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Jaylin Walker, Kent State
Guard, Senior, Inkster, Mich.
Senior Jaylin Walker helped the Flashes improve to 14-4, 3-2 in MAC play this week. Walker scored 21 points in the 66-52 win over Ohio. With his three first-half 3-pointers, Walker became Kent State's all-time leader in 3-pointers made with 248. Walker also ended the game with four rebounds and led the team with four assists. Against NIU, the senior's 31 points helped the Flashes defend their home court in a 78-68 win over Northern Illinois. He shot 11-of-22 field goals and 6-of-7 free throws along with three 3-pointers in 12 attempts. On the season Walker is averaging 22 points and has had nine games scoring 20 or more points.
MAC West Division Player of the Week
Tayler Persons, Ball State
Guard, Senior, Kokomo, Ind. (Kokomo)
Tayler Persons averaged 24.5 points per game and joined an exclusive club last week over a pair of MAC road contests, including a win at MAC West Division leader Central Michigan. Persons scored 28 points, grabbed a team-high nine rebounds from his point guard position and notched three steals Tuesday at Bowling Green. The Cardinals came up one point short in a 79-78 loss to a Falcon team that remains unbeaten in league play. Saturday at Central Michigan, Persons went for 21 points, as the Cardinals dealt the Chippewas just their second home loss of the season. He surpassed 500 career assists in that game, becoming one of only three active Division I players in the country with at least 1,500 career points and 500 assists. Persons shot 51.4 percent from the floor for the week (18-for-35). For the season, he ranks among the top five in the MAC in per-game scoring (17.1) and assists (4.7).
CJ Massinburg, Buffalo
Guard, Senior, Dallas, TX (South Oak Cliff)
Senior CJ Massinburg averaged 22.0 points per game this past weekend as Buffalo remained undefeated in league play and moved to 17-1 on the season. After scoring 13 points in a hard fought road win at Western Michigan, Massinburg led the Bulls to a win on Friday night when he scored 31 points in a 77-65 win over Eastern Michigan. Massinburg was 10-of-16 from the floor, knocking down six three pointers. He also averaged 5.0 per game and dished out 2.5 assists per game. He leads Buffalo in scoring at 17.8 points per game.
Shawn Roundtree Jr., Central Michigan
Guard, Senior, Edwardsville, Ill. (Mineral Area College)
Senior guard Shawn Roundtree had a standout week in leading Central Michigan to a 1-1 record. He averaged 18.5 points per game for the week for the MAC's top scoring offense. At NIU on Tuesday, Roundtree helped CMU start conference play with a 2-0 road record for the first time in over a decade, scoring a team-high 21 points, boosted by a career-high five made 3-pointers. Against Ball State on Saturday, Roundtree scored 16 points, including a perfect 8-for-8 performance from the free throw line.
Boubacar Toure, Eastern Michigan
Center, Redshirt Junior, Dakar, Senegal
Redshirt junior Boubacar Toure was a force in both of Eastern's road games this week, nearly averaging a double-double of 13.0 points and 9.5 rebounds. The Dakar, Senegal native registered his fifth double-double of the season with an impressive 15-point, 10-rebound game at Akron, and followed that up with an 11-point, nine-rebound performance at No. 16 Buffalo. The first-year Eagle missed just two shots from the floor during the week, going 10-for-12 (.833) in the two games. He also added 1.5 steals per contest on the defensive end of the floor.
Jason Carter, Ohio
Forward, RS Sophomore, Johnstown, Ohio / Johnstown-Monroe
Redshirt sophomore Jason Carter led the Bobcats on the court this weekend, averaging 9.5 points and 8.5 rebounds, while shooting .333 from the field, .375 from three-point range and 1.000 from the free throw line. He also added 4.0 assists per contest to go along with 1.0 steals and 0.5 blocks per game. On Jan. 15 against Kent State, Carter recorded a double-double. scoring 11 points and grabbing 13 boards. Carter went 4-of-9 from the field and 1-of-3 from beyond the arc, while hitting both of his free throws. He also dished out dour assists and had one block. Then on Jan. 18 at Toledo, Carter scored eight points and grabbed four rebounds. He went 3-of-12 from the field and 2-of-5 from beyond the arc. He also dished out four assists and has two steals.
Jaelan Sanford, Toledo
Guard, Senior, Evansville, Ind.
Senior guard Jaelan Sanford led the Rockets to a pair of victories with a team-high 16.5 ppg, 4.5 apg and 3.0 rpg while shooting 54.2 percent (13-of-24) from the field and 57.1 percent (4-of-7) from three-point range. Sanford opened the week a team-best 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting in a 71-59 victory over Miami. In the Rockets’ 75-52 win at Ohio, Sanford tallied 14 points and five assists and helped UT limit the Bobcats to a 32.2 field-goal percentage.
Seth Dugan, Western Michigan
Center, Senior, Otsego, Mich.
In two games this past week, Dugan led the Broncos in rebounds in both match-ups, recording eight against nationally ranked Buffalo and nine against Bowling Green. Against No.16 Buffalo last Tuesday, Dugan nearly registered a double-double with 15 points and eight rebounds along with three assists. At BGSU, Dugan almost had a double-double again with eight points and nine rebounds. The 15-point performance against Buffalo marked the 12th game this season Dugan has scored in double figures. Overall Dugan ranks second on the team with 14.4 points per game and leads the team with 8.3 rebounds per game.