JERSEY CITY, N.J. – Antwon Portley (Lancaster, Texas/Lancaster), a member of the Saint Peter's men's basketball team, has been named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Rookie of the Week for the week of Nov. 30-Dec. 6. It is the freshman's second conference honor in four weeks.
Portley averaged 18.0 points per game while shooting 52.2 percent (12-for-23) from the floor, 42.9 percent from behind the arc (6-for-14) and 75.0 percent (6 of 8) from the free throw line. The freshman scored a game-high 25 points in a 73-61 win against Rider on Wednesday after shooting 66.7 percent (10-for-15) from the floor and 55.6 percent (5 of 9) from 3-point land along with adding four rebounds and three assists. The Lancaster, Texas, native scored 15 of his 25 points in the second half against the Broncs, including keying an 18-4 run to start the second half with seven points to extend the Peacocks lead to 23 points. The freshman then added 11 points in a 72-68 win against Siena on Sunday. Portley notched nine of his 11 points in the second half against the Saints, including six points in the final two minutes and 38 seconds to help stave off a furious comeback attempt by Siena. He drained a trey to give Saint Peter's a 63-50 lead with 2:38 left and then made 3 of 4 from the charity stripe in the final 72 seconds of the game to help Saint Peter's be one of only two teams in the league to open the year 2-0.
Portley leads the Peacocks and ranks 10th in the conference with 16.7 points per game. The freshman has scored double figures in four-straight games and five times this season, including two 20-point performances and a career-high 30-point output in his collegiate debut against Brown on Nov. 13.
Portley, who was also named the MAAC Rookie of the Week for the first weekend of the season, becomes the first player since Wesley Jenkins to receive the MAAC Rookie of the Week nod twice after Jenkins received the honor on Nov. 26, 2007 and Dec. 23, 2007.
Saint Peter's opened league play with a victory for the first time since 2012-13 and won its first two conference games for the first time since the 2010-11 season. The Peacocks and Iona are the only two teams that won both games in the opening weekend and Saint Peter's will remain in a first-place tie with the Gaels for the rest of the 2015 calendar year. League play resumes on Jan. 2, but the next league game for the Jersey City team will be Jan. 4 at Marist.
The Peacocks close out the month of December with three non-conference games, starting with its annual neighboring rivalry against Seton Hall at the Prudential Center on Sunday. Game time is 2:30 p.m. and the contest will be broadcasted on Fox Sports 1.
