Feb. 11
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Let's head to St. Joseph's, Pa., where the Hawks have been one of the nation's surprise teams. Phil Martelli has his team playing well and one key is Marvin O'Connor.
The Marco Polo transfer from Villanova has had an outstanding season, forming a dynamic duo in the backcourt with diaper dandy Jameer Nelson. O'Connor has been the recipient of many of Nelson's passes.
O'Connor came up with two big-time performances as the Hawks scored a pair of key Atlantic 10 victories. Against a tough Xavier team, he had 29 points. At St. Bonaventure, O'Connor came through with 22 points, including four trifectas.
DIAPER DANDY OF THE WEEK
We stay in the A-10. Romain Sato of Xavier has been a great story, getting better and better as the season has rolled on. He has been a trifecta specialist, and he came through against Temple's match-up zone. Sato hit his first five 3-point shots en route to 19 points in the victory over the Owls.
TEAM OF THE WEEK
North Carolina became the No. 1 team with a brilliant performance over Duke a couple of weeks ago. A lot of people thought they could slip against Wake Forest or Maryland. Remember, the Tar Heels got past the Demon Deacons on Brendan Haywood's dunk in the first meeting, the first loss for Wake Forest.
Wake Forest was waiting for the Heels, yet Matt Doherty's team responded to the challenge. Jason Capel, Joe Forte and company were prepared and focused.
Then came Maryland, an emotional contest. The Terps were angry and wanted a big win. North Carolina came through with a big second half. Two Heels had career-high performances as Capel had 27 points while Julius Peppers added 18.
Doherty's team pulled out all the stops. That's why they are Team of the Week.
COACH OF THE WEEK
Oklahoma is on a roll and one key is the guidance and leadership of Kelvin Sampson. He's one of the most underrated coaches in America, though his peers know he is as good as anyone.
The Sooners rely on strong perimeter play and that was a key as Oklahoma blew out Texas in Austin. Remember, Illinois couldn't win down in Longhorn country. That's why Sampson is my Coach of the Week.
SHOCK OF THE WEEK
Iowa is not the same team without Luke Recker in the lineup. He provided so much firepower and made the big plays. Still, there is no way people could have thought Northwestern would be able to offset Reggie Evans and company. But they did in Evanston on Saturday.
The Wildcats snapped a 32-game Big Ten losing streak with the Shock City upset. Bill Carmody has done a solid job in building for the future despite limited personnel. It was a great win over a ranked Hawkeyes squad.
