Nov. 17, 2008

Center Valley, Pa. - The first Patriot League/Anaconda Men's Basketball Players of the Week for the 2008-09 season were awarded Monday, with Lehigh junior forward Zahir Carrington claiming the Player of the Week award and Holy Cross freshman guard R.J. Evans earning Rookie of the Week honors.

Carrington led the Mountain Hawks to a season-opening victory at St. Peter's on Saturday by scoring 21 points on 8-for-14 shooting and also recording a career-high four steals. Evans led Holy Cross to a 2-0 start at home over the weekend, scoring a team-high 15 points against Sacred Heart on Friday and notching 12 points in an overtime victory against St. Joseph's on Sunday.

Patriot League/Anaconda Player of the Week

Zahir Carrington, Lehigh Jr., F, 6'7, 225, Philadelphia, Pa./ Masterman

Carrington had a big effort to lead Lehigh to a 79-62 victory in its season opener at St. Peter's on Saturday. The junior forward from Philadelphia finished with a team-high 21 points on 8-for-14 shooting from the field and 5-for-6 from the foul line. It was Carrington's third career game with 20 points or more. He also pulled in five rebounds and tallied a career-high four steals and a block to lead Lehigh to its first win in a road opener since the 1998-99 campaign. Carrington earns his first career Player of the Week award, and the first for a Lehigh student-athlete since the 2006-07 season.

Patriot League/Anaconda Rookie of the Week

R.J. Evans, Holy Cross Fr., G, 6'3, 200, Salem, Conn./Norwich Free Academy

Evans began his career in style to earn the first Rookie of the Week award of the season. He led the Crusaders with 15 points on 7-for-12 shooting in a 67-58 season-opening victory over Sacred Heart on Friday. Evans had the most points by a Holy Cross player in his collegiate debut since Torey Thomas scored 18 against Boston University on Nov. 22, 2003, and was also the first Crusader to lead the team in scoring in his first collegiate game since Thomas did it five years ago. Evans helped Holy Cross begin its season with a 2-0 mark by scoring 12 points in a 73-69 overtime victory against St. Joseph's on Sunday. Evans averaged 13.5 points and 2.5 rebounds in the two games.