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ST. LOUIS (USBWA) – The U.S. Basketball Writers Association
has selected Texas Southern center Aaric Murray
as its Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week for games
ending the week of Sunday, Dec. 22. The USBWA's weekly honor
is presented by Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook and
is announced exclusively on SiriusXM Radio's "Inside College
Basketball," which returns to the air on Jan. 7, 2014.
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| Murray |
As the Southwestern Athletic Conference Player of the Week,
Murray was
nominated for the weekly award, which was chosen by a representative
of the USBWA board of directors from a list of Division I conference
players of the week.
Murray, a 6-10 graduate student from Philadelphia, had quite
a homecoming in leading the Tigers to a 90-89 upset over Temple.
Murray, who had played two seasons at La Salle and another at
West Virginia before tranferring to Texas Southernm scored 48
points on 20-for-28 shooting from the field. The 48 points are a
season-high for any Division I player and the most ever scored
against Temple. Murray added eight rebounds for the defending
SWAC regular-season champions.
This is the fifth season that the USBWA has selected a national
player of the week. The weekly Oscar Robertson National Player of
the Week will be considered for the Oscar Robertson Trophy watch
list, which will be released at mid-season.
Since the 1958-59 season, the USBWA has named a National Player
of the Year. In 1998, the award was named in honor of the University
of Cincinnati Hall of Famer and two-time USBWA Player of the Year
Oscar Robertson. It is the nation's oldest award and the only
one named after a former player.
 At
the conclusion of the regular season, the USBWA will name finalists
for the award, which is voted on by the entire membership. The winner
of the Oscar Robertson Trophy will be presented by its namesake, Oscar Robertson, at the
Devon Energy College Basketball Awards on April
14, 2014, at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in
Oklahoma City. The Henry Iba Coach of the Year Award
and the Integris Wayman Tisdale Freshman of the Year Award
will also be presented at the gala to be held annually the Monday
following the NCAA Men's Final Four.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in
1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers.
With some 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential
organizations in college basketball. It has selected an All-America
team since the 1956-57 season. For more information on the USBWA
and the Oscar Robertson Trophy, contact executive director Joe Mitch
at 314-795-6821.
Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook, the most comprehensive
college basketball publication in the world, returns for its 33rd
season, bigger and better in 2013-14. Blue Ribbon – long-known as "The
Bible of College Basketball" – gives its readers the most thorough,
up-to-date and timely evaluations of every Division I team in the
country. For more information about Blue Ribbon Yearbooks, visit
blueribbonyearbookonline.com.
2013-14 Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week
• Week of Dec. 8: Dustin Hogue, Iowa State (Big 12 Conference)
• Week of Dec. 15: Marcus Paige, North Carolina (Atlantic Coast Conference)
• Week of Dec. 22: Aaric Murray, Texas Southern (Southwestern Athletic Conference)
• Week of Dec. 29: DeAndre Kane, Iowa State (Big 12 Conference)
• Week of Jan. 5: Willis Hall, College of Charleston (Colonial Athletic Association)
• Week of Jan. 12: Doug McDermott, Creighton (Big East Conference)
• Week of Jan. 19: Naadir Tharpe, Kansas (Big 12 Conference)
• Week of Jan. 26: Nik Stauskas, Michigan (Big Ten Conference)
• Week of Feb. 2: Drew Crawford, Northwestern (Big Ten Conference)
• Week of Feb. 9: Melvin Ejim, Iowa State (Big 12 Conference)
• Week of Feb. 16: Doug McDermott, Creighton (Big East Conference)
• Week of Feb. 23: Julius Randle, Kentucky (Southeastern Conference)
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