Atkins Repeats As ECC Defensive Player of the Week

11/20/2023 2:54:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Tom McDermott, Director of Athletics Communications | tmcdermo@daemen.edu

AMHERST, N.Y. – Joey Atkins (Watervliet, N.Y.) of the Daemen University men's basketball team has been honored by the East Coast Conference for his play last week. Atkins was selected the ECC Men's Basketball Defensive Player of the Week for games played Nov. 13-19. The announcement of award winners was made via the league's weekly sport report, which was released this afternoon. It marks the second-straight week Atkins has collected the award. It is also the fifth time in his career that Atkins has collected a weekly honor from the ECC. He was named the ECC Player of the Week once and ECC Defensive Player of the Week twice last year.

Atkins helped the Wildcats limit their two opponents to 69 points per game during a 1-1 week. The Daemen graduate student contributed nine points, six rebounds (five defensive), a block, and a steal during a 64-63 win at nationally-ranked Mercyhurst University and capped the week with 19 points, a career-high 13 rebounds (11 defensive), a career-high five steals, and one block in a 75-72 loss at regionally-ranked Dominican University, which had scored over 100 points in its first two games.

Atkins was a first-team All-ECC selection last year and was recently named the 2023-24 ECC Preseason Player of the Year. He opened the 2023-24 season with a career-high 23 points in a loss to Western Washington University during the CCA Division II Canadian Tip-Off Classic and has scored in double figures in four of the seven games this season. He is averaging 12.9 points and 6.6 rebounds and leads the ECC in steals (14) and blocks (9). He recorded his 100th career block during the loss to Dominican this past weekend.

Daemen stands at 4-3 on the year and returns to action tomorrow (Nov. 21) when it hosts Slippery Rock University. Game time is 6 p.m. at Lumsden Gymnasium.

Daemen University features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.

Follow the Daemen University men's basketball program on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @DaemenMBB.

Print Friendly Version