Dec. 31

Player of the Week
Brandon Armstrong, Pepperdine: The left-handed scoring machine put on a show at the AZCentral.com Classic in Tempe. Armstrong scored 41 points against Charlotte in the semis and 29 against Ohio in the title game. He provided the offensive firepower to give Jan Van Breda Kolff the gold trophy.

Team of the Week
Stan Joplin's Toledo Rockets: Toledo gets the nod for an upset win over Cincinnati. Five MAAC teams have scored big wins this season. Toledo did a great job containing the penetration of Kenny Satterfield, shutting down the Bearcats' perimeter game.

Coach of the Week
Tennessee's Jerry Green: Green gets the nod as the Vols have bounced back from a humiliating loss to Virginia in the Jimmy V Classic. First they won at Syracuse convincingly. Then last week the Vols won the Rainbow Classic by beating George Washington, Iowa and host Hawaii -- an impressive trio of victories.

Diaper Dandy of the Week
Caron Butler, Connecticut: Butler demonstrated his versatility and multidimensional talent with a triple-double versus Rhode Island (14 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists). He has been a factor ever since Jim Calhoun inserted him in the starting lineup. UConn's only loss (versus Dayton) came when Butler was not playing.

Co-Shock of the Week
Northwestern over USC: Bill Carmody has taken his magic from Princeton to Evanston. Northwestern's shocker over nationally ranked USC was impressive.
Mississippi State over Arizona: The Bulldogs went to Tucson, where nobody had defeated Arizona in the Fiesta Bowl Classic in 16 years -- but Mississippi State did it. Beware of Rick Stansbury's Bulldogs in SEC play because of their experience and athleticism.