INDIANAPOLIS (USBWA) – Hunter Martineau of Hilbert College (Hamburg, N.Y.) and Sydney Kopp of DePauw University (Greencastle, Ind.) were named the U.S. Basketball Writers Association Division III National Players of the Week for the week ending December 1.
Martineau, a 5-11 senior guard from Orlando, Fla., helped lead the Hawks (6-1) to a pair of road wins last week. In an 81-78 victory at Pitt-Bradford on Tuesday, Martineau scored 14 points, grabbed six rebounds, recorded five assists, and added two steals. His layup and two free throws late in the contest helped secure the victory. Then, in an 85-77 overtime victory at Elmira on Saturday, he scored a career-high 32 points while just missing a triple-double with nine rebounds, 11 assists and three steals. Martineau recorded six points and four assists in the overtime period. For the week, he averaged 23 points, eight assists, 7.5 rebounds, and 2.5 steals while shooting 72.2 percent (13-of-18) from the field, 90.4 percent (19-of-21) from the foul line and 50 percent (1-of-2) from three-point range. Martineau, who is currently second in NCAA Division III with eight assists per game, was also named the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Player of the Week.
Kopp, a 5-7 senior guard from Burr Ridge, Ill., led the No. 10 (D3hoops.com) Tigers to victories over two top-25 teams at the Midwest Challenge, hosted by Washington University in St. Louis, last weekend. Facing the then-No. 22 host Bears on Friday, Kopp totaled 25 points, six rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Then, in the Championship Game against then-No. 21 Illinois Wesleyan on Sunday, she hit the game-winning shot with three seconds left in the 69-67 DePauw victory. Kopp finished the contest with 35 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and two steals. She connected on nine three-pointers in the game, the most by any NCAA Division III player this season. For the week, Kopp averaged 30 points, 6.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 2.0 steals while shooting 45.5 percent (20-of-44) from the field, 88.9 percent (8-of-9) from the foul line and 54.5 percent (12-of-22) from three-point range. Kopp, who plays in the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC), is currently third in the nation in scoring (25.1 ppg) and fourth in three-pointers made (22).
Each Tuesday, the USBWA is selecting men's and women's Division III National Players of the Week. This is the sixth season that the USBWA will recognize national players of the week from Division III.
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 its award programs, contact executive director Malcolm Moran at 814-574-1485.
2019-20 USBWA Division III National Players of the Week
Week ending Nov. 10: Nate Schimonitz, Nebraska Wesleyan University and Tessa Zamolyi, Misericordia University
· Week ending Nov. 17: Jake Ross, Springfield College and Leah Porath, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh
· Week ending Nov. 24: Matthew Mancuso, University of Scranton and Katelyn Pickunka, Smith College
· Week ending Dec. 1: Hunter Martineau, Hilbert College and Sydney Kopp, DePauw University
· Week ending Dec. 8: Jared Wagner, York College and Amina Wiley, Mitchell College
· Week ending Dec. 15: Eric Demers, Gordon College and Alexis Jones, Augustana College
· Week ending Jan. 5: Tyler Frederick, La Roche University and Katie Garrish, Southern Virginia University
· Week ending Jan. 12: Chris LaBelle, Centenary University and Olivia Nagy, John Carroll University
· Week ending Jan. 19: Sam Jefferson, Colby College and Dejah Terrell, Albright College
· Week ending Jan. 26: Nate West, LeTourneau University and Taite Anderson, Bethel University
· Week ending Feb. 2: Brian Cameron, Wesley College and Abbey Lawrence, Case Western Reserve University
· Week ending Feb. 9: Jake Ross, Springfield College and Katie McShea, Marymount University
· Week ending Feb. 16: Isaiah Brown, SUNY Potsdam and Yuleska Ramirez-Tejeda, Emmanuel College
· Week ending Feb. 23: Nate West, LeTourneau University and Shyla Osmond, Albertus Magnus College
· Week ending March 1: Gabriel Leifer, Yeshiva University and Kelly Williams, Randolph-Macon College