McCollum earns second straight Patriot League Player of the Week
12/6/2010 8:38:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Lehigh sophomore guard C.J. McCollum has earned his second straight Patriot League Player of the Week award, as announced by the league on Monday. McCollum followed up an 89-point week by scoring 31 at Stony Brook, then picking up his sixth-career double-double on Saturday against Fordham.McCollum's second player of the week award comes after garnering nine Patriot League Rookie of the Week honors last season. He has now won a weekly award 11 times during the 20 awardings during his collegiate career.
The native of Canton, Ohio racked up 43 points and 18 rebounds over two games last week. He began on Wednesday with a 31-point effort at Stony Brook behind 10-of-19 shooting to lead the Mountain Hawks to a thrilling 79-76 overtime triumph over the defending America East Champions. He scored 23 of those points after halftime, including the go-ahead jumper with 35 seconds left in overtime to break a 73-73 tie and put Lehigh up for good. McCollum earlier hit two clutch, game-tying free throws to even the score and force overtime. He also finished with eight rebounds and a season-high five assists.
McCollum then scored 12 points and added 10 rebounds on Saturday against Atlantic 10 foe Fordham for his sixth-career double-double and third in his first four home games. Seven of his 12 points came after halftime during Lehigh's comeback attempt that fell short.
Overall, McCollum has racked up 112 points over his last four games (28 per game) to help raise his scoring average all the way to a Patriot League leading 22.3 points per game (which is also good for 12th in the nation). He continues to lead the team with 7.8 rebounds per contest, as well.
The honor comes one week after McCollum earned Patriot League Player of the Week and ECAC Player of the Week, while also being recognized on ESPN.com's Weekly Watch as one of nine players nationally among “More Players Who Wowed Us.” McCollum scored 89 points in three games that week, including a career-high 42-point effort at Kent State.
The 4-4 Mountain Hawks hit the road for two games this week looking to jump over the .500 mark. They play at Quinnipiac on Tuesday and at Marist on Friday before returning to Stabler Arena to host Saint Francis (Pa.) on Dec. 13 in their final game in 10 days. Tickets for all home games are now on sale and may be purchased on Lehighsports.com or by calling the ticket office at (610) 7LU-GAME.
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