The Big East named Louisville guard Peyton Siva and DePaul forward Cleveland Melvin the winners of the conference’s weekly men’s basketball honors for the week ending Dec. 26.
Siva was named Big East Player of the Week. In Louisville’s only game of the week, Siva poured in 29 points and dished eight assists in a 114-82 victory at Western Kentucky. He shot 8-of-13 from the floor, including 4-of-7 from 3-point range. For the year, Siva, who hails from Seattle, Wash., is averaging 12.1 points, 4.7 assists and 2.1 steals. His steals average is third in the Big East.
Melvin, who was named Big East Rookie of the Week led the Blue Demons to a 71-62 win over Florida Atlantic by scoring 23 points and grabbing four rebounds. He outscored FAU 13-12 in the first 11 minutes of the game. Melvin, a native of Baltimore, Md., has reached double figures in his last five games. For the season, he is averaging 10.4 points and 3.3 rebounds.
BIG EAST Player of the Week
PEYTON SIVA, Louisville, G, So.
BIG EAST Rookie of the Week
CLEVELAND MELVIN, DePaul, F, Fr.
BIG EAST Honor Roll
Austin Freeman, Georgetown, G, Sr.
Scored 24 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the floor in an 86-69 victory at No. 16/17 Memphis. He also had five rebounds and four assists.
Jae Crowder, Marquette, F, Jr.
Posted 22 points, five rebounds and three assists in a 102-77 win over Mississippi Valley State. He shot 8-of-15 from the floor, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range.
Tim Abromaitis, Notre Dame, F, Sr.
Did not miss a shot in Notre Dame’s 88-62 win over Stony Brook. He was 8-of-8 from the floor, including 4-of-4 from 3-point range. He finished with with 20 points and pulled down six rebounds.
Marshon Brooks, Providence, G-F, Sr.
Posted 25 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and four steals in an 84-76 win over Sacred Heart.
Rick Jackson, Syracuse, F, Sr.
Averaged 16.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists in wins over Morgan State (97-55) and Drexel (93-65). Shot 16-of-28 (.571) from the floor.
BIG EAST NOTES
**Marquette freshman G Reggie Smith is transferring, a source with knowledge said
**Big East play starts Monday night with a top 10 matchup — UConn at Pittsburgh on ESPN2 at 8:30 p.m.
**The Big East has three of the eight undefeated teams in the nation — Cincinnati, UConn and Syracuse.
**Of the 13 teams nationally with one loss, five are Big East teams — Pittsburgh, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Louisville and Villanova.
**Big East teams are a combined 151-36 (.807) this season and are 110-9 (.924) at home.
SAMUELS, EBANKS TO THE D-LEAGUE
Former Louisville star Samardo Samuels of the Cleveland Cavaliers and former West Virginia standout Devin Ebanks of the Lakers were both assigned to the NBA D-League.
The 6-9, 260-pound Samuels was sent to the Erie Bayhawks and the 6-9, 215-pound Ebanks was sent to the Bakersfield Jam.
They are the 21st and 22nd NBA players this season sent down.
Samuels, who went undrafted out of Louisville, was averaging 3.3 points in 4.5 minutes.
Ebanks, the No. 43 pick in the 2010 Draft, has appeared in 12 games this season for the Lakers, averaging 2.9 points and 1.5 rebounds in 6.4 minutes. In the 2010 NBA Summer League, Ebanks was second on the Lakers in scoring, averaging 15.0 points in five games.
