MONROE, La. – Senior guard Tony Hooper of the ULM men’s basketball team was named the Louisiana Sports Writers Association Men’s Basketball Player of the Week today (March 8) following his performance at the Sun Belt Conference Tournament. In two games in the tournament, Hooper averaged 18.5 points and 7.0 rebounds while also dishing out four assists and recording four steals.
Hooper earned the second-straight LSWA Player of the Week honor for the Warhawks. Last week, senior guard Dynile Forbes was named player of the week for the second time this season.
In the opening round against Louisiana-Lafayette on Saturday (March 6), Hooper poured in a season-high 30 points, including a game-winning three-pointer with less than a second left, to lift ULM past the Ragin’ Cajuns, 76-75. Hooper made seven threes in the game against Louisiana-Lafayette, he also grabbed eight rebounds and had three steals in 36 minutes played.
Hooper’s 30 points are a school record for a Sun Belt Tournament game and helped the Warhawks earn their first win in the tournament since the 2006-07 season.
Against Sun Belt West Division Champion North Texas in the quarterfinals on Sunday (March 7), Hooper scored seven points, grabbed six rebounds and had three assists. His biggest shot of the contest came with 1:17 to play when he buried a triple to give ULM a 64-63 lead, just after North Texas had taken a lead of its own on the previous possession. The Warhawks came up just a bit short in the contest, falling to the Mean Green, 69-66.
The loss to North Texas was the final game in an outstanding collegiate career for Hooper. He concludes his career as ULM’s all-time leader in steals with 208, he is also second in three-point field goals made (236), sixth in scoring (1,592 points) and seventh in assists (339).
Courtesy: ulmwarhawks.com
