Monday, December 07, 2009

MACON, Ga. – Kennesaw State’s Markeith Cummings made quite the conference-debut for the Owls. In contests against Belmont and Lipscomb, the freshman recorded a pair of double-doubles to win his first Player of the Week award, the conference office announced on Monday.

The Savannah, Ga. native averaged 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists for the week. In the A-Sun opener against Belmont, Cummings blitzed the Bruins with a 32-point, 11-rebound game in which he hit the game-tying three-pointer amidst a bevy of Bruins to send the game to overtime. The 32-point effort set a Kennesaw State freshman record for points in a single game.

On Saturday night against Lipscomb, he registered a 10-point, 10-assist game for his fourth double-double in eight games this season. He went head-to-head with the Bisons Josh Slater, who also registered a points-assists double-double (29 points, 11 assists), marking the first such game in the country this season, and the first in A-Sun play in at least 14 years, to feature opposing players recording points-assists double-doubles. Cummings became the first freshman in the country this season to tally both a points-rebounds double-double and a points-assists double.

Cummings’ monster week pushed his scoring average to 17.3 points per game. He trails only the much-heralded John Wall from Kentucky among freshmen across the nation in that category.

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The Atlantic Sun Conference is an 11-member league committed to Building Winners for Life. The A-Sun stands for achievement with integrity in both the academic and athletic arenas, with a focus on the balance between the two for our student-athletes. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun boasts six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun includes a blend of the most prestigious and dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University.

Other Top Performers
Keaton Belcher, Belmont (Sr. - Forward - Butler, Ky. - Business Administration) Led the Bruins to a perfect 3-0 week in victories vs. Tennessee State, at Kennesaw State and at Mercer. Averaged 16.0 points and 4.3 rebounds per game this past week. Belcher registered a new career-high with 26 points on 9-for-14 shooting in Belmont's 75-70 overtime win at Kennesaw State.

James Florence, Mercer (Sr. - Guard – Marietta, Ga. – Communication Studies) Has posted double figures in all eight games this season. His 32 points vs. Lipscomb and 25 vs. Belmont were the 47th and 48th times in his career he has scored 20 or more. It was the 86th and 87th times he has scored in double figures.

Josh Slater, Lipscomb (Jr. - Guard - Nashville, Tenn. - Corporate Management) – Had a career high 24 points on 8-of-13 shooting at Mercer. He had six assists and three steals. Set a new career high with 29 points against Kennesaw State. He shot 11-of-15 from the field including a perfect 3-of-3 from beyond the arc. He had a double-double with a career high 11 assists. Slater came close to a triple-double with a team-high seven rebounds. For the week, averaged 26.5 points, 8.5 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.0 steals per game. He shot 67.9 percent (19-of-28) from the field and 66.7 (4-of-6) from the 3-point line.