Smith Named NEC/Atlantic Tomorrow's Office Men's Basketball Rookie of the Week; Haid Prime Performer
Darin Smith, Jr. of the Central Connecticut men's basketball team earned Northeast Conference/Atlantic Tomorrow's Office Player of the Week honors it was announced on Monday. Smith was joined by Devin Haid who earned a spot on the league's Prime Performer.
Smith capped the regular season by taking home his fourth NEC Rookie of the Week accolade, tying him for the most on the circuit. Coming off the bench, he helped contribute to CCSU's season-ending sweep, which extended the Blue Devils' nation-leading win streak to 12 games. Smith averaged 9.5 points and 5.5 rebounds while shooting 50.0 percent from the field, 40.0 percent from three-point range and 87.5 percent from the free-throw line for the NEC regular season champs. Smith tallied seven points and four rebounds in an 84-75 victory over Le Moyne, then rose to the occasion two days later in the Blue Devils' hard-fought 55-48 win at Wagner to close out the regular season. In 26 turnover-free minutes, he posted 12 points, seven rebounds and a steal. Smith came alive in the final 10 minutes, scoring nine points, including a big jumper that extended CCSU's lead to six with 3:04 remaining. He sealed the victory with three free throws in the final 1:19. The Springfield, MA product currently leads the NEC in three-point shooting accuracy (.452) and is shooting 51.4 percent from the field on the season.
Haid narrowly missed a double-double with 18 points, nine rebounds and six assists in a terrific all-around effort during CCSU's win over Le Moyne on Thursday. He currently ranks seventh in the NEC in scoring (13.7), fourth in FT% (.849), fifth in FG% (.488), sixth in steals (1.5) and eighth in rebounding (5.7).
The Northeast Conference tips on Wednesday. The top-seeded Blue Devils host Le Moyne at 7:00 p.m. Tickets for the game are available at CCSUBlueDevils.com/CCSUTickets
