Big man Shane Walker was the top British NCAA performer this week as he led Loyola Maryland University to a 3-0 record.
The Greyhounds beat Coppin State, UMBC and New Hampshire, with Walker averaging 14 points and 6.7 rebounds across the three wins.
The 6-10 forward, who spent the summer playing for the GB Futures squad, is third on the team in scoring and second in rebounding, and is converting his shots an extremely efficient 59% rate.
Andrew Lawrence was superb on Sunday as he played a key role in an upset win at ACC powerhouse Clemson. Lawrence had 15 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals in a turnover-free performance. That win, plus a victory over Morehead State on Tuesday in which Lawrence had nine points and five assists, puts the Cougars at 3-0.
Lawrence’s former GB under-20 teammate Ben Mockford had eight points and seven rebounds in a loss to Hofstra. Mockford, a sophomore, has made a good start at St Francis after transferring from Iona, establishing himself as a starter and averaging 11 ppg.
Nick Mabbutt is another transfer who’s carved out a role on his new team. The junior, who joined South Dakota from Northeast Community College, played 30 minutes in the Coyotes’ loss to Eastern Washington, scoring six points and adding seven rebounds and four assists.
Ovie Soko and UAB opened the season with losses to Creighton and Morgan State. Soko played almost the entire game against the Bluejays, contributing ten points, eight rebounds and two assists but also turning the ball over five times. The 6-8 forward followed that up with ten points, nine rebounds and two assists against MSU, and was able to keep his turnovers down to two that time.
Grant Fiorentinos continues to start for Tulane, playing 25 and 19 minutes in their two games this week. The 6-10 forward had two points and five rebounds against Nicholls State, and five points and four boards against Maryland-Eastern Shore.
Another British big man who has been a surprise starter for his team is Providence’s Lee Goldsbrough. Like Fiorentinos, Goldsbrough hasn’t been putting up big numbers, going scoreless with three rebounds against Fairfield, and contributing three points, six rebounds and two assists against Florida A&M. He averaged 21 minutes in this week’s games.
Will Neighbour, on the other hand, was relegated to the bench this week. He responded with a nine-point, five-rebound outing against IUPUI, but lost his shooting touch against Eastern Michigan, going 1-7 from the field and finishing with five points, three rebounds and four turnovers. Neighbour’s best performance of the week came against Michigan State, as he led the Trojans in scoring with 11 and added 12 rebounds for his first career double-double.
Alex Marcotullio was back playing big minutes for Northwestern on Sunday after averaging just 11 mpg in NU’s first three games. Marcotullio provided seven points and three assists in 29 minutes, along with his usual stingy defense, as the Wildcats defeated Seton Hall to improve to 4-0.
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