Player of the Night – Matthew Dellavedova, Saint Mary’s
First, watch this. But Dellavedova’s night was more than an improbable buzzer-beater. He finished with 18 points and eight assists, as Saint Mary’s edged BYU 70-69 in Provo. Of those points, 16 came in the second half, including six in the final two minutes. Dellavedova, Michgan’s Trey Burke and Baylor’s Pierre Jackson are the only Division I players averaging 17 PPG and 6 APG.
Freshman of the Night – Semaj Christon, Xavier
Add Christon to the list of Wednesday’s heroes. His floater with 4.8 seconds left gave Xavier a 66-64 win at Saint Bonaventure. He finished with 19 points and a career-high 10 assists. Christon is the only freshman to reach both of those totals in a game this season. Christon and Arizona State’s Jahii Carson both rank among the top 15 freshmen in scoring and assists.
Stat Sheet Stuffer – Mike Muscala, Bucknell
A candidate for this section whenever he plays, Muscala’s line was particularly impressive in a 73-59 win over Colgate. He finished with 25 points, 10 rebounds, seven blocks, four assists and two steals. No one has reached all of those levels since Minnesota’s Joel Przybilla in 2000 against Iowa. The last senior to do it? Tim Duncan.
Scorer of the Night – Maurice Kemp, East Carolina
Kemp scored a career-high 30 points in the Pirates’ 89-78 win over Houston. That performance makes him Conference USA’s scoring leader at 18.3 PPG. His 13 field goals were the most by an East Carolina player since 2007.
Bench Player of the Night – Michael Carrera, South Carolina
Carerra scored 21 of his career-high 23 points after halftime to lead the Gamecocks to an 82-73 road overtime win over LSU. That’s the most points for a South Carolina player off the bench since LeRon Williams had 25 in 1998. He’s also the first South Carolina player with 20 points and 10 rebounds off the bench since Rolando Howell in 2001.
