PSAC Men's Basketball Athletes of the Week/Weekly Report - 10
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Lock Haven, Pa. - Cheyney's Jason Sabb exploded for nearly 30 points per game in three contests last week to earn the PSAC East Athlete of the Week honor while Gannon's Darrell Blanton averaged a double-double to earn the West Athlete of the Week award.
East Stroudsburg's Whis Grant earns his second PSAC East Freshman of the Week honor of the year after helping the Warriors to a 2-0 week while Gannon's Adam Blazek posted a career high in rebounds for two straight games, helping him garner his third West Freshman of the Week honor of the season.
PSAC East Athlete of the Week
Jason Sabb, Cheyney
Junior, Guard
Philadelphia, Pa./South Philadelphia
Sabb averaged 29.7 points, including his second 30-point performance of the season, over three games last week for the Wolves. He also contributed 6.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists while making a blistering 67.3 percent of his shots from the field (35-for-52), including 3-of-8 from three-point range. He also dropped in 16-of-18 free throws (88.9 percent). In a narrow two-point loss to Millersville last Monday, Sabb dropped in 29 points and missed a double-double by just one rebound with nine boards in addition to five assists. He made 9-of-12 from the field and 11-of-12 from the free throw line. The Wolves fell to Kutztown on Wednesday but it was not on account of Sabb, who scored 32 points on 14-of-23 shooting and also recorded six rebounds and four assists. He then wrapped up the week by scoring 28 points on 12-of-17 shooting and hauling in four boards in a 92-84 win over Mansfield.
PSAC East Freshman of the Week
Whis Grant, East Stroudsburg
Freshman, Guard
Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh
Grant helped the Warriors to a pair of wins over Shippensburg and Millersville by averaging 15.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists while shooting 64.7 percent (11-for-17) from the floor. He made 4-of-8 from beyond the arc and 5-of-6 (83.3 percent) from the free throw line. On Wednesday, Grant scored 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting and added two rebounds and an assist in East Stroudsburg's 69-64 win over the Red Raiders. On Saturday, he scored 17 points and 5-of-9 shooting from the floor and also chipped in with three boards, five assists and two steals in an 88-76 win over the Marauders. He scored 12 of his points in the first half as ESU staked itself to an eight-point halftime lead. Grant, only committed two turnovers in 56 minutes of playing time.
PSAC West Athlete of the Week
Darrell Blanton, Gannon
Junior, Forward
Cleveland, Ohio/Euclid
Blanton picks up his second West Athlete of the Week honor of the season after averaging a double-double with 20.5 points and 10.5 rebounds in Gannon's 1-1 week. He made 16-of-28 from the field (57.1 percent) and 9-of-15 from the free throw line. His best game came in Gannon's one-point loss to Mercyhurst on Wednesday as he posted his sixth double-double of the season with 23 points and a season-high 14 rebounds. He then went for 18 points (on 8-of-13 shooting) and seven rebounds in Saturday's 81-63 win over Clarion. Blanton has now reached double-figure scoring in 15 of 16 games this season.
PSAC West Freshman of the Week
Adam Blazek, Gannon
Freshman, Guard
Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep
Blazek averaged 17.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 3.0 steals for the Golden Knights last week. He shot 48 percent from the field (12-for-25) and made 75 percent of his free throws (9-for-12). He recorded 21 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals in Wednesday's one-point loss to Mercyhurst. He then scored 13 points and added eight boards, a season-high six assists and four steals against Clarion on Saturday. His eight rebounds in both games were his season-high and he has now reached double-digit scoring 11 times on the season.
Team Notes
Bloomsburg
Bloomsburg remains atop the PSAC East standings despite losing to West Chester on Saturday. The Huskies are looking to win their first PSAC East title since the 2000-01 season ... With the Huskies win over Mansfield last week the team snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Mountaineers ... Senior Larry Wbster needs just 35 points to reach 1,000 for his career ... Webster also needs just 27 rebounds to move into 10th place on the school's all-time rebounding list. Webster is already the school's career leader in blocked shots with 159 ... In BU's win over Mansfield the Huskies out-rebounded the Mountaineers by 17, just one shy of the season-best mark for the Huskies.
California
The Vulcans took a split of league play last week, losing in the final second to Slippery Rock before cruising past Lock Haven … Leading the entire second half, Cal U suffered a 54-53 loss on Wednesday after The Rock made the game-winning basket with :00.1 second remaining in regulation … The Vulcans answered with their first road win since Nov. 20, defeating Lock Haven on Saturday, 68-51 … Senior Chad Tipton leads the team in scoring with 11.8 points/game after tying his season high of 19 points against the Bald Eagles … Cal U will play live on Pittsburgh CW Saturday, Jan. 28, when it hosts Mercyhurst on Alumni Day.
Cheyney
The Wolves win over Mansfield snapped an eight game skid … Cheyney converted a season high 33 of 39 free throws in the victory. Cheyney only committed four turnovers in the victory. The 92 points scored was a season high … In three games last week, the Wolves were 65-79 from the charity stripe … Jason Sabb led Cheyney in scoring all three games this week averaging 30 points per game … Brandon Baylor and Sabb have recorded double figures in all but one contest … Jerrod Johnson netted double figures in each of the three games this week … Anthony Juene netted a career high 17 points in the victory over Mansfield … Cheyney will host cross-town rival West Chester on Wednesday before traveling to Shippensburg on Saturday.
Clarion
Freshman guard Winfield Willis became the 7th rookie at Clarion since 1970 to score 300 points in a season (304) and the first since Terrance Vaughns in 2003 ... With a double-double Wednesday, Sr. F Paul McQueen record back-to-back double-doubles for the second time in his career. McQueen is also closing in on a couple of milestones and needs 48 points for 1,000 career points and 12 rebounds for 600 career boards ... The Golden Eagles must like close games, as 10 of their 18 this season have been decided by 7 points or less. Clarion is 7-3 in those games.
East Stroudsburg
ESU improved to 11-7 (7-5 PSAC) with two road wins this week, winning 88-76 at Millersville and 69-64 at Shippensburg … Preseason All-PSAC East juniors Terrance King and Duane Johnson led the way … King had career-high 26 points, 12 rebounds, 3 blocks and 2 steals at Millersville … Johnson had 13 points, 11 rebounds, 3 blocks and 3 steals (8 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3 steals in final 8 minutes) at Shippensburg … Top four scorers this season - Fr. G Whis Grant (13.9 ppg), King (12.2), Sr. G Russell Graham III (12.0) and Johnson (11.7) - were in double figures in both games and combined for 125 of ESU's 157 points (78.5 ppg) … Graham tied his career-high with 19 and Grant had 17 at Millersville … Grant has scored 10+ in 15 of 18 games as a freshman … King was 10-for-11 from the field at Millersville and is shooting 58.2 percent … Sr. F Eric Bryan, ESU's fifth starter, played in his 100th career game at Millersville … Johnson (766) and King (761) both went over 750 career points.
Edinboro
Edinboro will renew its rivalry with Mercyhurst on Wednesday, seeking the end to a two-game losing streak and also a two-game skid to the Lakers … The Fighting Scots played a pair of tough road contests this past week, dropping an eight-point decision at tenth-ranked IUP and then falling at Slippery Rock. In the latter game the Scots shot a season-low 30.2 percent from the floor … Clint Nicholson saw his streak of consecutive free throws made come to an end at 32 when he missed his first attempt at IUP. He would come up six free throws shy of the record of 38 … Cory Somerville, who began his career at SRU, went back and led the Scots with 19 points. That gives him 1,205 career points, including 852 at Edinboro … Two other former transfers are approaching 1,000 career points, as well. Nicholson has 905 career points and Sam Moore has 1,003 points … After ranking among the leading offensive teams in the country through 14 games the Scots have been held to 51 and 57 points in the last two games.
Gannon
Gannon split two games last week, losing 62-61 in the closing seconds at Mercyhurst and defeating Clarion 81-63 at home … The victory against Clarion was Gannon’s 13th consecutive home win against the Golden Eagles, who are 3-19 all-time at the Hammermill Center … Junior T.J. Wilson produced 20 points and nine rebounds against Clarion during his first career start after averaging 7.9 minutes per game prior to Saturday’s contest … Gannon shot 51.7 percent (30-58) from the field against Clarion, marking the first time in seven games the team had shot 50 percent since accomplishing the feat five times in the first nine contests … Wednesday’s one-point loss at Mercyhurst was Gannon's sixth defeat by four points or less and seventh by six points or less … The Golden Knights have suffered 12 losses by five points or less during the last two seasons.
IUP
The Crimson Hawks - currently 10th in the nation - went 1-1 last week, defeating Edinboro 59-51 at home on Wednesday before a 71-47 loss at Mercyhurst on Saturday … Both opponents entered each game in a tie for second place in the PSAC West, but even with the loss to the Lakers over the weekend, IUP remains in first place in the division … In the win over the Fighting Scots, Sr. G Julian Sanders scored a game-high 20 points and added eight rebounds while Sr. G Ashton Smith added 14 points … Smith went for 18 points in the loss to Mercyhurst, with Sanders adding 13 points.
Kutztown
Kutztown (11-5 overall, 8-4 PSAC) has now won seven in row, which is the longest winning streak since its 14-game unbeaten run to start the 2008-09 season … With Bloomsburg falling to West Chester on Saturday, KU draws within a game of first place in the Eastern Division … Its highest scoring output in over three years pushed KU to a 108-73 victory over visiting Millersville on Saturday … Kutztown is averaging 91.4 points per game in its latest winning streak. It is shooting 53.8 percent from the field while holding opponents to just over 70 points on 38 percent shooting … The Golden Bears are defeating their opponents by an average of 21.3 points as well … KU has four players scoring in double figures … Devon McBride leads the team at 20.3 ppg, closely followed by Nate Edwards at 19.4 … Eric Brennan chips in 15.8 per clip and is the team’s top rebounder at 9.3 … Micah Fraction rounds out the quartet at 13.8 ppg with a team-high 57 assists.
Lock Haven
Lock Haven is coming of its best three-game stretch of the season, but despite more consistent play, the Bald Eagles are still in search of the first win of the year … LHU is 0-15 overall and 0-12 in the PSAC. Last week’s two losses stretch The Haven’s losing streak to 34 games, the longest active streak in NCAA Division II (Division I Towson has lost 39 straight) … Freshman guard Terrell Johnson leads LHU in scoring with 13.2 points per game … Sophomore Anthony Baker has played in 13 of 15 games, without a start and averages 10.3 points off the bench.
Mansfield
Mansfield's road woes continued with two tough road loss at Bloomsburg and Cheyney ... The 75-72 loss snapped an 8-game winning streak against the Huskies ... The Mountaineers have now dropped all eight games away from Decker Gymnasium this season while winning 6-of-8 home games ... Mansfield's loss came despite the Mountaineers hitting 54.5% of their shots -- their best shooting week of the season ... Junior Chuck Harper has started the past three games after starting just twice in his first 11 games this year ... Harper, who scored a career-best 28 points against Cheyney, is averaging 19.3 points in his last three starts.
Mercyhurst
Mercyhurst put together a sweep this past week, defeating local rival Gannon, 62-61, and 10th-ranked Indiana (Pa.), 71-47 ... Against the Golden Knights, Steven Coleman made two free throws with 20 seconds to go and then the Lakers made a defensive stop to preserve the one-point victory...it is the third one-point Laker win in the all-time series ... Against IUP, Coleman scored a career-high 25 points on 9-10 shooting, including a 7-7 second half ... It is Hurst's first win over a Top 10 team since Dec. 9, 2006, when it beat Grand Valley State, 79-74 ... Mercyhurst now sits alone in second place in the Western Division at 9-3, one game behind the Crimson Hawks ... The Lakers hit the road for games at Edinboro and California (Pa.) this week.
Millersville
Anthony Coleman had an outstanding week, averaging 20.5 points and 3.5 assists in the two games. He has scored in double figures in four consecutive games and has averaged 20.5 during that stretch. Maybe more impressively, he’s shooting 61.2 percent from the field and 16-of-18 from the line. Coleman led Millersville in scoring in both games. He totaled 22 against East Stroudsburg—his second career 20-point game. He then scored 19 against Kutztown. He totaled seven assists to just one turnover in the week … Millersville blocked five shots against East Stroudsburg, giving the team five or more blocked shots in seven games … The team is averaging 4.7 blocks per game and Elijah Obade is averaging 2.4. Obade remains on pace to break Millersville’s single season blocked shots record of 63.
Shippensburg
Shippensburg has dropped five consecutive games, including the last four by a combined 14 points ... Seven of SU's 12 losses have been by five points or less ... Senior Will Royal averaged a double-double for the week ... SU remains one of the leading teams in the country for field-goal percentage ... Five players are averaging in double figures, including graduate guard Dane Lauber off the bench ... No members of the team are shooting less than 40 percent from the field ... Freshman Reggie Charles remains one of the leaders in the conference in assists per game.
Slippery Rock
Rock scored last-second win at California and blowout win vs. Edinboro last week to move into a tie for third place in the PSAC-West standings ... Rock have now won six of their last seven games ... SRU entered Saturday's game ranked second in the nation in rebounding margin (+13.1) ... Sr. G Devin Taylor was PSAC leader and ranked second nationally in individual rebounding (11.5 per game) ... The Rock now owns a 40-10 record in home games played under the direction of fourth-year head coach Kevin Reynolds … The Green and White are 8-2 in home games this winter … Reynolds now owns a 68-36 record as The Rock's head coach ... The Rock have now won four straight games and five of seven games played vs. Edinboro, which is coached by Greg Walcavich and under whom Reynolds served as an assistant coach in the 1995-96 season … Saturday's 14-point, 11-rebound “double-double” vs. Edinboro was Taylor's fifth in the last eight games and team-best eighth of the season.
West Chester
WCU picked up two league wins last week, including an upset over division-leading Bloomsburg on Saturday ... Jr. G Carl Johnson scored a career-high 20 points off the bench in the win over the Huskies ... That win opened up a two-game lead for the fourth and final playoff spot ... Johnson is averaging 14.2 ppg since the calendar turned to January ... West Chester's win over Bloomsburg came despite missing Lance McDowell, the Rams' leading scorer and rebounder ... Jr. G Jon Breeden did play against the Huskies, after missing three games to injury ... WCU's five league wins matches its season total from each of the past two campaigns ... West Chester has won each of its last three home games.
Previous 2011-12 Athletes of the Week
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