Smith, Jr. and Parker Collect Weekly NEC Men's Basketball Honors
Darin Smith, Jr. and Elijah Parker of the Central Connecticut men's basketball team earned NEC Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week honors, respectively, it was announced on Monday. The duo helped CCSU to a momumental win at Boston College of the ACC last week marking the program's first win over a "power conference" opponent.
Smith averaged 16.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg with a assist and steal in 29.4 minutes in a pair of contests last week. The sophomore forward shot 12-of-24 (.500) overall and was 4-of-11 (.364) on three-pointers. Smith had 14 points and five rebounds in the win at Boston College and he hit the winning layup with 3.2 seconds to play. On Sunday, he scored 18 points at UMass, including 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting (3-of-5 on three-pointers) in the second half as the Blue Devils nearly erased a 23-point halftime deficit.
Parker has been a valuable reserve in his first season at CCSU, appearing in all four games thus far. In a pair of contests last week, he posted 6.5 ppg, 2.0 rpg, and 3.0 steals in 13.7 minutes. He had eight points on 3-of-4 shooting at UMass after opening the week with five points, five steals and three rebounds in the win at Boston College. Parker was outstanding after halftime, posting three steals in the second half, including a steal then made a foul shot to tie game at 56 with 3:55 to play.
The Blue Devils are back in action at Rutgers on Friday night.
