INDIANAPOLIS (USBWA) Jordan Floyd of King University (Bristol, Tenn.) and Lilly Ritz of Wheeling University (Wheeling, W.Va.) were named the U.S. Basketball Writers Association Division II National Players of the Week for the week ending February 9.
Floyd, a senior guard, claimed his second Division II National Player of the Week honor of the season after scoring 43 points in back-to-back games to lead King to a pair of Conference Carolinas road wins last week. Floyd scored 43 points in a 106-102 double-overtime win at Erskine, and he repeated the 43-point effort in regulation as he led the Tornado to a 99-90 win at Mount Olive.
Floyd shot 53 percent (31-for-58) from the field on the week, including a 48 percent (10-for-21) clip from three-point range. He also sank 74 percent (10-for-14) from three-point range as he averaged 43.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 3.0 steals in last week's games. He made 15-of-31 from the field and 10-of-13 from the free throw line in his first 43-point effort of the week at Erskine, and he went 16-for-27 from the field (7-for-11 on three-pointers) and 4-for-6 from the free throw line as he went for 43 again at Mount Olive while adding 9 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals.
Floyd has six 40-point games this year, including four of the past five contests. He is the runaway national scoring leader in Division II, averaging 31.2 points per game, nearly four points per game more than Division II's second-leading scorer. He has scored exactly 43 points, his career-high, four times this year. Floyd's efforts have helped King to eight consecutive wins, and the Tornado currently lead the Conference Carolinas standings at 18-5 overall and 12-3 in conference play.
Floyd is the third player to earn USBWA Men's Division II National Player of the Week honors twice this season.
Ritz, a sophomore forward, was named the Mountain East Conference Player of the Week following a record-setting performance.
Ritz tied the NCAA women's basketball single-game record with 36 rebounds to help the Cardinals pull out a 75-72 win over West Virginia State last Saturday. She matched the record set by Christine DeSaine of West Virginia Tech during the 1994-95 season.
The Cambridge, Ohio, native also had 23 points, six blocked shots and three assists in the win and hauled down 13 of her rebounds on the offensive glass.
That performance came after 33 points, 21 rebounds and three blocks, despite an 85-67 loss at Charleston.
For the week, Ritz averaged 28.0 points, 28.5 rebounds, 4.5 blocks and 2.0 assists per game, while shooting 61 percent from the field.
She now has four games this season of 20-plus points and 20-plus rebounds and leads NCAA Division II with 15.6 rebounds per game. Ritz is also 16th nationally with 20.6 points and a 58.4 field goal percentage.
Each Tuesday, the USBWA is selecting men's and women's Division II National Players of the Week. This is the sixth season that the USBWA will recognize national players of the week from Division II.
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 II National Players of the Week
Week ending Nov. 10: Andrew Sischo, Daemen College and Brianna Purcell, Saint Michael's College
· Week ending Nov. 17: Andrew Sischo, Daemen College and Kayla Marosites, Carson-Newman University
· Week ending Nov. 24: Pat Dembley, UT Permian Basin and Kwanza Murray, Lincoln University
· Week ending Dec. 1: Hasan Varence, Ohio Dominican University and Shannon Ryan, Saint Anselm College
· Week ending Dec. 8: Peyton Wejnert, Pace University and Taisha DeShazo, Catawba College
· Week ending Dec. 15: Jhonathan Dunn, Southern Nazarene University and Jamiyah Johnson, Davis & Elkins College
· Week ending Dec. 29: Kevin Buckingham, Southeastern Oklahoma State University and Peyton Steinman, Saint Anselm College
· Week ending Jan. 5: Jordan Floyd, King University and Mar'Shalia Lollie, University of Arkansas-Fort Smith
· Week ending Jan. 12: Sekou Sylla, The College of Saint Rose and Sylvia Hudson, Urbana University
· Week ending Jan. 19: Jhonathan Dunn, Southern Nazarene University and McKayla Roberts, Le Moyne College
· Week ending Jan. 26: Eamonn Joyce, Southern New Hampshire University and Tyra James, Urbana University
· Week ending Feb. 2: Winston Hill, Francis Marion University and Alexy Mollenhauer, Anderson University
· Week ending Feb. 9: Jordan Floyd, King University and Lilly Ritz, Wheeling University
· Week ending Feb. 16: Brian Halums, University of Arkansas-Fort Smith and Hailey Diestelkamp, Drury University
· Week ending Feb. 23: Brandon Myer, University of Minnesota Duluth and Shannon Ryan, Saint Anselm College
· Week ending March 1: Robbie Heath, West Chester University and Hailey Diestelkamp, Drury University