MAC Men’s Basketball East Division Player of the Week
Javon McCrea, Buffalo
Sophomore, Forward, Newark, N.Y. (Newark)
McCrea scored a game-high 25 points and added six rebounds, two assists and a blocked shot Buffalo's conference-opening win over Kent State on Saturday. He shot 6-of-7 from the field in the second half to help the Bulls erase an eight-point deficit. He scored seven of the Bulls' final 10 points of the game, including the basket to tie the game at 62 and again on UB's next possession to give Buffalo the lead for good, 64-62. McCrea played sparingly in Buffalo's 111-59 win over Buffalo State. The sophomore forward had seven points, six rebounds and two assists in only nine minutes.
MAC Men’s Basketball West Division Player of the Week
Jarrod Jones, Ball State
Senior, Forward, Michigan City, Ind. (Michigan City)
Jones led the Cardinals to two victories on the week, including a 78-69 victory over MAC West Division preseason favorite Western Michigan. Jones averaged 17.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in the two victories. He led the Cardinals to a MAC-opening victory over the Broncos with a game-high 20 points and eight rebounds as he was 7-of-15 from the field and 6-of-6 from the free throw line. It marked the seventh time this season he has scored at least 20 points in a game. He opened the week with his 25th career double-double against Florida A&M as he scored 15 points and grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds. He leads the team in scoring at 18.0 points per game and on the glass at 8.4 rebounds per game.
Other Nominees
Jordon Crawford, Bowling Green
Junior, Guard, Cincinnati, Ohio (La Salle)
Crawford had 16 points, five assists, four rebounds and a pair of steals to lead Bowling Green to a 67-57 win over Ohio in the team's Mid-American Conference opener. Crawford had 12 of his 16 points in the second half as the Falcons overcame a one-point halftime deficit. During a critical 9-0 run midway through the second half, Crawford scored on three consecutive possessions to give the Falcons a 13-point lead. After Ohio battled back to tie the game with less than two minutes left, Crawford's alley-oop pass to Torian Oglesby put the Falcons ahead for good. Crawford then made all four of his free-throw attempts in the final 56 seconds to seal the win.
Trey Zeigler, Central Michigan
Sophomore, Guard, Mount Pleasant, Mich. (Mount Pleasant)
Zeigler led Central Michigan to a convincing 85-69 win over Toledo in the MAC opener. The Rockets had an 8-6 record entering the game. Zeigler scored a team-high 19 points, grabbed four rebounds and dished out a team-high four assists to lead CMU. He was 9-of-12 from the floor for 75 percent and also added a block and a steal in CMU's lone game of the week. The sophomore scored 11 of his points in the second half as the Chippewas put the Rockets away. Zeigler is the only player in the MAC this season to currently lead his team in scoring, rebounding and assists.
Darrell Lampley, Eastern Michigan
Senior, Guard, Linden, N.J. (Linden)
Helped lead EMU to a 47-40 win at Northern Illinois Saturday, Jan. 7. Lampley scored a game-high 16 points in the win. With EMU leading by one, 41-40, with 2:23 left, Lampley would make six consecutive free throw attempts over the final 1:34 to help preserve the victory. For the day he was 9-of-10 from the free throw line, 3-of-9 from the field, with one triple in 32 minutes of action.
Justin Greene, Kent State
Senior, Forward, Brooklyn, N.Y. (Lincoln)
Justin Greene averaged 15.5 points and was 10-14 from the field in two games for Kent State last week. Greene also had five steals during the week as he became the only active MAC player and the first player in Kent State history to post over 1,000 points, 100 blocks and 100 steals in a career.
Julian Mavunga, Miami
Senior, Forward, Indianapolis, Ind. (Brownsburg)
Mavunga hammered out another pair of double-doubles last week and continues to be the only player in the nation averaging over 19.0 ppg, 10.0 rpg and 2.0 apg. Mavunga now has nine double-doubles in 13 games this season and 23 for his career. He amassed 14 points off 7-of-11 shooting from the field and added 11 rebounds at Vanderbilt. Six of his boards were on the offensive glass for the RedHawks and added two assists and two steals in just under 40 minutes of action. He came back with a 23-point, 14-rebound performance to lead all players against Akron. It was his fifth 20-point outing of the season and 13th of his career. Again, he went 7-for-11 from the field and also was 2-for-3 from 3-point range against the Zips. He sunk 7-of-8 free throws and added two assists and two blocked shots in 40 minutes of action. In both games, Miami amassed more field goals and more rebounds, thanks in large part to Mavunga, but was edged at the free-throw line.
Ivo Baltic, Ohio
Junior, Forward, Kansas City, Mo. (Park Hill South)
Baltic had 14 points and a team-high five assists as Ohio fought back from a 13-point second-half deficit on the road but still fell at Bowling Green on Saturday evening. Prior to that outing, Baltic had 14 points and four rebounds in a home loss to Robert Morris. The junior has now scored in double-figures over the last six games.
Rian Pearson, Toledo
Guard, Raytown, Mo. (UW-Green Bay)
Pearson averaged 19.5 ppg, 10.5 rpg and 5.0 apg and posted a 54.8 FG% (17-of-31). Pearson led the Rockets with 20 points, eight rebounds and five assists against CMU in UT’s MAC opener on Saturday night.
Demetrius Ward, Western Michigan
Senior, Guard, Detroit, Mich. (Pershing)
Ward continues to be one of the most consistent offensive players for the Broncos, having scored 15 or more points in five of the last seven contests. He remains one of only two Broncos (the other being Matt Stainbrook) to start and play in every game this season. In the Broncos’ win against Milwaukee, Ward contributed 17 points of 4-of-9 shooting; interestingly enough, Ward’s total did not include a single three-point shot attempt. He also went 9-of-11 from the free throw line to help down the Panthers. Ward piled up a team-high 16 points and a game-high seven assists in the loss to Ball State.