MAC Announces First Women;s Basketball Players of the Week

East Division Player of the Week
Kourtney Brown, Buffalo, Jr., Forward, Solon, OH/Solon
Brown had a career-high 33 points and a school-record 22 rebounds as the Bulls defeated Niagara on Friday night for their first season-opening road victory since 2002-03.  Brown also had a career-high six steals on the night.  Brown went 12-for-14 from the floor and added nine free throws against the Purple Eagles.  The 22 rebounds were not only a school record, but tied Brown for sixth all-time in Mid-American Conference history for rebounds in a game.

West Division Player of the Week
Ebony Ellis, Northern Illinois, Jr., Center, Joliet, Ill. /Joliet Township
Ebony Ellis scored a career-high 22 points and totaled 17 rebounds in Northern Illinois' season opening win over Bradley. Ellis went 9-of-13 from the field in 29 minutes of action, and her rebounding total included nine on the offensive glass. With the game tied at 65 and just under six minutes remaining, Ellis scored consecutive baskets to put the Huskies on top for good. Over the last six minutes, Ellis poured in nine points to carry Northern Illinois to an 86-73 victory.

 

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Additional Nominees for Player of the Week
Tamika Nurse, Bowling Green, Sr., Guard, Hamilton, Ontario/St. Thomas More/Univ. of Oregon
Averaged 14.0 points, 3.0 assists and 2.5 steals per game as the Falcons split a pair of contests in the Preseason WNIT to open the 2009-10 season ... tied for the team lead in points per game, and led the Falcons in steals and three-point field goals made (6) on the weekend ... shot 40.9 percent from the field and was 6-of-12 from three-point range ... in her BGSU debut, had a game-high 21 points in the season-opening win over Chicago State.

Shonda Long, Central Michigan, Jr., Guard, Saginaw, Mich./Buena Vista
Shonda Long hit seven threes and finished with 30 points against #17 DePaul in the season opener, to keep CMU as close as six points with four minutes left. Long finished 8-of-15 from the field and 7-of-12 from long range in addition to a 7-of-9 effort from the charity stripe. Long had 16 at the break and 14 in the second half. It was the 15th 30-point effort in CMU history.

Chenise Miller, Eastern Michigan, Fr., Guard/Forward, Oak Park, Mich. / West Bloomfield
Freshman Chenise Miller made her presence felt in her collegiate debut Friday, Nov. 13, against the University of Illinois-Chicago. The Oak Park, Mich. native paced the EMU attack with a team-best 14 points on 7-of-12 shooting. She also hauled down seven rebounds to do with a block in 19 minutes of work off the bench.

Yoshica Spears, Kent State, Sr., Guard, Nome, Texas
Spears filled the stat line for Kent State, as the Golden Flashes rallied from a 12-point second-half deficit to defeat Robert Morris 62-57 on the road. Along with a career-tying high eight rebounds, Spears came off the bench for KSU and added seven points, three assists, two steals as well as a blocked shot on the game's final possession to seal the win.

Courtney Osborn, Miami , Fr., Guard, Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern
Had an impressive debut weekend as she was the team's leading scorer in both games. She tied for the team lead with 16 points in her first game of the season against Bucknell on Saturday. She followed it up with 22 points against Arizona of the PAC-10 on Sunday. She hit four three-pointers against the Wildcats. She also had five steals over the weekend. Named to All-Tournament Team of Iona Tip-Off Classic.

Jennifer Bushby, Ohio, Sr., Guard, Gahanna, Ohio (Gahanna Lincoln HS)
Bushby led Ohio in its season opener with eight points and a game-high nine rebounds, while also picking up two steals.

Tanika Mays, Toledo, Sr., Forward, Marion, IN (Marion)
Senior Tanika Mays averaged team highs in points (14.0 ppg), rebounds (8.0 rpg), steals (3.0 spg) and minutes played (32.0 mpg) in the first two games vs. Northwestern (Nov. 13) and Cleveland State (Nov. 15) this past weekend. In the opener against the Wildcats, Williams tallied her 12th collegiate double-double with 16 points and 10 caroms, to go along with six helpers and four thefts. Two days later vs. the Vikings, she registered 12 points, six boards, game-high five assists and two steals.  The Marion, IN native, who was named to the 2009-10 preseason All-MAC West Division team, averaged team highs in points (12.5 ppg), rebounds (6.3 rpg), steals (2.5 spg) and minutes played (31.3 mpg) a season ago, en route to earning second-team all-league honors.

Miame Giden, Western Michigan, So., Forward, Broadview, Ill./Proviso East
Sophomore Miame Giden averaged 14.5 points, three rebounds and 1.5 assists over two games this week. She was named to the All-Tournament Team at the Sheraton Raleigh Wolfpack Invitational. Giden has scored in double digits in all but six games of her career.