Men's Basketball

PSAC Men's Basketball Athletes of the Week - 11

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. - The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference has announced its Men’s Basketball Athletes of the Week. In the East, East Stroudsburg's Nasir Griffin  (Athlete of the Week) and Bloomsburg's Matt Bengel (Defensive Athlete of the Week) were honored. In the West, Clarion's Trey Nelson (Athlete) and Edinboro's Cenker Evran (Defensive) were selected.

Eastern Division Athlete of the Week
 
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Nasir Griffin
East Stroudsburg
Forward
Junior
Philadelphia, Pa.  / West Catholic

Griffin helped lead the Warriors to a 2-0 week, averaging 16 points, 6.5 rebounds, and three assists while shooting 57.1% from the floor. He played a key role in the team’s win over Shepherd, the No. 2 team in the PSAC East entering Saturday's action, hitting the game-winning three with 2.5 seconds remaining.

 

Eastern Division Defensive Athlete of the Week
 
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Matt Bengel
Bloomsburg
Guard
Senior
Erie, Pa.  / Mercyhurst Prep

Bengel had an impressive showing in the Huskies' 1-1 week, tallying 16 rebounds, 10 steals, three blocks, four assists, and 41 points. The Erie-native also set the school record in single-game steals on Saturday with eight in the Huskies' 89-78 win over Shippensburg. The senior lead the team with 22 points, eight steals, and seven rebounds in that contest, and then in Bloomsburg's triple-overtime thriller against Lock Haven on Wednesday, he posted 19 points, nine rebounds, three blocks, and two assists. He did so in an effort that saw the senior guard play the fourth most minutes in an NCAA men's basketball contest this season (52:25). 


Western Division Athlete of the Week
 
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Trey Nelson
Clarion
Guard
Junior
Gainesville, Va. / Patriot

Nelson helped the Golden Eagles to a major PSAC West upset on the road on Wednesday night against Gannon, as Clarion beat the first place Golden Knights 83-79, and was a key piece in Clarion's 94-93 shootout loss to Edinboro just 48 hours later on the road. The point guard played 76 of a possible 80 minutes in the span of three days, shooting 51.9 percent from the field and averaging 19.0 points, 4.5 assists, and 2.5 steals per game in that span. He went 7-of-11 from the field - including 4-of-6 from three-point range - against the Golden Knights, scoring 22 points and recording four steals. Against the Fighting Scots on Friday Nelson had 16 points, six assists, and a steal.

 

Western Division Defensive Athlete of the Week 
 
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Cenker Evran
Edinboro
Forward
Junior
Adana, Turkey / Turk Telekam

Evran averaged a double-double again this week: averaging 12.5 points and 13.0 rebounds in a pair of PSAC West victories. Against Slippery Rock, Evran tallied 10 points, 18 rebounds, three assists, two steals, and a block. It was his 16th double-double of the season. In the contest with Clarion,  Evran scored 15 points to go with eight rebounds, a block, and a steal. Evran is now the nation's second-leading rebounder, averaging 13.1 rebounds per game, but leads all of Division II in offensive boards with 5.42 per game.