Richards Becomes Third Wildcat to Earn SoCon POTW Honors
12/19/2006 9:56:21 AM | Men's Basketball
DAVIDSON, N.C. — Jason Richards of the Davidson College men's basketball team has been named the Southern Conference Player of the Week for the week ending Dec. 19 as announced by the league office Tuesday afternoon. Richards becomes the third Wildcat to receive the honor this season as Stephen Curry (Nov. 21) and Thomas Sander (Dec. 5) were tabbed earlier in the campaign.
A native of Barrington, Ill., Richards averaged a double-double for the week with 11 points and 14 assists per game, while helping Davidson to a 2-0 mark. He also grabbed 15 rebounds for an average of 7.5.
In the Wildcats 116-55 victory over Mount Saint Mary, Richards set a new school record and tied the league mark for assists in a game with 19. He broke Chris Dodds and Mike Sorrentino's Wildcat mark of 17 that lasted 35 and 29 years, respectively. The 6-1 guard was just one assist shy of holding the SoCon record outright; he now shares a place in the record books with Keith Jennings, who played at East Tennessee State from 1987-91.
Last night, Richards scored 19 points, dished out nine assists and grabbed a career-best eight rebounds to lead Davidson to its fifth straight win and 3-0 start in the SoCon with a 92-80 triumph at conference foe Chattanooga. The junior tri-captain nailed three trifectas and scored 17 of his points in the final 10 minutes of the contest against the Mocs.
On the season, he is averaging 11.7 points, 8.3 assists and 3.8 rebounds per outing. Richards leads the nation in total assists with 100 and ranks just behind Jared Jordan (8.5) of Marist for the top spot in assists per game.
Richards has dished out 10 or more assists in a contest four times this season and has gone over 15 on two separate occasions.
The Wildcats are 9-3 overall and sit alone in first place in the Southern Conference South Division standings. Davidson next plays at the Arizona State Hoops Classic on Thursday, Dec. 21 at 9 p.m. (MST) against the Ohio Bobcats.
