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ST. LOUIS (USBWA) – The U.S. Basketball Writers Association
has selected the UNLV forward Christian Wood as
its Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week for games
ending the week of Sunday, Dec. 28. The USBWA's weekly honor
is presented by Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook.
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As the Mountain West Conference Player of the Week, Wood 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. This is the sixth season that the USBWA has
selected a national player of the week.
Wood, a 6-11 sophomore from Long Beach, Calif., recorded back-to-back
double-doubles while averaging 23.0 points, 12.0 rebounds and 3.5
blocks per game as UNLV went 2-0 last week with wins over then-No.
3 Arizona (71-67) and Southern Utah (79-45).
Against Arizona, Wood scored a career- and game-high 24 points
and pulled down a team-best 10 rebounds, shooting 10-of-17 from
the field and scoring 16 of his 24 points in the second half. Wood
also grabbed a personal-best and game-high 14 rebounds against Southern
Utah on Saturday night. He scored 22 points on 9-of-12 from the
field and blocked five shots in 31 minutes of play.
UNLV's win over Arizona was the Runnin' Rebels' first over a
team ranked as high as No. 3 at the Thomas & Mack Center since
1988 when they defeated No. 3 Temple. It also snapped Arizona's
39-game regular-season non-conference win streak.
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
at the Devon Energy College Basketball Awards on
April 14, 2015, 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 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 34th
season. 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.
2014-15 Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week
• Week ending Dec. 7: Justin Anderson, Virginia (Atlantic Coast Conference)
• Week ending Dec. 14: Kyle Wiltjer, Gonzaga (West Coast Conference)
• Week ending Dec. 21: Troy Williams, Indiana (Big Ten Conference)
• Week ending Dec. 28: Christian Wood, UNLV (Mountain West Conference)
• Week ending Jan. 4: Tyler Harvey, Eastern Washington (Big Sky Conference)
• Week ending Jan. 11: Travis Trice, Michigan State (Big Ten Conference)
• Week ending Jan. 18: Jerome Hill, Gardner-Webb (Big South Conference)
• Week ending Jan. 25: D'Angelo Russell, Ohio State (Big Ten Conference)
• Week ending Feb. 1: Seth Tuttle, Northern Iowa (Missouri Valley Conference)
• Week ending Feb. 8: Marcus Posley, St. Bonaventure (Atlantic 10 Conference)
• Week ending Feb. 15: Darrun Hilliard, Villanova (Big East Conference)
• Week ending Feb. 22: Kyle Wiltjer, Gonzaga (West Coast Conference)
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