Larkin is National Player of the Week

ST. LOUIS (USBWA) – The U.S. Basketball Writers Association has selected Miami guard Shane Larkin as its Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week for games ending the week of Sunday, Feb. 3. The USBWA’s weekly honor is presented by Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook and will be handed out each Tuesday through Feb. 19 this season. As the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Week, Larkin was nominated for the weekly award, which was chosen by a representative of the USBWA board of directors from a list of Division I conference players of the week.
Larkin, a 5-11 sophomore from Orlando, Fla., averaged 19.0 points, 4.0 assists, 4.0 steals, 3.0 rebounds and 1.0 blocks in 38.5 minutes for the Hurricanes, who scored a pair of road conference wins to climb to No. 8 in the Associated Press poll. Larkin hit 60.9 percent (14-23) from the field, including 7-15 (.467) from 3-point range. In a 73-64 win at Virginia Tech last Wednesday, he scored 25 points, hitting a career-high five 3-pointers. Then, on Saturday at No. 19 N.C. State, Larkin had five steals and five assists while pulling down three rebounds. He scored 13 points in the 79-78 win.
This is the fourth season that the USBWA has selected a national player of the week. The weekly Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week will be considered for the Oscar Robertson Trophy watch list, which will be released at mid-season.
Since the 1958-59 season, the USBWA has named a National Player of the Year. In 1998, the award was named in honor of the University of Cincinnati Hall of Famer and two-time USBWA Player of the Year Oscar Robertson. It is the nation’s oldest award and the only one named after a former player.
At the conclusion of the regular season, the USBWA will name finalists for the award, which is voted on by the entire membership. The winner of the Oscar Robertson Trophy presented by Aflac will be presented by its namesake, Oscar Robertson, at the Devon Energy College Basketball Awards on April 15, 2013, at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. TheHenry Iba Coach of the Year Award and the Integris Wayman Tisdale Freshman of the Year Award will also be presented at the gala to be held annually the Monday following the NCAA Men’s Final Four.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. It has selected an All-America team since the 1956-57 season. For more information on the USBWA and the Oscar Robertson Trophy, contact executive director Joe Mitch at 314-795-6821.
Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook, the most comprehensive college basketball publication in the world, returns for its 32nd season, bigger and better in 2012-13. Blue Ribbon – long-known as “The Bible of College Basketball” – gives its readers the most thorough, up-to-date and timely evaluations of every Division I team in the country. For more information about Blue Ribbon Yearbooks, visit blueribbonyearbookonline.com.
2012-13 Oscar Robertson National Players of the Week• Week of Dec. 9: Brandon Paul, Illinois (Big Ten Conference)• Week of Dec. 16: Doug McDermott, Creighton (Missouri Valley Conference)• Week of Dec. 23: Victor Rudd, South Florida (Big East Conference)• Week of Dec. 30: Shabazz Muhammad, UCLA (Pac-12 Conference)• Week of Jan. 6: Trey Burke, Michigan (Big Ten Conference)• Week of Jan. 13: Elston Turner, Texas A&M (Southeastern Conference)• Week of Jan. 20: Roosevelt Jones, Butler (Atlantic 10 Conference)• Week of Jan. 27: Darrun Hilliard, Villanova (Big East Conference)• Week of Feb. 3: Shane Larkin, Miami (Atlantic Coast Conference)