AMHERST, N.Y. - Katie Titus (Penfield, N.Y.) of Daemen College has been named the East Coast Conference Women's Basketball Defensive Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week for games played Jan. 14-20. The official announcement was made via the league's weekly sport report which was released this afternoon from conference headquarters in West Babylon, N.Y.
Titus, a 6-foot freshman forward, led the Wildcats to conference wins at Mercy College (72-47) and the University of Bridgeport (75-53) this past weekend. She shot 50-percent (14-28) from the field overall and from three-point land (5-10), and averaged 19.0 points, 15.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.0 blocks over the two games. The wins extended Daemen's winning streak for four-straight games and pushed its overall record to 8-8 and 5-2 in the ECC. The four-game winning streak is the program's longest since winning five in a row midway through the 2016-17 season.
Titus opened the weekend by scoring 17 points and grabbing a career-high 16 rebounds in the win over Mercy. She connected on 8-of-12 shots in the contest and also totaled two assists, a block and a steal. She followed up with 21 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks in the win over Bridgeport. She scored 16 of her 21 points in the second half and also connected on 4-of-7 three-pointers in the game. It marked her third game this season with multiple three-pointers.
The Our Lady of Mercy graduate has played a huge role during Daemen's four-game winning streak, as she has shot 52-percent (34-66) from the field overall and has averaged 21 points and 13 rebounds. She has also connected on 8-of-19 from downtown over the past four games.
It's the third week this season that Titus has collected accolades from the conference. She was previously named ECC Player of the Week (Jan. 7-13) and ECC Defensive Player of the Week (Nov. 12-18). She is the only player to collect all three honors this season. Titus was named ECC Player of the Week last week after totaling 46 points and 21 rebounds during home wins over Molloy College and Queens College. She became the first freshman to earn ECC Player of the Week honors this season, and also became the first Daemen player to be named ECC Player of the Week since Sarah Saba last January. She was named the ECC Defensive Player of the Week for Nov. 12-18 when she registered 12 defensive rebounds, three blocks and two steals in a come-from-behind victory over Mercyhurst University.
Titus has appeared in all 16 games this season and has made nine starts, including the last eight games. She is averaging 9.1 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 1.0 blocks per game. She ranks among the team's leaders in scoring (third), rebounding (first), field goals (second), steals (third) and blocks (second). She has averaged a team-high 13.1 points and a team-high 9.1 rebounds during Daemen's seven conference games, and currently ranks second among ECC freshmen in points per game (9.1).
Daemen will face a tough test when it opens a three-game home stand against St. Thomas Aquinas College Friday night (Jan. 25). STAC (16-2, 7-0 ECC) sits atop the ECC standings and is ranked fifth in the latest Division II Sports Information Director's Association East Region poll. The Spartans bring a seven-game winning streak into Daemen's Lumsden Gymnasium.
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