We’ve partnered with
Urban Edge Network to highlight the best players in HBCU Division I
men’s and women’s basketball each week.
We’ve seen a lot of eye-popping numbers from HBCU basketball
teams this season. This week brought us some of the most impressive
performances yet.
On the men’s side, we saw the best scoring binge in the entire
country. On the women’s side, we saw sustained excellence look even
better.
Here are your HBCU Players of the Week.
Men’s Player of the Week:
Tanahj Pettway, Prairie View A&M
Pettway has been a lethal scorer all season for Prairie View
A&M but had his two best scoring games of the year this past
week.
He dropped a career-high 33 points on Jan. 13 in a 75-64 win
over Arkansas Pine Bluff and added 11 rebounds for a
double-double.
Designer
Prairie View A&M still trailed by four with just under 14
minutes left when Pettway went on a personal 8-0 run, turning a
43-39 deficit into a 47-43 lead that the Panthers wouldn’t
relinquish.
Prairie View A&M ran into a suddenly hot Jackson State team
in its second game of the week, losing 79-70. Jackson State is now
4-0 in the SWAC. But the Tigers couldn’t slow Pettway down, either.
He had 31 points and just one turnover.
One constant for the week was Pettway getting to the line. He
shot a combined 29 free throws in the two games, knocking down 22
of them. They were his two highest totals in terms of free throw
attempts and makes this season.
Those free throws helped Pettway score at a higher volume than
any player in the NCAA this past week. Pettway led all players who
played at least two games between Jan. 13-19 in scoring average at
32.0 points per game.
Leading the nation in scoring a good way to get a player of the
week award.
Women’s Player of the Week:
Diamond Johnson, Norfolk State
Johnson continues to drive Norfolk State’s impressive season,
and she had another excellent week.
She stuffed the stat sheet in a 77-69 win over Morgan State,
tallying 24 points, seven assists, five rebounds and eight steals.
The eight steals tied a season high.
Designer
Norfolk State coasted in its second game of the week, a 123-51
win over Virginia-Lynchburg. The Spartans jumped out to a 30-7 lead
after the first quarter, when Johnson had five points and two
assists. She ended the game with 16 points, six rebounds, five
assists and three steals.
Johnson shot 50% for the week while scoring at a high clip, but
the thievery stands out the most. With 11 steals in two games,
Johnson is now averaging 3.33 steals per game – ninth in the
nation.
Her two-way dynamism cannot be overlooked, especially since it
has lead Norfolk State to six straight wins and a 4-0 start in
conference play.
