Akron’s Utomi, Toledo’s Fletcher Garner Player of the Week Honors
MAC Men’s Basketball East Division Player of the Week
Daniel Utomi, Akron
Guard/Wing, Sophomore, Houston, Texas
Sophomore wing Daniel Utomi (Houston, Texas) dropped a career-high 32 points en route to the Zips second win of the season over UT Martin, 76-59, on Saturday night at James A. Rhodes Arena. Utomi buried a career-high eight 3-pointers as he connected with 68.8 percent of his shots (11-of-16) from the floor and 72.7 percent from deep (8-of-11). He added a 2-of-3 effort from the free throw line along with five rebounds and three assists. In addition, Utomi and Malcolm Duvivier combined for 13 of the Zips 15 triples and only missed the mark five times total, shooting at a combined 72.2 percent from deep 13-of-18.
MAC Men’s Basketball West Division Player of the Week
Tre'Shaun Fletcher, Toledo
Guard, Senior, Wilmar, Ark.
Senior guard Tre'Shaun Fletcher averaged 23.5 ppg, 9.0 rpg and 5.0 apg to help the Rockets to a pair of victories over Ohio Northern and Oakland. The two victories improved UT to 3-0 this season, marking the Rockets' best start since going 12-0 to open the 2013-14 campaign. Fletcher opened the week by registering his first career double-double with a career-high 27 points, a career-best 10 rebounds and a career-high tying seven assists vs. the Polar Bears. He then helped the Rockets post a convincing 87-74 victory over Horizon League favorite Oakland by scoring 20 points and grabbing eight boards against the Golden Grizzlies, who were ranked No. 5 in last week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major poll.
Other Nominees
Dylan Frye, Bowling Green
Guard, Sophomore, Miami, Fla.
Sophomore guard Dylan Frye had a huge week, as BGSU men’s basketball went 1-1, and picked up a home win over Florida Gulf Coast. For the week, Frye averaged 19.0 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, while going 7-for-15 (46.6 percent) from downtown. In BGSU’s home opener versus South Dakota, Frye registered 23 points, and added seven rebounds. Frye, who went 5-for-10 from three-point land, which set a career high for made three-pointers, fell one point shy of tying his career high in scoring. His seven rebounds tied his career high. In the Falcons win over FGCU, Frye nailed the game-winning triple with 0.9 seconds left to give Bowling Green an 83-80 win. In the game, Frye had 15 points, six rebounds and two assists. He went 2-for-5 from deep, and 7-for-8 at the charity stripe.
CJ Massinburg, Buffalo
Guard, Junior, Dallas, Texas
Junior CJ Massinburg led the Bulls in points, rebounds, and assists as Buffalo defeated Jacksonville State, 81-76, to improve to 2-0 on the season. Massinburg was the best player on the floor as he knocked down four three pointers, including a huge four-point play in the first half to extend the UB lead. Massinburg also went 5-for-5 from the free throw line. Massinburg had no problem getting his teammates involved as he dished out five assists, and he also pulled in seven boards, including three offensive rebounds. The 2-0 start for the Bulls was their first since 2011-12.
Shawn Roundtree, Central Michigan
Guard, Junior, Edwardsville, Ill.
Junior transfer guard Shawn Roundtree made an impact in just his second week as a Chippewa, nearly leading Central Michigan to a road upset of Michigan and a win over Eureka College. Against the Wolverines on Monday, Roundtree made a statement, scoring a game-high 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting (.636), including 4-of-6 (.667) from long distance. He helped CMU build a first half lead and then kept the Chippewas close in the second. Roundtree also added four rebounds and three assists in the narrow loss. In a 103-68 rout of Eureka on Saturday, Roundtree totaled seven points, five assists, one rebound and one steal in limited action. For the week, Roundtree was perfect from the free throw line (6-of-6) and remains perfect on the season (7-of-7).
James Thompson IV, Eastern Michigan
Center, Junior, Baton Rouge, La.
With his 23-point performance against Arkansas State, Nov. 16, Thompson became the 30th EMU men's basketball player to eclipse the 1,000 point mark for his career. The junior also added 11 rebounds to move into eighth on the Eastern Michigan all-time list. For the week, the Baton Rouge, La. native helped lead the Eagles to two resounding wins over Arkansas State and Howard, helping the Green and White to a 4-0 record to start the season, its best since the 2014-15 campaign. Thompson averaged 20.5 points and 12.5 rebounds for the week, and has had four consecutive double-doubles to begin the season. The junior is the top rebounder in the Mid-American Conference with his 13.0 rebounds per game average, is fifth in the conference in field goal percentage with a .632 overall total, and is just outside the top 10 in scoring with a 16.3 mark.
Adonis De La Rosa, Kent State
Center, Junior, Bronx, N.Y.
Adonis De La Rosa continued his breakout start to the season, averaging a double-double in two victories with the Golden Flashes. He averaged 14 points and 11 rebounds while playing 20 minutes per game. De La Rosa has been dominant around the basket, finishing plays with a high level of efficiency. He is shot 75 percent from the floor and took 14 free throw attempts, knocking those down at an 86 percent clip. He also averaged 4.5 offensive rebounds a game, creating second chance opportunities for his team. Because of De La Rosa's strong play, the Flashes trailed for less than a minute combined for the week.
Logan McLane, Miami
Forward, Senior, Winterville, N.C.
McLane was solid throughout the week, including a dominant performance at the Jamaica Classic over the weekend. He averaged 14.7 points and 8.3 rebounds in three games, leading the RedHawks in each of those categories. In the RedHawks win over LIU Brooklyn, McLane had a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. He followed that up with 22 points on 9-for-11 shooting and seven rebounds against Hartford on Sunday. McLane shot 63.3 percent (19-for-30) from the field in leading Miami to a 2-1 record for the week.
Levi Bradley, Northern Illinois
Wing, Junior, Milwaukee, Wis.
NIU junior Levi Bradley averaged 19.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game as the Huskies opened the season with a pair of victories over Green Bay and St. Francis (Ill.). Bradley opened the season in spectacular fashion as he poured in 28 points and grabbed eight rebounds in a season-opening 85-65 win over the Phoenix. Bradley was 10-of-14 from the field and 7-of-7 from the charity stripe in the contest and his 28 points are the most by a Huskie since Xavier Silas netted 34 on Feb. 12, 2011 against Kent State. Bradley followed up that performance with 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting against St. Francis as he leads the Huskies in scoring as they begin play at the Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla.
Jordan Dartis, Ohio
Guard, Junior, Newark, Ohio
Junior guard Jordan Dartis (Newark, Ohio) helped lead the Ohio men's basketball team (2-2) to a seventh-place finish at the 2017 Gildan Charleston Classic last weekend at TD Area in Charleston, S.C. Over three games, Dartis averaged a team-high 19.3 points per game and shot 46.3 percent (19-of-41) from the field. He also ranked second on the squad with 3.0 assists per game and also averaged 4.3 rebounds per game and 1.0 steals per game. Dartis tallied 18 points off of four made field goals -- including a pair of triples -- in addition to making all eight of his attempts from the free throw line, but Ohio couldn't quite rally back from a 16-point second-half deficit, falling to Clemson, 81-76, on Thursday (Nov. 16). He also chipped in four assists, four rebounds and a steal over 33 minutes. On Friday (Nov. 17), Dartis went 7-of-12 from the field with three triples en route to scoring a team-high 19 points in Ohio's 79-65 setback to Dayton on Friday (Nov. 17). He also had three assists, two rebounds and a steal in 34 minutes. Dartis saved his best for last, though, making a career-high eight field goals -- including four triples -- to finish with 21 points as Ohio clawed back from an 18-point deficit and outlasted Indiana State (1-3) in quadruple overtime, 96-94, on Sunday (Nov. 19). He also tied his career high with seven rebounds and added two assists and a steal in 54 minutes. Dartis has now recorded at least 20 points in a game seven times in his Ohio career.
Thomas Wilder, Western Michigan
Guard, Senior, Montgomery, Ill.
Wilder Led the Broncos with 22.0 points per game in four games played over the week. In two games against 2017 Final Four participant South Carolina, Wilder totaled 38 points. In two games against the Gamecocks, Wilder was the game's leading scorer in each contest. At South Carolina on Nov. 13, Wilder recorded six steals, which was tied for the second most in a single game in WMU history. In the first game of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off at Myrtle Beach against Tulsa, he had a game-high 19 points along with seven assists, four rebounds and three steals. Against Appalachian State, Wilder scored 31 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the field and was 12-of-14 from the free-throw line. In the rematch against South Carolina on Nov.19, Wilder had a game-high 15 points and shot over 70 percent from the field. Wilder has led the Broncos in scoring every game this season and has recorded five straight double digit point performances. Heading into Sunday's contests, Wilder ranked third in the MAC in scoring and second in assist/turnover ratio.
