NCAA Basketball: Dwayne Cohill, Kris Murray among Players of the Week

Power Conferences candidates of the Week

The mid-majors were not the only ones who had multiple players have high-scoring games. Tyree Appleby from Florida only played in one game this week and had 32 points and 5 assists. The other player who was honorable mention this week was Jordan Hawkins from UConn. Hawkins put up a career-high 26 points in his only action of the week. The nominees for this week’s player of the week are below.

Ricky Council IV

Arkansas is going to be well represented in the player of the week every week because they have a ton of individual athletic talent. Many would say it is the best team that the Razorbacks have ever had. Council IV has been arguably the best and most consistent player for the Razorbacks through 8 games. He had a great week last week and it all started with 27 points and three rebounds in a win over Troy. Arkansas struggled in that game and they needed every bit of the points provided by Council IV. In the second game of the week against San Jose State, the guard scored 17 points with 3 rebounds. He didn’t miss a free throw all week.

Kris Murray

Murray makes an appearance for the second week in a row and while he only played one game the number he put up is going hard to keep him off of the final list. Iowa played Georgia Tech in the Big Ten ACC Challenge and Murray showed in that game why many think he will be just as good as his NBA twin Keegan Murray. In the win over Georgia Tech, the forward scored 31 points to go with 20 rebounds. He also added 2 blocks and 4 assists to that line. Murray is still giving Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner nightmares and even though he only played one game he is deserving of inclusion on this list.

Keyontae Johnson

Not long ago we were all wondering if Johnson would play basketball again after he collapsed after a dunk during his time at Florida. The Gators would not clear Johnson to play again so off to Kansas State he went where he has been their best player. He didn’t outscore anyone on this list this week but he had tremendous shooting percentages and is still averaging a little under 20 points per game. In a loss against Butler, the forward scored 20 points with 12 rebounds. He shot 100% from the field in that game. In the second game, a win over Wichita State, the forward scored 17 points with 5 rebounds. Hopefully, Johnson can stay healthy all year.

Zach Edey

It was only a matter of time before Edey wound up on this list. The Purdue big man is just that a really large man. He stands at 7’4” and weighs 300 pounds and patrols the paint like a 6’9” forward. He is extremely athletic for his size and there really is no stopping him if he catches the ball by the basket. Edey is putting up National Player of the Year-type numbers this year and this was the first week that he had unbelievable numbers to firmly plant himself in that conversation. In a win over Florida State, the big man had 25 points and 8 rebounds. Then for an encore against an overmatched Minnesota team, Edey went crazy he scored 31 points and had 22 rebounds. Edey is going to likely have a permanent place on this list.

Sam Griesel

Laugh now right how could a Husker have a great week, well when you are one of the key catalysts to beating your arch-rival on their floor for the first time since 1995 that is how. Greisel has been solid for Nebraska and is turning into a player that may be at the forefront of a magical Husker run this year. Griesel is another guy who is going to make his mark on the game even if he doesn’t score. In a win over Boston College, the point guard had 8 points, 2 rebounds, and 6 assists. He also was able to play smothering defense and secure three steals. In the final game of the week for point guard from Lincoln, he took over down the stretch, and in the win over Creighton he had 18 points, 12 rebounds, and 7 assists. It was his play that brought the victory for Nebraska.

Javan Johnson

The DePaul guard is already seeing the awards roll in as he was named the Big East Player of the Week and the Lute Olson National Player of the Week. Johnson is a natural scorer and in his first season at DePaul, after transferring from Iowa State he is hopefully helping DePaul turn the corner. In a win over Samford, the forward scored 28 points to go along with 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 blocked shots. It was one of the greatest performances I have seen from a Blue Demon in recent memory. In the final game of the week, in a win over Loyola Chicago, the forward scored 27 points to go with 4 rebounds and 6 assists. Johnson is able to play free in the offense and has been given the green light to shoot when he needs to. He is another extremely talented player in the loaded Big East.

Trayce Jackson-Davis

Jackson-Davis is going to go down as one of the best to ever put on a Hoosier uniform. He is extremely athletic, can score from anywhere on the floor, and plays great defense. He is another guy who is likely going to find himself on this list more often than not. The big man had a huge game in a win against North Carolina. He scored 21 points to go with 10 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 blocks. He had Assembly Hall rocking. Then in a loss over Rutgers Jackson-Davis scored 13 points with 10 rebounds, 2 assists, and 4 blocks. The RAC is an extremely hard place to play and Jackson-Davis may not have scored his normal allotment of points but he averaged 4 blocks per game this week and that is outstanding.

Ryan Kalkbrenner

This is the second week on the list for the Creighton big man. The Bluejays have some soul-searching to do as they went 0-2 this week but Kalkbrenner still found a way to impact the game. As I have mentioned, the big man is one of the best defenders in the country and is the reigning Big East defensive player of the year. In a close loss over Texas in Austin the big man was the only one scoring for Creighton. He scored 20 points with 13 rebounds and 2 blocks. Then in the final game, a loss to rival Nebraska on their home floor the big man scored 10 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 block. He did get exposed a little bit on defense in the Nebraska game but a lot of that had to do with how Nebraska played him and the game plan.

Jaime Jacquez

UCLA is very good again this year and Jacquez is right at the forefront for the Bruins. He received a lot of hype in the preseason and was a very trendy pick to win the Pac-12 Player of the Year. The guard is a natural scorer who does all of his work in the paint and at the free throw line. He is not a good shooter from deep but is absolutely lethal in the paint and inside the arc. The guard did not miss a free throw this week. In a win over Stanford, he scored 27 points with 4 rebounds and 1 assist. Then to follow that up in a win over Oregon, the guard scored 12 points with 5 rebounds and 4 assists. UCLA has a lot of weapons and they have multiple guys step up each game. Jacquez had a good week this week but it may be someone else for the Bruins next week.

Derrick Walker

Something tells me the Nebraska center is going to be on this list a lot this year. He is in full-on beast mode to start the season and he has changed not only the way Nebraska plays but the outlook of the team. He is far and away the best player for the Huskers and it starting to make their fan base wonder where could this season have gone had it not been for his mysterious five-game absence to start the year. In the first game of the week against Boston College, Walker got in early foul trouble and scored 10 points and 5 rebounds in only 18 minutes of action. In the final game of the week, a win over Creighton the big man was all over the place and dominated the Bluejays in the paint and willed Nebraska to a win. Walker finished the Creighton game with 22 points and 8 rebounds.

That will do it for the nominees for the Power five portion of the Busting Brackets player of the week. Who is the winner this week?