ST. LOUIS (USBWA) The U.S. Basketball Writers Association has selected Richmond's T.J. Cline as its Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week for games ending the week of Sunday, Jan. 29. The USBWA's weekly honor is presented by Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook.
As the Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Week, Cline 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 eighth season that the USBWA has selected a national player of the week.
Cline, a 6-9 forward/center from Plano, Texas, became the first player in school history to record a triple-double this past weekend as he led the Spiders to a 101-90 win over Duquesne with 34 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists. He is one of just 18 players in the country to record a triple-double this season.
Cline also had 21 points and 13 rebounds against Rhode Island as the Spiders defeated one of the A-10s top teams at home last Wednesday. He finished the week averaging 27.5 points, 12.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists per game, while shooting shooting 69.0 percent from the field in the two wins to put Richmond in sole possession of first place.
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 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 36th 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.
2016-17 Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week
Week ending Dec. 11: Josh Hart, Villanova (Big East Conference)
· Week ending Dec. 18: Malik Monk, Kentucky (Southeastern Conference)
· Week ending Dec. 25: Quentin Snider, Louisville (Atlantic Coast Conference)
· Week ending Jan. 1: Dillon Brooks, Oregon (Pac-12 Conference)
· Week ending Jan. 8: Ryan Taylor, Marshall (Conference USA)
· Week ending Jan. 15: Quincy McKnight, Sacred Heart (Northeast Conference)
· Week ending Jan. 22: Lauri Markkanen, Arizona (Pac-12 Conference)
· Week ending Jan. 29: Tim Cline, Richmond (Atlantic 10 Conference)
· Week ending Feb. 5: Jacob Wiley, Eastern Washington (Big Sky Conference)
· Week ending Feb. 12: Bonzie Coles, Notre Dame (Atlantic Coast Conference)
· Week ending Feb. 19: Mike Daum, South Dakota State (The Summitt League)
· Week ending Feb. 26: Elijah Bryant, BYU (West Coast Conference)