INDIANAPOLIS – Student-athletes from Ohio Dominican and Lake Erie enjoyed strong performances to earn Great Midwest Athletic Conference Basketball Players of the Week honors on Monday.
The Thanksgiving layover saw several teams compete as the conference schedule officially opens up on Thursday.
Men’s Basketball Player of the Week
Hasan Varence
Ohio Dominican
Forward
RS Senior
Queens, NY (Columbus Linden McKinley HS)
In regional action against Great Lakes Valley Conference opponents, Varence put up monster numbers to help get ODU primed for conference games.
The Panthers toppled Maryville and battled UMSL into overtime as the senior produced 28 points per game and 13.5 rebounds.
Varence had double-doubles in each matchup and connected on over 67 percent of his shots from the field, including five three-point baskets made.
Varence was a one-man wrecking crew vs. UMSL as he poured on 30 points and had 16 boards. He played a team-high 39 points and was 9-for-15 from the field while also adding three blocks.
Varence missed just one of his 10 free throw tries and hit three shots beyond the arc.
He carried that momentum to Maryville with a 12-for-16 game that resulted in 26 points and 11 rebounds in a 24-point margin of victory for the Panthers. Varence did his damage in just 24 minutes on the court.
Five of his rebounds were of the offensive variety and he also chipped in four assists, one steal and one block. For the season, Varence is the league’s leading scorer (20.6 ppg) and is second in rebounding (10 rpg) and seventh in field goal percentage (.538).
Women’s Basketball Player of the Week
Josie Chaddock
Lake Erie
Guard
Senior
Minerva, OH (Minerva HS)
Out in Alaska, Lake Erie turned in a stellar 3-0 outing at the McKinley Bank North Star Invitational with wins against Converse, Chadron State and host Alaska Fairbanks.
The Storm earned their first three victories of the season and head into the league schedule in the best way possible.
Chaddock, a senior, cracked the tough all-conference list last year as a junior and came through with MVP honors in the tournament with a strong individual effort.
Chaddock averaged 24 points, 7.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game, while shooting over 51 percent from the floor (22-of-43).
Chaddock started the Alaska trip with a double-double vs. Converse with 15 points and 11 rebounds while adding three assists. Against Chadron State, the senior had a game-high 26 points to go with seven rebounds and six assists.
She saved her best for last in the tournament finale with a career-high 32 points on 10-of-15 shooting. Chaddock had four boards and four more assists while going a perfect 11-for-11 at the charity stripe.
Chaddock also scored her 1,000th career point during the West Coast trip and made 27-of-30 free throws (90 percent) in the three games combined.
With the strong week, Chaddock climbed to third in the conference leaders in scoring (17.9 ppg) and is among the top 10 most efficient scorers in the league with a .450 field goal percentage.