JAN. 21 (awards based on games played Monday-Sunday)
PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Luke Walton, Arizona
The big redhead, Bill Walton, has to be proud of his son. He started the week with a triple-double in a big win over USC. Luke had 27 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists against the Trojans in a game that turned out to be an M&Mer, a total mismatch.
He not only put up impressive numbers but also played solid defense against Henry Bibby's squad. Arizona raced out to a 32-7 lead en route to the easy W.
The younger Walton came up big as his Wildcats rallied from a 20-point deficit to defeat UCLA on Saturday. He had 18 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
CO-TEAMS OF THE WEEK: Kansas and Arizona
The Jayhawks were brilliant vs. Oklahoma on Saturday, building up a big lead before the Sooners made a big run. Kansas hung on for the important win.
Roy Williams' team also dominated on the road, winning convincingly at Oklahoma State. Kansas started the game on a 20-4 run and never looked back. That set the Cowboys into a tailspin, as Eddie Sutton's team was blitzed by Bobby Knight and Texas Tech on Saturday.
Kansas is a well-drilled, experienced team. It has the combination of Nick Collison and Drew Gooden, my pick for the best 1-2 inside punch in America. Kirk Heinrich is showing that he is something special in the backcourt.
Arizona took care of the L.A. tandem of USC and UCLA. The Wildcats showed lots of guts, coming back from 20 points down in the second half against the Bruins.
Lute Olson's team has been a pleasant surprise this season, starting with the fast start at the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic at Madison Square Garden. The performance has been impressive considering the loss of firepower from last season's squad (Richard Jefferson, Gilbert Arenas and Michael Wright left early for the NBA and Loren Woods graduated).
COACH OF THE WEEK: Mike Krzyzewski, Duke
He is a master motivator whose teams responded to the challenge of two ranked opponents in less than a 48-hour span. Coach K gets the most out of his players and his kids understand their roles.
First, Duke took care of intense ACC rival Maryland, pulling away with a solid performance in the second half. The Blue Devils followed up with a Saturday afternoon victory over Wake Forest.
Duke's Dahntay Jones was brilliant defending against Juan Dixon. Then he finished off the week with an offensive explosion in the first half against Wake, scoring 20 points before intermission.
Coach K is a brilliant strategist and his Blue Devils took care of business against quality competition.
SHOCK OF THE WEEK: St. John's over Boston College
Mike Jarvis' team lost its first two Big East road games by 20-plus points at Pittsburgh and Providence. That said, winning at Chestnut Hill was Shock City!
Boston College continued its Conte Forum slide. After losing at home to Pittsburgh and Georgetown, it was another disappointment against St. John's (BC finally broke the home losing streak by beating Virginia Tech on Sunday). The Red Storm found a way to beat Troy Bell and company thanks to solid defense on the All-American hopeful.
DIAPER DANDY OF THE WEEK: Ryan Gomes, Providence
We'll stay in the Big East and salute the Friar. Tim Welsh's team had a couple of tough games last week, falling to Connecticut and Miami. Gomes put up impressive stats; he was brilliant, hitting 14-of-20 shots, scoring 31 points while grabbing 12 boards in an overtime loss at Miami. Gomes had 17 points and nine rebounds against Connecticut earlier in the week.
