MAC WBB PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Dyaisha Fair, Buffalo
Guard, Sophomore, Rochester, NY (Edison Tech)
Buffalo sophomore guard Dyaisha Fair had a stellar week for the Bulls averaging 29.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 4.0 steals per game. Fair led UB with 22 points, three rebounds, six assists and four steals against Ball State on Wednesday. She then led the Bulls to a comeback victory at Ball State on Saturday, matching a career high with 36 points to go along with eight rebounds, seven assists and four steals. The Rochester, NY native is currently ranked sixth in the nation in scoring (24.8 ppg) and also ranks in the top 25 in free throws made (118) and attempted (146), assists (103), steals (56), field goals made (150), three point field goals made (53) and final points (471). She has scored in double figures 18 times this season, 16 times with 20 or more points, four times with 30+ points and is one of 11 players in all of Division I to have a recorded a triple-double.
Other Nominees
Nila Blackford, Kent State
Forward, Sophomore, Louisville, Ky. (Dupont Manual)
Nila Blackford posted 15.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per game and led Kent State to two big weekend victories at Northern Illinois. Blackford recorded her ninth and 10th double-doubles of the season Wednesday at Western Michigan (14 points 12 rebounds) and Sunday at Northern Illinois (13 points, 10 rebounds). She was part of a dominant rebounding effort by the Golden Flashes on Sunday, as they outrebounded the conference’s top rebounding team by 19.
Kelly McLaughlin, Miami
Center, Senior, St. Louis, Mo. St. Joseph's Academy
Kelly McLaughlin scored 25 points and added 12 rebounds in a 62-60 win over Toledo, Miami's first road win of the year. The senior shot 11-of-19 from the floor, including 2-of-3 from behind the arc. It was her third double-double of the season.
Corrione Cardwell, Eastern Michigan
Guard, Redshirt Senior, Cleveland, Ohio (New Tech East)
Redshirt senior Corrione Cardwell led Eastern Michigan in what was a milestone game for both the team and her individual career versus Toledo, Feb. 21. A 69-59 victory, the win was number 400 all-time for Eastern Michigan (men’s and women’s basketball) inside its home venue, the Convocation Center. The building has been home to EMU’s basketball programs and volleyball teams, as well as administration offices and various other staffers, since it first opened for the 1998-99 campaign. The win was also the third consecutive for the Eagles over their rival Rockets, its best stretch since the same streak between the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons. Individually, Cardwell had a career game as she dropped 16 points and 11 boards (career-high), to record her first-career double-double. Her double-digit rebounding effort was the first of her career. In addition to four big makes, she added a career-best seven free makes from the charity stripe in the contest as she went 7-of-8 in her free throw opportunities. The team’s second-leading scorer in the game, Cardwell was still able to produce points for her teammates as well, as she registered four dimes in the contest, which ties her season-high. Defensively, she was stout as well, as she hauled in three steals for the Green and White, a season-high for the Cleveland native.
Lexi Fleming, Bowling Green
Guard, Freshman, Cincinnati, Ohio (Mercy McAuley)
Bowling Green’s Lexi Fleming scored a game-high 20 points as the Falcons picked up a 76-67 win over Central Michigan in a battle of two of the top teams in the MAC. Fleming scored 10 points in each half as the Falcons won for the 12th time in 15 conference games. Fleming was a key contributor to the Falcons’ 14-0 run spanning the end of the third quarter and the start of the fourth. She stole a CMU inbounds pass and hit a layup late in the third quarter to get BG within a point, and several minutes later, her long three-pointer capped the third-period scoring and gave the Falcons a six-point lead after 30 minutes. Fleming has scored in double digits in 18 of BGSU’s 19 games, with eight games of 20 points or more.
Maddy Watters, Central Michigan
Guard, Senior, Rockford, Mich. (Rockford)
Central Michigan senior guard Maddy Watters turned in a solid outing in the Chippewas' lone game this past week. The Rockford Mich., native posted 17 points in a 76-67 loss at first-place Bowling Green on Wednesday while shooting an efficient 6-of-8 from the floor and 5-of-7 from behind the arc. She also chipped in on the glass with four rebounds and dished out a team and season-high seven assists. On the season, Watters leads the MAC and ranks No.10 in the NCAA with a .462 three-point field goal percentage.
Chelby Koker, NIU
Guard, Sophomore, Racine, Wis. (Shoreland Lutheran)
Chelby Koker led NIU with 15.5 points, nine rebounds, and five assists per game this weekend in two games against Kent State. Koker had 16 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three steals on Saturday. She followed that up with 15 points, nine rebounds, five assists, and a career-high two blocks on Sunday.
Reilly Jacobson, Western Michigan
Forward, Redshirt Senior, Waukee, Iowa (Waukee)
Redshirt senior forward Reilly Jacobson led the Broncos to a 71-58 victory over Kent State on Wednesday with a career outing scored 27 points. Jacobson was 11-of-16 from the field while going 4-of-7 from the free-throw line and knocking down one three-pointer. The career-high 27 points was Jacobson’s third 20-point game of the season. Jacobson also had one rebound against the Golden Flashes to go along with two assists, one block and two steals in 36 minutes. It’s the 14th game this season in which Jacobson has scored in double figures and the eighth instance in which she has led the Broncos in scoring.
Oshlynn Brown, Ball State
Forward, Senior, Chillicothe, Ohio (Chillicothe)
After coming off of a historic weekend accomplishing the 1,000 rebound plateau and becoming only the second player in program history to score 1,000 points and pull down 1,000 rebounds, Brown opened up Mid-American Conference play last week with a 15 point, 13 rebound performance at Buffalo to help BSU move past the Bulls 76-63 on Wednesday night in Alumni Arena. Brown then had yet another stellar performance against the Bulls collecting her 45 double-double after scoring 25 points and pulling down 11 rebounds. Brown now has 1,026 rebounds for her career and needs just three to become Ball State women’s basketball all-time rebound leader a record that has been held since 1987. For the week, Brown averaged yet another double-double with 20.0 points and 12.0 rebounds she also went 16-of-22 from the charity stripe for a .727 free throw percentage.
