By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – Parker Stewart, a graduate guard on the University of Tennessee at Martin men’s basketball team, was named Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Week this afternoon.
Stewart helped lead the Skyhawks to a sweep last week, averaging 25.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per contest. The 6-5, 205-pound sharpshooter was lethal from three-point range, splashing 66.7 percent (12-for-18) of his attempts from downtown. Overall, he shot 53.3 percent (16-of-30) from the floor and was a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line in wins over SIUE (90-84 on Feb. 16) and Tennessee Tech (100-91 on Feb. 18).
The Union City, Tenn. native put on an impressive scoring display at Tennessee Tech, going off for 32 points in 33 minutes of playing time. Stewart sank eight of his nine 3-point tries (one shy of the program’s NCAA Division I Era record), marking the fourth instance of at least seven triples in a game this season. It was his sixth 30-plus point performance in 51 career games in a UT Martin uniform, which is tied for the second-most all-time in school history.
Two days earlier against SIUE, Stewart compiled 18 points – tacking on four more trifectas while going 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.
Stewart, who also won OVC Player of the Week accolades on Dec. 5, currently ranks second in the league in three-point field goals made (3.1 per game), third in scoring (17.1 points per contest) and 10th in steals (1.3 per outing). He also leads the Skyhawks in minutes played (31.0 per game) and three-point field goal percentage (.384) while adding 4.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.3 steals per contest.
UT Martin enters the final week of the regular season in a two-way tie for second place in the OVC standings. The Skyhawks host Tennessee State for an ESPNU contest on Thursday, Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. before traveling to OVC-leading Morehead State on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 2 p.m. CST.
Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information