We need your help to decide our men’s player of the week from the opening week of the college basketball season by voting in the poll below.
Here are our top five men’s candidates for Nov. 2-8 and a recap of their outstanding performances from across the first week of college basketball action.
Jayden Reid — Memphis
Following stints at South Florida and Northwestern, 5-foot-10 senior guard Jayden Reid has seemingly finally found a home at the head of this Memphis offense. Last week, he led the Tigers their first opening-day
win over a top-25 opponent since topping 24th-ranked Purdue back in 1995.
Reid opened the week on Monday night by dropping 26 points on 6-for-11 shooting and swiping two steals to down No. 18 Iowa State, 80-76. He scored seven straight points for the Tigers with under three minutes left, including a dagger three with 38 seconds on the clock which put Memphis ahead for good.
He followed that up on Saturday by leading an 89-88 upset of VCU, knocking down a pair of free throws with five seconds left to set his Tigers at 2-0 to start the season. Reid finished with a career-high 32 points and went 11-for-21 from the field, adding seven assists and three steals in the win.
Tim Ibukunoluwa — Siena
In his first week of college basketball, 6-foot-8 freshman wing Tim Ibukunoluwa just earned himself both the Metro Conference’s Player and Rookie of the Year with two marquee performances. Despite a season-opening loss to Bryant, the Aussie started his college career with a double-double of 20 points, 14 rebounds and two steals on the road. He was one of just eight freshmen in their Division-I to debut with a 20+ point double-double.
Ibukunoluwa returned five days later and led the Saints to a bounce back, upset win over Princeton with yet another double-double effort. This time, he chipped in 30 points, 12 rebounds and two assists while setting a program record for consecutive made field goals by going a perfect 12-for-12 shooting. His outpouring marked the first win of Nevada Smith’s tenure as head coach in Loudonville.
Rakim Chaney — Valparaiso
Sophomore guard Rakim Chaney returned to Valparaiso this offseason after starting 31 out of 33 games as a freshman and helping the Beacons to 18 wins under head coach Roger Powell. He’s already taken his play up another level this season and last week, led Valparaiso to the programs first ever road win over a top-25 opponent with a double-overtime masterpiece.
Chaney might have only started the week off with 10 points, three rebounds, and three steals in a win over Western Illinois. However, he later dropped 35 points on 14-for-22 shooting, grabbed eight rebounds and dished six assists to lead an upset of No. 24 Purdue with two overtime periods, the first player in program history to finish with that statline. He even nailed a buzzer-beater in overtime to ensure a second extra period where Valparaiso secured the eventual upset.
Jake Hall — New Mexico
Not many teams return their conference’s Rookie of the Year, save for New Mexico in the Mountain West, who brings back sophomore guard Jake Hall after starting all 37 games as a freshman. He picked up right where he left off last season during week one of the new campaign by leading the Lobos to a 2-0 start with dominant wins over Utah Tech and Northern Arizona.
As Eric Olen’s crew ran away to a 100-60 win against the Trailblazers on opening night, Hall had 30 points, connected on 9-of-11 at the free throw line and even grabbed three rebounds along the way. While New Mexico handedly beat the Lumberjacks, 94-65, it was once again Hall leading the charges with 23 points, six rebounds and three steals, now falling into the 99th percentile for his efficiency rating.
Bo Aldridge — East Texas A&M
This is only East Texas A&M’s fifth season at the Division-I level, each spent under head coach Jaret von Rosenberg. The Lions had never started a season 2-0 or beaten a power-conference program since transitioning up to the Southland. That is, until junior wing Bo Aldridge arrived on campus.
Arriving from Hutchinson (JUCO) this past offseason, Aldridge announced himself to the college basketball world last week by spearheading an upset of the SEC’s Oklahoma in his DI debut. He managed 22 points, five assists, three rebounds and two steals as East Texas A&M held off the Sooners, 68-64. Three days later, Aldridge finished with 16 points, four assists and two steals in yet another major upset for the Lions, ousting Rice 72-71.
