The Associated Press national player of the week in men’s college basketball for Week 15 of the season:
Mikel Brown Jr., No. 21 Louisville
The 6-foot-5, 190-pound freshman regarded as a high-end NBA prospect had been struggling with his shot after returning from a lengthy injury absence. That was before he broke out with two huge performances in wins against N.C. State and Baylor.
The first was an Atlantic Coast Conference freshman single-game record of 45 points in a rout of N.C. State. Brown made 14 of 23 shots and 10 of 16 3-pointers to go with nine rebounds and three steals in that performance while tying the program’s single-game scoring record set by Wes Unseld in December 1967. He followed with 29 points, six assists and five steals in a win against Baylor.
For the week, Brown made 22 of 37 shots (.595) and 14 of 21 3-pointers (.667) while being named ACC player and rookie of the week.
Runner-up
Nick Boyd, No. 24 Wisconsin. The 6-3 senior was Big Ten player of the week after posting 54 points in wins against then-No. 8 Illinois and then-No. 10 Michigan State. Boyd, who was AP national player of the week on Jan. 13, had 25 points and five assists in 39 minutes of the overtime road win against the Illini. He followed with 29 points against the Spartans. Those wins propelled the Badgers to No. 24 in Monday’s new AP Top 25 poll after receiving no votes a week earlier.
Honorable mention
JT Toppin, No. 13 Texas Tech.
Keep an eye on
Dontae Horne, Prairie View A&M. The 6-4, 190-pound senior has been on a monthlong tear. He had 46 points on 14-for-25 shooting in a loss to Southern that stood as the highest output in Division I last week and tied for the fifth best of the season. That followed a 27-point showing in a loss to Florida A&M. Going back to a 38-point effort in a loss to Jackson State, Horne entered this week averaging a national-best 28.1 points since Jan. 17, according to SportRadar.
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