Xavier Silas
Northern Illinois senior guard Xavier Silas was named the Mid-American Conference West Division Player of the Week on Monday following the Huskies pair of victories over Eastern Michigan and Toledo.
Silas averaged 25.5 points and 4.5 rebounds to earn his fourth Player of the Week award of the season; he was also named MAC West Player of the Week on Nov. 22, Nov. 29 and Dec. 19. Silas and Kent State’s Justin Greene are the only two players in the MAC to earn Player of the Week honors four times this season.
Silas began last week with 31 points and four rebounds to help NIU to a 71-69 win at Eastern Michigan on last Tuesday. The senior from Austin, Texas, shot 78.6 percent (11-of-14) from the floor against the Eagles, including a perfect 6-of-6 from beyond the three-point line. It was the fifth time this season, and sixth time in his career, that Silas scored 30-or-more points in a game, the win also marked NIU’s first victory at Eastern Michigan since 2006.
NIU completed an undefeated week on Saturday with a 64-54 victory at home over Toledo as Silas netted a team-high 20 points and grabbed five rebounds. Silas opened the game against the Rockets 3-of-3 from three-point range, giving him nine-straight triples made dating back to the Eastern Michigan contest. He finished with four three-pointers against Toledo.
In the two victories for the week, Silas combined to shoot 58.6 percent (17-of-29) from the field, including 10-of-15 (66.7 percent) from beyond the three-point arc.
At 23.6 points per game, Silas currently ranks fourth in the nation in scoring. He also leads the MAC in free throw percentage, shooting 87.7 percent (100-of-114) from the charity stripe and is third in the league in three-point percentage at 44.7 percent (34-of-76).
Silas and the Huskies travel to the State of Michigan for a pair of games this weekend. NIU starts its two-game road trip on Thursday, Jan. 20, at Central Michigan, game time is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT. The trip concludes on Saturday, Jan. 22, when NIU visits Western Michigan for a 1 p.m. CT tip off in Kalamazoo.
