Russell Rau Named GNAC Co-Rookie of Week

WINTHROP, Mass. – Russell Rau (Fitchburg, Mass.), a forward on the Regis College men's basketball team, has been named Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Co-Rookie of the Week after helping the Pride to two victories last week, as announced Monday afternoon by the league office.

Last Wednesday against Saint Joseph's College, Rau shot 5-of-9 from the field and 6-of-6 from the free throw line to lead the Pride with 17 points. With Regis ahead by just two points late in the second half, he pulled down a defensive rebound and then hit a layup to extend that advantage to four at 74-70 with three minutes left. He then hit two free throws with 48 seconds showing on the clock to help the Pride clinch their first victory over the Monks in program history.

Saturday against Lesley, Rau repeated his 5-of-9 field goal shooting performance on his way to scoring 13 points, plus he grabbed 11 rebounds for his first career double-double and added a season- and team-high five assists. The first-year player collected 11 of his 13 points in the second half, including a key layup late in the contest to help the Pride clinch their third straight victory.

So far this season, Rau is averaging 11.1 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. Since being inserted into the starting lineup Nov. 17 at Emmanuel, he is averaging 17.0 points and 7.8 rebounds per contest, plus he is shooting 59.6 percent (31-of-52) from the field in the last five games and has dished out 13 assists without committing a turnover in that span.

Rau shares this week's award with Donte Pope of Emmanuel, who averaged 21.0 points per game as the Saints went 1-1, including a conference victory over Colby-Sawyer. Rau is the first Regis men's basketball player to receive a GNAC weekly honor since Feb. 3, 2020, when Cameron Wilkins was named GNAC Rookie of the Week for the third time during the 2019-20 campaign.

Regis College (4-4, 1-1 GNAC) resumes the 2021-22 season Tuesday, Jan. 4, against Rivier University starting at 7 p.m. at Higgins Court. That will begin a stretch of five games in nine days, with four of those contests taking place at home.