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DENVER - Grand Canyon redshirt senior guard DeWayne Russell has been named Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for the week of Nov. 28-Dec. 4. This is his second WAC Player of the Week honor of the season and of his career.
The Peoria, Ariz., native averaged 34.0 points, 2.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.5 assists last week. Russell connected on 22-of-49 from the field (44.9 percent), 6-of-13 from three-point range (46.2 percent) and 18-of-25 from the free throw line (72.0 percent) in a pair of games last week. He opened the week with a game-high 26 points, three steals, two rebounds and an assist against SIUE. On Saturday against No. 14 Louisville, Russell set a career-high and Grand Canyon Division I single-game record with 42 points, tied for the top mark in Division I play this season. It was also 20 points more than Louisville has given up to any other player this season and equaled the most points scored by a WAC player since the 2013-14 season. Russell, who had to sit out the first two games of the season, is now averaging 27.8 points per game, which would not only rank him first in the WAC, but would rank him second in the country. He has been GCU's leading scorer in four of the five games he's played in this season.
Other nominees included: Damiyne Durham of CSU Bakersfield averaged 16.5 points, 3.0 steals and 2.5 rebounds as the Roadrunners went 1-1 last week ... Chicago State's Fred Sims Jr. averaged 27.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 steals as the Cougars went 1-1 last week ... LaVell Boyd of UMKC averaged 20.7 points, 7.0 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 2.3 steals as the Roos went 2-1 on the week ... NM State's Jemerrio Jones averaged 12.5 points, 10.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.0 blocks as the Aggies went 2-0 on the week ... Aaron Menzies of Seattle U averaged 20.5 points, 15.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks as the Redhawks went 1-1 on the week ... UT Rio Grande Valley's Nick Dawson averaged 22.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.0 steals per game last week ... Conner Toolson of Utah Valley averaged 18.5 points, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals as the Wolverines went 1-1 last week.