CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - As full scale America East play began over the weekend, a pair of repeat winners are the conference's Week 9 honorees. Maine's Dimitry Akanda-Coronel earned his second-straight Player of the Week award while UMBC's Rodney Elliott picked up his third Rookie of the Week honor of the year:
Player of the Week
Dimitry Akanda-Coronel, Sophomore, Guard, Maine
- Earned his second-straight Player of the Week honor.
- Averaged 19.0 points and 8.0 rebounds in two games as Maine went 1-1 last week.
- Scored 24 points and added six rebounds in a loss to Chattanooga on Dec. 30.
- Recorded his first career double-double (14 points, 10 rebounds) to lead the Black Bears to a win over Binghamton in its America East opener Sunday.
Rookie of the WeekRodney Elliott, Freshman, Guard, UMBC
- Averaged 17.5 points and 4.0 assists over two games last week.
- Scored a game-high 21 points to lead the Retrievers to a win over Navy on Dec. 30.
- Had 14 points and a career-best six assists in a loss to UMass Lowell Sunday.
- Has earned a league-best three Rookie of the Week awards this season.
Around the League
- Albany, Maine and UMass Lowell all picked up their first America East wins over the weekend.
- The Great Danes beat Hartford by hitting a program-record 16 three pointers, which was the most by a conference member since Binghamton hit 17 in the 2011 America East Championship.
- The Black Bears doled out 22 assists on 30 baskets in a win over Binghamton, their fourth straight in a league opener, Sunday.
- UMass Lowell beat UMBC Sunday for its first-ever win against a Division I opponent and its first America East win.
- SBU is receiving votes in the latest CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Top 25.
- Albany has won four of its last six games.
- Hartford's Mark Nwakamma is just 11 points shy of 1,000 points for his career.
- Vermont's Brian Voelkel recorded a double-double of 14 points and 15 rebounds Saturday and moved into seventh place on the league’s all-time rebound list (1,019).
- America East is youth driven as six of the top 15 scorers are freshmen or sophomores.
2013-14 Men's Basketball Weekly Awards
Nov. 11 - Player of the Week: Anthony Jackson, Stony Brook
Rookie of the Week: Nick Madray, Binghamton
Nov. 18 - Co-Players of the Week: Jordan Reed, Binghamton/Chris Pelcher, UNH
Rookie of the Week: Rodney Elliott, UMBC
Nov. 25 - Player of the Week: Jameel Warney, Stony Brook
Rookie of the Week: Magnus Richards, Binghamton
Dec. 2 - Player of the Week: Peter Hooley, Albany
Rookie of the Week: Kurt Steidl, Vermont
Dec. 9 - Co-Players of the Week: Jordan Reed, Binghamton/Mark Nwakamma, Hartford
Rookie of the Week: Marlon Beck, Binghamton
Dec. 16 - Player of the Week: Sam Rowley, Albany
Rookie of the Week: Rodney Elliott, UMBC
Dec. 23 - Player of the Week: Jameel Warney, Stony Brook/Sandro Carissimo, Vermont
Rookie of the Week: Dallas Ennema, Albany
Dec. 30 - Player of the Week: Dimitry Akanda-Coronel, Maine
Rookie of the Week: Marlon Beck, Binghamton
Jan. 6 - Player of the Week: Dimitry Akanda-Coronel, Maine
Rookie of the Week: Rodney Elliott, UMBC