INDIANAPOLIS -- Posting his second double-double of the year, Youngstown State junior forward Damian Eargle (Youngstown, Ohio/Warren Harding) has been named the Horizon League Men’s Basketball Player of the Week, for the week of Dec. 26-Jan. 1. The accolade is the first of Eargle’s career.
Eargle helped Youngstown State (7-6, 2-1 Horizon) snap a four-game losing skid as the Penguins traveled to Cleveland State and knocked off the Vikings, 73-67. The 6-foot-7 junior dominated the post, recording 20 points and 10 rebounds in the win. Eargle went 8-for-11 from the field and hit 4-of-5 free throws, scoring 14 of his points in the second half to help the Penguins overcome a two-point halftime deficit.
On the year, Eargle is averaging 10.5 points per game and chipping in 7.3 rebounds. The junior ranks among the top shot blockers in the country, swatting 4.1 shots per contest, good for third in the nation. After going two years without a road win in Horizon League play, Youngstown State has collected two in its first three games in the conference.
Youngstown State returns to the Beeghly Center for two Horizon League games this week. Sitting on 999 wins in program history, the Penguins will welcome Loyola (5-9, 0-4 Horizon) for a 7:05 p.m. ET tip on Thursday, Jan. 5, with the Horizon League Network provided coverage. HLN will also air the Penguins’ contest with UIC (5-9, 1-3 Horizon) game on Saturday, Jan. 7, with coverage beginning at 7:05 p.m. ET.
Top Performers for the Week:
-- Andrew Smith, Butler (Jr., F) - Smith helped lead Butler to a 2-0 week in Horizon League play, recording a team-high 13 points in a 53-49 win over Green Bay and finishing with 11 in a four-point victory against Milwaukee. The junior went 9-for-12 from the floor and knocked down both his three-point attempts on the week.
-- D’Aundray Brown, Cleveland State (Sr., F) - With five steals last week, Brown moved into ninth place in the Cleveland State record book with 179. The senior averaged 16.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game as the Vikings went 1-1, scoring 20 in a 73-67 loss to Youngstown State after just missing out on a double-double against Toledo with 13 points and nine boards.
-- Alec Brown, Green Bay (So., C) - With 13 points at Butler, Brown went over 500 in his career in just his 45th career game. The sophomore collected his fourth double-double of the season in a 90-87 setback at Valparaiso, leading the Phoenix with 21 points and 11 rebounds. The 7-foot-1 center currently ranks in the top of the League in scoring, rebounding, blocks, free-throw percentage and offensive rebounding.
-- Walt Gibler, Loyola (Sr., F) - The senior continues to close in on the 1,000-point, 500-rebound club for the Ramblers, averaging 11.0 ppg and 9.0 rpg as Loyola went 0-2. Gibler notched his third double-double of the year with 10 points and 11 rebounds against Detroit. The forward sits 94 points shy of 1,000 and 43 rebounds from 500 in his career.
-- Tony Meier, Milwaukee (Sr., F) - Rebounding from a horrific shooting night at Marquette, Meier went 5-for-8 from three-point range versus Valparaiso, helping lift Milwaukee to a 57-55 road victory. After the 17-point outing, Meier had eight points and six rebounds against Butler, shooting 8-for-13 from the field and 7-for-12 from three-point range on the week.
-- Gary Talton, UIC (Jr., G) - Talton posted two career-high marks in scoring, pouring in 21 points against both Detroit and Wright State in a Horizon League home stand last week. His scoring output came on an efficient 57 percent effort from the field, including a blistering 75 percent mark from three-point range. Talton, who hit 14-of-16 free throws in the two games, also averaged 5.0 rebounds, and dished out 11 assists (5.5 apg) as the orchestrator of the Flames’ offense.
-- Matt Kenney, Valparaiso (Jr., G) - Knocking down a career-high four three-pointers, Kenney scored a team-high 21 points in Valparaiso’s 90-87 victory over Green Bay. The junior had three baskets in the final three minutes of play, scoring seven of the team’s final 12 points.
-- Julius Mays, Wright State (Jr., G) - Mays led Wright State to the top of the Horizon League ladder with road wins at Loyola and UIC, eclipsing 20 points in each game. In the 64-48 victory over the Ramblers, Mays finished with 23 points, following up the effort with 21 points in a 74-70 overtime triumph over the Flames. Since returning from injury, Mays has helped WSU to four straight victories, scoring 21 points or more in three of those contests.
Men’s Basketball Players of the Week:
November 14: D’Aundray Brown, Cleveland State
November 21: Kevin Van Wijk, Valparaiso
November 28: James Haarsma, Milwaukee
December 5: DuShawn Brooks, Youngstown State
December 12: Trey Harmon, Cleveland State
December 19: Andrew Smith, Butler
December 26: Brennan Cougill, Green Bay
Julius Mays, Wright State
January 2: Damian Eargle, Youngstown State
