blazek, who was last week's West Athlete of the Week, earns his fifth Freshman of the Week award after another solid week for the Golden Knights. He averaged 14.0 points, 7.0 rebounds, 6.5 steals and 3.5 assists in Gannon's 1-1 week. He shot better from three-point range (4-of-7, 57.1 percent) than he did from inside the arc and also made 8-of-10 free throws. In last Wednesday's three-point loss to Mercyhurst, Blazek led all scorers with 18 points, including 12 in the second half as Gannon rallied back from a 17-point deficit in the final 11 minutes. He also added eight steals, seven rebounds and two assists against the Lakers. In Saturday's win over Lock Haven, Blazek finished with 10 points, seven boards, five assists and five steals. He now has 72 steals on the season and needs 15 more to tie the school's single-season record.
Team Notes
Bloomsburg
Senior Trevon Johnson scored his 1,000th career point in the Huskies win at Mansfield. He is the 25th player in school history to reach 1,000 career points ...Things have been slow in the free throw shooting area for the Huskies lately. In three of the last four games Bloomsburg has gone to the line less than 10 times ... Bloomsburg shot over 58 percent from the floor in a win over Mansfield. It was the Huskies second best shooting night of the season ... The Huskies win at Mansfield also snapped a four-game losing streak at Mansfield.
California
Cal U took sole possession of fourth place in the league standings last week with a road split against Slippery Rock and Mercyhurst … The Vulcans currently hold a one-game lead for the final playoff spot from the PSAC West with two games left in the regular season … Cal U has won four of its last five games (three on the road) … Cal U closes the home portion of its schedule on Wednesday against Clarion … In the first meeting this season, six Vulcans scored in double-figures to claim a 76-63 victory over the Golden Eagles … Cal U then finishes the regular season on Saturday at Edinboro after the Fighting Scots posted a last-minute victory earlier this year over the Vulcans
Cheyney
Cheyney snapped an eight game skid with a 69-59 victory at home over Shippensburg … In a pre-game ceremony the Wolves recognized the seniors on the squad playing their final game in Cope Hall … Brandon Baylor has scored double figures in each of the last five games … Cheyney launched 28 three-point attempts in their victory … It was the second highest total for three-point attempts of the season … Cheyney also went to the charity stripe a season low eight times but converted all eight attempts … The 59 points surrendered against Shippensburg was a season low.
Clarion
Senior forward Bud Teer became the 10th player under 24th year head coach Ron Righter to record 500 career rebounds Saturday. He has 508 and joins Paul McQueen (638) to give the Golden Eagles two teammates each with 500 rebounds for the 1st time since David Shearer and Allen Stevens in 2002 ... Freshman Winfield Willis now has 421 points, the 2nd most ever by a Clarion freshman behind only the 513 scored by the school's all-time leading scorer Kwame Morton ... Clarion finished 9-6 at Tippin Gym this season, the 41st straight winning season at home for the Golden Eagles.
East Stroudsburg
ESU (16-10, 12-8) secured its sixth PSAC Tournament trip in seven years with an 80-69 win over Millersville on Wednesday ... Warriors fell 71-65 at West Chester Saturday ... Fr. G Whis Grant (5-6 3's) set ESU's freshman record for 3-pointers with 49 and scored 19 points vs. Millersville ... Warriors were 12-21 from beyond the arc, tying their most makes vs. PSAC opponent since 2005 ... ESU led PSAC at 37.6 percent on 3's entering weekend but was just 1-9 at West Chester ... Grant (14.2 ppg) will likely be the 3rd freshman to lead ESU in scoring since 1974-75 and the first on a playoff team ... Jr. F Duane Johnson is #2 on team in scoring (12.2), rebounding (6.0), assists (65), steals (35) and blocks (19) ... Warriors - one of two schools along with IUP to make PSAC semifinals the last two years - play for postseason seeding this week, going to Bloomsburg Wednesday and hosting Cheyney Saturday.
Edinboro
Isaiah Prince continued his hot scoring pace with 27 points against IUP and 22 at Clarion. The junior guard has now scored 20-or-more points in six straight games, averaging 25.5 ppg. during that period … Edinboro shot 51.8 percent from the floor in its 83-63 win at Clarion, and is a perfect 7-0 when shooting 50 percent or better from the floor. The 83 points were also the most since scoring 92 points against Lock Haven on January 14, a span of ten games … Sam Moore scored a season-high 14 points at Clarion … Edinboro outrebounded IUP 37-30, marking the first time in six games the Fighting Scots outrebounded an opponent … Clint Nicholson is now 15 points shy of 1,000 points for his career, including time at Seton Hill and Urbana … The IUP loss marked Edinboro’s fifth straight setback at home. The last time the Fighting Scots lost five straight games at home was 1980-81.
Gannon
Gannon split a pair of games last week, losing against Mercyhurst (68-65) and rolling past Lock Haven (83-35) … The Golden Knights rallied from a 17-point deficit in the final 11 minutes of regulation against Mercyhurst, but saw a potential game-tying three-pointer go in and out at the buzzer … Gannon ended the week with a 50-point win against Lock Haven, the program’s largest margin of victory since defeating Penn State McKeesport 100-50 on January 15, 2007 … Lock Haven’s 35 points were the lowest scoring output by a Gannon opponent since the Golden Knights beat Fredonia State 64-33 at the Hammermill Center on January 22, 2002 … Redshirt junior Alvin Tucker scored a career-high 17 points against Lock Haven, shattering his previous season-high of four points … Freshman Adam Blazek has averaged 17.9 points, six rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.8 steals during the last 10 games.
IUP
The 17th-ranked Crimson Hawks had two big wins last week, clinching the number one seed in the PSAC West with a thrilling 66-63 victory over Slippery Rock on Saturday night … So. F Marcel Souberbielle’s three-pointer with 31 seconds left put IUP on top 64-61 and later adding a pair of free throws to put the Crimson Hawks on top by five … The Rock’s Devin Taylor then missed a chance at tying the game with less than five seconds on the clock as IUP got the clinching win … Three players reached double-figures led by Sr. G Ashton Smith’s 23 … He also added eight assists and is just 11 shy of tying IUP’s all-time career mark … On Wednesday IUP built a big first half lead en route to a 80-72 win at Edinboro … Smith scored 25 points while Sr. G Julian Sanders added 23 … IUP now sits at 17-3 in conference play and 20-4 overall.
Kutztown
Kutztown (16-8, 13-7) moved into first place in the East with a pair of wins last week … In the 85-59 victory over Cheyney, Nate Edwards scored a game-high 25 points … KU shot 56.1 percent from the field compared to 31.3 percent … Defensively, KU held Cheyney to 20 less points than when the two teams met at Keystone Arena earlier this season … In the dramatic 56-55 victory over Bloomsburg, junior guard Micah Fraction hit a buzzer-beater to win the game … KU held Bloomsburg to just 24 points in the second half to come back from as many as ten down.
Lock Haven
Lock Haven dropped both of its games last week on the road … The Bald Eagles are still winless, 0-23 on the season and are 0-20 in the PSAC … LHU has now lost 42 straight games dating back to last season … LHU is led in scoring by sophomore Anthony Baker and freshman Terrell Johnson, who average 11.6 and 11.1 points per game, respectively … The Bald Eagles will finish their season this week with two home games, as they host Indiana (Pa.) on Wednesday and Mercyhurst on Saturday.
Mansfield
After recording one of their worst performances of the season against a PSAC East opponent in a 81-60 loss to Bloomsburg, Mansfield bounced back with a 94-66 win at Millersville ... The win, highlighted by freshman Joe Bell's 34-point effort, was the first win on the road for the Mountaineers in 11 tries this season and snaps a 12-game road losing streak going back to a win over Bloomsburg late in the 2011 season ... The Mountaineers extended their winning streak over the Marauders to eight-straight games while the 94 points were the most scored on the road by a Mansfield team since a 104-93 win over Seton Hill in 2007.
Mercyhurst
Mercyhurst clinched a PSAC Tournament berth as it split two games last week, winning, 68-65, at Gannon on February 15, and losing 61-56 to California (Pa.) on February 18 ... At Gannon, Matt Lee scored 14 points in the first half and Steven Coleman recorded 12 second-half points as the Lakers held on for a three-point victory ... It gave ‘Hurst its first season sweep of Gannon since the 2006-07 campaign and only the third since the teams began playing twice a year in the 1987-88 season ... The Lakers took an 11-point lead early against Cal, but the Vulcans took the lead in the second half and held on at the MAC ... Luis Leao scored 15 points and blocked four shots ... With Clarion's loss to Edinboro Saturday night, ‘Hurst clinched a spot in the conference tournament ... With a win against Edinboro or Lock Haven in its final two regular season games, ‘Hurst can clinch home court in the first round of the PSAC Tournament.
Millersville
Millersville suffered two losses, which mathematically eliminated it from postseason contention … It marks the fourth consecutive year that Millersville has missed the postseason after reaching the PSAC Tournament in five of the previous seven years and in seven times in Fred Thompson’s first 10 seasons … Elijah Obade recorded two more double-doubles with 19 points and 11 rebounds at East Stroudsburg and 13 points and 11 rebounds against Mansfield. He averaged 16.0 points, 11.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game during the week. He now has 10 double-doubles and is one of only two players in the PSAC to average a double-double. He is tied for eighth in on the school’s single season blocked shots list and he is on pace to be the first double-digit rebounder since 1988 … Senior Mike Seibert enters his final two games ranked first in career free throw percentage. At 82.6 percent, he leads MU Hall of Famer and former PSAC East Player of the Year Lance Gelnett (82.0).
Shippensburg
Shippensburg dropped games to West Chester and Cheyney this week ... The Raiders continue to pace the PSAC in field-goal percentage ... Four players averaged double figures between the two games, with senior Will Royal averaging 12.0 pts., 5.5 reb. per game ... Freshman Sam Pygatt totaled 20 points in two games off the bench this week ... SU will host Millersville and Kutztown this week ... SU will honor its seniors before the game against the Golden Bears.
Slippery Rock
SRU needs one win in its final two games to assure itself of a third-place finish in the division standings, as well as clinch a second consecutive PSAC tournament berth and the third in Kevin Reynolds' four seasons as head coach ... Rock's postseason hopes are aided by the fact the games vs. Gannon and Clarion are both at home, where SRU is 10-3 this winter and 42-11 under Reynolds ... Rock had four-game win streak snapped by three-point loss last Saturday at #17 Indiana ... Streak matched the Green and White's longest of the season.
West Chester
West Chester continues to play some of the best basketball in the PSAC as they extended the conference's longest current win streak to six with a pair of wins over Shippensburg and East Stroudsburg ... WCU is now tied for third in the PSAC East and has won 9 of its last 10 contests ... WCU clinched a postseason berth for the first time since the 2008-09 campaign ... WCU's 12 conference wins are the most in school history ... Sr. C Lance McDowell scored his 1,500th career point - including his two junior college years at Delaware Tech.
Previous 2011-12 Athletes of the Week
2/13 - East Athlete: Lance McDowell, West Chester
East Freshman: Joe Bell, Mansfield
West Athlete: Adam Blazek, Gannon
West Freshman: Chaquille Pratt, Slippery Rock
2/6 - East Athlete: Duane Johnson, East Stroudsburg
East Freshman: Joe Bell, Mansfield
West Athlete: Isaiah Prince, Edinboro
West Freshman: Winfield Willis, Clarion
1/30 - East Athlete: Devon McBride, Kutztown
East Freshman: Whis Grant, East Stroudsburg
West Athlete: Matt Lee, Mercyhurst
West Freshman: Adam Blazek, Gannon
1/23 - East Athlete: Jason Sabb, Cheyney
East Freshman: Whis Grant, East Stroudsburg
West Athlete: Darrell Blanton, Gannon
West Freshman: Adam Blazek, Gannon
1/16 - East Athlete: Eric Brennan, Kutztown
East Freshman: Joe Bell, Mansfield
West Athlete: Julian Sanders, IUP
West Freshman: Callon Dailey, Mercyhurst
1/9 - East Athlete: Devon McBride, Kutztown
East Freshman: Corey Blake, West Chester
West Co-Athletes: Bryan Theriot, Edinboro & Devin Taylor, Slippery Rock
West Freshman: Winfield Willis, Clarion
1/4 - East Athlete: Dontahe Jordan, Bloomsburg
East Freshman: Joe Bell, Mansfield
West Athlete: Torrance Timothy, Slippery Rock
West Freshman: Adam Blazek, Gannon
12/20 - East Athlete: Terrance King, East Stroudsburg
East Freshman: Joe Bell, Mansfield
West Athlete: Matt Lee, Mercyhurst
West Freshman: Terrell Johnson, Lock Haven
12/12 - East Athlete: Nate Edwards, Kutztown
East Freshman: Joe Bell, Mansfield
West Athlete: Ashton Smith, IUP
West Freshman: Winfield Willis, Clarion
12/5 - East Athlete: Trevon Johnson, Bloomsburg
East Freshman: Jerrod Johnson, Cheyney
West Athlete: Darrell Blanton, Gannon
West Freshman: Winfield Willis, Clarion
11/28 - East Athlete: Lance McDowell, West Chester
East Freshman: Reggie Charles, Shippensburg
West Athlete: Devin Taylor, Slippery Rock
West Freshman: Adam Blazek, Gannon
11/21 - East Athlete: Ed Hall, Bloomsburg
East Freshman: Matt Tobin, East Stroudsburg
West Athlete: Julian Sanders, IUP
West Freshman: Jeremy Posey, California
11/14 - East Athlete: Micah Fraction, Kutztown
East Freshman: Whis Grant, East Stroudsburg
West Athlete: Winfield Willis, Clarion
West Freshman: Tynell Fortune, California