INDIANAPOLIS -- Carrying Youngstown State to history-making wins over the week, sophomore guard Kendrick Perry (Ocoee, Fla./Edgewater) has been named the Horizon League Men’s Basketball Player of the Week, for the week of Jan. 30-Feb. 5. The honor is the first of Perry’s career and makes Youngstown State the first program in Horizon League history to record player of the week accolades for all five of its starters in the same season.
Leading Youngstown State (13-10, 8-5 Horizon) to a 2-1 road trip, Perry averaged 25.7 points per game while shooting 60 percent from the field. With eight conference wins, the Penguins have set a new program mark for most League victories since joining the Horizon League in 2001-02.
Perry’s 30 points in YSU’s 73-65 victory at Milwaukee set a new career high for the sophomore, the most by a Penguin sophomore since Feb. 24, 1992. On Thursday, Perry tallied a team-best 19 points in a four-point loss at UIC, but rebounded with 28 points in Saturday’s 80-63 win at Loyola. Perry went 11-for-14 from the floor, adding six assists and a career-best seven steals, setting a new Penguin single-game record.
With 11 steals on the week, Perry set a new Youngstown State sophomore record with 56 on the year. The total is the second-best single-season mark in school history, trailing only the 64 of Marlon Williamson in 2002-03. Perry’s 2.4 spg ranks second in the Horizon League, while the point guard ranks second in scoring (15.7 ppg), third in assists (4.1 apg) and first in assist-turnover ratio (2.2).
Sitting in a tie for third in the Horizon League, Youngstown State will welcome Butler (13-12, 7-6 Horizon) to the Beeghly Center for a 7:05 p.m. ET tip on Thursday, Feb. 9. ESPN3 will have live coverage of the game. The Penguins will wrap up the weekend when Valparaiso (17-8, 10-3 Horizon) visits. The Horizon League Network will carry the contest, with tip-off at 7:05 p.m. ET.
Top Performers for the Week:
-- Roosevelt Jones, Butler (Fr., G) - Posting back-to-back double-figure rebounding performances with 11 against Wright State and 12 against Detroit, the 6-4 guard recorded his second career double-double with 16 points against the Titans.
-- Anton Grady, Cleveland State (Fr., F) - The freshman was perfect from the field as Cleveland State improved to 10-2 with two victories, going 10-for-10 over the weekend. In collecting his third career double-double, Grady notched 12 points and 10 rebounds in Sunday’s 70-42 win over UIC.
-- Ray McCallum, Detroit (So., G) - McCallum led the Titans to their first series sweep of Butler for the first time since 1997-98 with 20 points in Detroit’s 65-61 victory. The effort was McCallum’s seventh 20-point game of the year.
-- Keifer Sykes, Green Bay (Fr., G) - Reaching double figures for the eighth time in his last nine games, Sykes scored a career-high 25 points in Saturday’s 81-75 setback to Milwaukee. Over Green Bay’s three-game homestand, Sykes averaged 16.7 ppg and 6.7 apg.
-- Walt Gibler, Loyola (Sr., F) - Gibler became the 38th player in Loyola history to score 1,000 career points with 18 points against Youngstown State. The senior needs only nine rebounds to reach 500 for his career. Only 17 players in Loyola history have totaled both 1,000 points and 500 rebounds.
-- Paris Gulley, Milwaukee (Jr., G) - Gulley carried Milwaukee to a key 81-75 win at Green Bay on Saturday, knocking down six three-pointers en route to 20 points. The Panthers are 10-3 in games in which the junior knocks down a three this season.
-- Ryan Broekhoff, Valparaiso (Jr., F) - Broekhoff matched the Valpo record by going a flawless 6-for-6 from three-point range in Thursday’s 78-73 win over Detroit, setting a new career high with 26 points. The junior went 10-for-12 on the field across two games, averaging 18.0 ppg.
-- Julius Mays, Wright State (Jr., G) - Mays rebounded from an eight-point output at Butler to lead all scorers with 20 points in Saturday’s nine-point loss at Valparaiso. The junior continues to lead the Horizon League in scoring in conference play with 16.9 ppg.
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
January 9: Julius Mays, Wright State
Ashen Ward, Youngstown State
January 16: Kevin Van Wijk, Valparaiso
January 23: Blake Allen, Youngstown State
January 30: Ray McCallum, Detroit
February 6: Kendrick Perry, Youngstown State
Tags: Youngstown State - Men's Basketball
