Hartford sophomore Deon Saunders (Washington, D.C./Spingarn/American University) and Vermont freshman Taylor Coppenrath (West Barnet, Vt./St. Johnsbury Academy) were named Spalding Men's Basketball Player and Rookie of the Week by America East on January 7. It was the fourth honor in seven weeks for Coppenrath.
Saunders, who became eligible for the Hawks on December 28 after transferring from American University, has provided offense off the bench in his first three games for head coach Larry Harrison. The 6-7 swingman scored 14 points, grabbed five rebounds and added three assists in a 68-66 win at Binghamton, then provided 20 points, with four rebounds and two blocks in a 64-61 win over Northeastern. He scored 17 of his 20 in the final 13:38 vs. the Huskies. His conventional three-point play with four seconds remaining gave the Hawks the win.
Coppenrath continued his stellar play with 18 points, eight rebounds and four blocks in the win over Stony Brook and a game-high 23 points in the win at America East preseason favorite Boston University. He scored 13 of his 23 in the deciding second half vs. the Terriers. The 6-8 forward ranks among the conference leaders in scoring (5th, 16.7 ppg), rebounding (8th, 6.5 rpg), blocks (3rd, 1.9 bpg), field goal percentage (8th, .484) and free throw percentage (2nd, .851).