INDIANAPOLIS (USBWA) – The U.S. Basketball Writers Association has named five Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week for games of the week ending Sunday, Nov. 10.
For the 2024-25 season, the USBWA continues its national player of the week program that has been affiliated with the Oscar Robertson Trophy since the 2009-10 season. Prior to last season, the USBWA had recognized just one player each week.
Each Tuesday during the regular season, designated USBWA board members will select five standouts from the 31 Division I conference players of the week to be recognized. This week's selections were chosen from a list of the conferences that named a player of the week on Monday.
Following are the five players selected for performances this past week:
JaKobe Coles, Grand Canyon (Western Athletic Conference)
A senior transfer forward, Coles registered the first two double-doubles of his career during a 2-0 GCU start to the nonconference season. Coles, a 6-8 forward from Denton, Texas, led all WAC players with 21.0 points and 12.0 rebounds per game during the opening week, and sits eighth in the conference with a 56.7 shooting percentage (17-of-30) from the field. Coles poured in a career-high 26 points and pulled down 13 rebounds, including 11 points and 10 rebounds in the second half alone, of an 89-79 win against Cal State Fullerton on Nov. 4. Coles contributed 16 points and 11 rebounds in a 74-72 GCU comeback victory over Western Kentucky on Nov. 9.
Tyson Dunn, Buffalo (Mid-American Conference)
The senior guard from Newmarket, Ontario, had an exceptional debut for the Bulls, helping the program to their first 2-0 start since 2018-19. Last Monday, he recorded a 24-point, 10-assist double-double that propelled the Bulls to an 83-82 win at Old Dominion. He was 10-of-14 (.714) from the floor, including a buzzer-beating three-pointer to give Buffalo the win. He followed this up with the program’s fourth triple-double on Friday against Fredonia. On the night he had 14 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists. Dunn is the only player in college basketball to record a triple-double and is just one of 12 players to have two double-doubles on the young season. He’s the first Bull in program history to record back-to-back games with 10-plus assists.
TY Johnson, UC Davis (The Big West)
The senior averaged 32.5 points over two games as The Big West's Player of the Week. He scored 35 points with three rebounds in the Aggies' season opener last Tuesday at Washington. Two days later on Thursday, Johnson scored 30 points with seven rebounds, two assists and four steals in a 79-75 win at Idaho. The guard from Chicago, Ill. went a perfect 8-for-8 from the charity stripe in the game.
Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton (Big East Conference)
Kalkbrenner averaged 36.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.0 blocks shots in a 2-0 week for the Bluejays. Adding to his offensive production, the center made an amazing 29-of-32 shots from the floor and 12-of-13 from the foul line for the two games. the 7-1 center from Florissant, Mo., had a 49-point, 11-rebound effort against UTRGV that was the most points in BIG EAST history within any double-double. Creighton defeated UTRGV 99-86 and Fairleigh Dickinson 96-70.
Justice Shoats, Siena (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference)
The junior from Wilkes-Barre, Pa., came off the bench to average 27.0 points, 3.0 assists, and 3.0 steals while shooting 51 percent from the field to lead Siena to a pair of overtime victories to tip off the season last week. A Division II Lock Haven transfer poured in a game-high 23 points while adding four steals, and dished out the go-ahead assist on the decisive basket in overtime in a season-opening victory over Ivy League finalist Brown last Monday. He followed it up by scoring 22 of his collegiate career-high-tying 31 points in the second half and overtime in a road triumph at perennial America East contender Bryant on Friday night. Shoats capped the victory with the game-winning free throws with 16.9 seconds remaining. He also recorded five assists, none bigger than on three-pointers on back-to-back possessions late which drew the Saints even and forced overtime.
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 winner of the award will be announced at the 2025 Men's Final Four in San Antonio, Texas, with the formal presentation to follow at the annual USBWA Awards Luncheon hosted by the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 800 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 Malcolm Moran at 814-574-1485.
2024-25 USBWA Men's Weekly Honors
• Week ending Nov. 10: JaKobe Coles, Grand Canyon; Tyson Dunn, Buffalo; TY Johnson, UC Davis; Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton; Justice Shoats, Siena.