BEST of the WEEK | Jan. 5, 2004
Awards based on games from Monday through Sunday
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| Lute Olson |
COACH OF THE WEEK: Lute Olson, Arizona
Lute Olson, Arizona's Hall of Fame coach, earned career victory No. 700 with an easy win over rival Arizona State on Saturday.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Billy Edelin, Syracuse
Super soph Billy Edelin has been coming on strong for Syracuse. In wins over Canisius and Michigan State, the point guard posted per-game averages of 25 points, eight assists and seven rebounds (and he shot 23-of-30 from the field).
CO-TEAMS OF THE WEEK: Colorado State men and Duke women
Coach Dale Layer and Colorado State had some serious buzzer-beater excitement. Michael Morris did the unthinkable by hitting a pair of 3-pointers in the final 0.7 second as the Rams stunned coach Gene Keady and Purdue.
With Colorado State down 69-65, Morris hit a 3-pointer with 0.7 on the game clock. Then, after a teammate tipped Purdue's inbounds pass, Morris launched a desperation heave at the buzzer ... and it went in! The Rams followed that up with an impressive 91-65 win over Pepperdine.
The Duke women had their own buzzer-beater excitement It was a shock when Duke rallied from a 20-point deficit to snap Connecticut's 69-game home winning streak. Jessica Foley's 3-pointer at the buzzer was the game-winning shot.
SHOCK OF THE WEEK: Belmont over Missouri
You can make the case that this was the Shock of the Year!
Belmont came into Columbia, Missouri with a 5-3 record. Yes, it has been a tumultuous time for Missouri, but to lose at home to the Bruins, a former NAIA school currently in the Atlantic Sun Conference ... wow! It was Missouri's first home loss of the campaign.
Belmont coach Rick Byrd had to be proud of his team's 71-67 upset. Steve Drabyn scored 16 points, and once again the 3-point shot was the great equalizer. Belmont made 13-of-35 trifectas while Missouri shot 7-of-26. Six more 3-pointers made in a four-point game -- that's a difference-maker, baby!
CO-DIAPER DANDIES OF THE WEEK:
P.J. Tucker, Texas and Charlie Villanueva, Connecticut
P.J. Tucker has been a major contributor for coach Rick Barnes' squad. He had 27 points (on 12-of-17 shooting) and 15 rebounds in a win over George Washington. Then Tucker scored 22 points (6-of-7 from the field) in just 21 minutes in a victory over Texas-Arlington.
Charlie Villanueva, who sat out the first six regular-season games during an NCAA investigation, has shown why the NBA scouts are interested in him. He opened the week with a 19-point, 10-rebound performance against Massachusetts (8-for-13 from the floor in just 23 minutes). Against Rice, he missed just one shot from the floor (10-of-11), scored 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds (all in just 27 minutes).
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