Russell Rau Named GNAC Player of Week

WINTHROP, Mass. - Sophomore forward Russell Rau (Fitchburg, Mass.) has been named the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Men's Basketball Player of the Week after leading the Pride to two key victories over the past week, announced Monday afternoon, Jan. 30, by the league office.

Last Thursday at Norwich, Rau scored a career-high 31 points on 11-for-16 field goal shooting, including four three-pointers, and a perfect 5-for-5 free throw shooting performance. It was the eighth time that a Regis men's basketball player scored at least 30 points in a single game and moved Rau into a tie for fourth place for highest single-game total in program history.

Saturday against Johnson and Wales, Rau notched his ninth career double-double, leading the Pride with 21 points and 14 rebounds. He collected 15 points and nine rebounds in the second half to lead Regis back from a 16-point halftime deficit to the victory, sweeping the season series from the Wildcats and moving into fourth place in the GNAC South Division.

For the season, Rau is now averaging 15.8 points and 8.6 rebounds per game, third in the GNAC in rebounding and seventh in the league in scoring. Over his last 10 games, Rau has hit 94.6 percent (35-for-37) of his free throw attempts to move into second place in the conference in free throw percentage at 86 percent.

Regis College (10-9, 6-6 GNAC) continues its five-game homestand this week with games against Anna Maria Thursday, Feb. 2, at 7 p.m. and Colby-Sawyer Saturday, Feb. 4, at 3 p.m.