ST. LOUIS -- Bradley freshman point guard Sam Maniscalco (Chicago, Ill./St. Patrick H.S.) is the Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Week, according to an announcement from the league office this afternoon. Maniscalco provided some clutch play in each of Bradley's two games last week, a pair of one-point decisions at Carver Arena, while averaging 13.0 points, 6.5 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game.
In Wednesday's 69-68 loss to league-leading Drake, Maniscalco contributed 13 points, career-bests of seven assists and six rebounds, as well as two steals in Bradley's upset bid. Notably, he converted an old-fashioned 3-point play with 3:46 left in the game to give the Braves a seven-point cushion, then sank a deep 3-pointer from the right wing to give Bradley a 68-67 lead with 10.7 seconds remaining.
Maniscalco added 13 points, all in the second half, along with six assists and three steals in Saturday's 77-76 win against Evansville. In a remarkable twist of fate, Maniscalco again scored the go-ahead points by calmly sinking two free throws with 10.4 seconds remaining. He then helped force Evansville point guard Jason Holsinger into a turnover on the game's final possession to preserve the win. Continuing to serve as Bradley's starting point guard in the absence of injured senior Daniel Ruffin, Maniscalco played 68 minutes in the two games and committed only two turnovers to go along with his 13 assists.
The starter in all seven Valley games to date, Maniscalco has averaged 12.7 points and 5.1 assists in league play. Maniscalco's conference scoring average is second among all league newcomers, his assists are tied for second among all players and he leads the league with a 2.25 assists-to-turnover ratio in MVC games. The 5-foot-10 freshman also has played a league-high 36.7 minutes through the first seven games of conference play and he is tied for sixth by averaging 2.43 3-pointers per game. With 29 treys to date overall this year, Maniscalco is on pace to challenge Anthony Parker's 1993-94 school record of 47 3-pointers made in a season by a Bradley freshman.
Maniscalco becomes the third Bradley player to win the Valley's Newcomer-of-the-Week award this season and he is the fifth Brave overall to be honored by the league this year. Junior center David Collins was the Newcomer of the Week Nov. 19 and senior guard Jeremy Crouch was the Player of the Week Dec. 3, while sophomore guard Andrew Warren (Player) and junior forward Theron Wilson (Newcomer) swept the league's weekly awards Dec. 17. Maniscalco becomes just the third Bradley freshman in the five-year history of the award to win The Valley's Newcomer-of-the-Week honor, following two-time winner Patrick O'Bryant (Nov. 29; Feb. 28) and Ruffin (Dec. 20), both during the 2004-05 season.
In addition to his play on the court last week, Maniscalco also has been recognized today for his performance in the classroom during the 2007 Fall Semester. Maniscalco was one of four men's basketball players to earn a spot on the Bradley Athletic Director's Honor Roll for posting a minimum 3.0 grade point average during the Fall term. Enrolled in Bradley's award-winning Academic Exploration Program, Maniscalco recorded a 3.20 GPA last fall.
Maniscalco and the Braves (9-10, 2-5 MVC) will return to action Wednesday by hosting Interstate 74 rival Illinois State (14-4, 6-1) in a 7:05 p.m. clash at Carver Arena. Last year's game at Carver Arena drew a then record crowd of 11,444 fans and resulted in an 88-67 Bradley victory. As of Monday afternoon, less than 500 seats remained for the 105th meeting in the series, which Bradley leads by a 59-45 count.
