NESCAC Men's Basketball Weekly Release #2
MMBCWA Release for week ending Nov. 24
HADLEY, Mass. – Junior Graham Safford has earned NESCAC Men's Basketball Player of the Week honors after averaging 25 points per game last week, the New England Small College Athletic Conference announced on Monday. On Tuesday, Safford also picked up Maine Player of the Week honors from the Maine Men's Basketball Coaches and Writers Association.
Graham Safford '15 averaged 25.0 points per game last week to earn NESCAC and Maine Player of the Week honors. (File photo by Sarah Crosby/Bates College)
A team captain, Safford recorded 7.7 assists, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game to go with his 25.0 points per contest to help lead Bates to a 2-1 record for the week of Nov. 18-24. He shot .558 (24-43) from the field and .500 (9-18) from behind the arc.
In the team's final game of the week, the Hampden, Maine, native tallied a career-high 32 points in the Bobcats' 72-54 win over the University of New England on Saturday. He connected on 8-of-14 shots from the floor, 5-of-8 three-pointers, and 11-of-12 free throws while adding six rebounds and six assists. Safford netted 22 points in the second half including 14 during a decisive 17-3 run in the period.
Earlier in the week, the 6-1 guard posted a career-best nine assists to go with 13 points in just 19 minutes as the Bobcats topped Thomas College 114-61 on Nov. 21, scoring over 100 points for the second time in four games. Two days prior to that, Safford notched 30 points – a career-high prior to his performance against UNE – in addition to eight assists and six rebounds in an 82-77 loss to St. Joseph's College of Maine.
A Maine All-Rookie Team honoree as a first-year, Safford currently leads the NESCAC in assists (6.80) while ranking third in the conference in points (19.4) and tied for fourth in steals (1.80). His efforts have helped the Bobcats to pace the league in scoring defense, field goal percentage defense, and rebounding margin.
Safford's selection marks the first time that a Bobcat has captured such accolades since John Squires '12 did so on Feb. 22, 2012 as he led Bates to a 57-54 win over Tufts in the quarterfinals of the NESCAC Championship with 25 points and 13 rebounds.
