DALLAS – WKU’s Dontaie Allen and Rice’s Mekhi Mason earned Conference USA Men’s Basketball weekly honors. The 2022-23 C-USA Players of the Week awards are presented by Blenders Eyewear and are voted on by the league’s sports information directors.
 
Allen made the most of his first two collegiate starts, averaging 23.5 points and seven rebounds per game in a pair of wins for the Hilltoppers (13-11, 5-8 C-USA). His back-to-back games of 22 points or more marked just the second time a WKU player has accomplished that feat this season. Allen knocked down half his field goals (14-28) and three-point attempts (9-18) on the week.
 
Mason picks up his third Freshman of the Week award of the season after averaging 14.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game for the Owls (15-8, 6-6 C-USA). He shot 57 percent from the field (8-14), 67 percent from three (4-6) and 75 percent from the free-throw line (9-12) all while averaging 35.5 minutes per game.
 
Player of the Week – Dontaie Allen, WKU – Guard/Forward – Falmouth, Ky.
In the Hilltoppers' first win of the week over UTSA, he scored a game-high 22 points, netting four shots from beyond the arc. He pulled down seven boards and played over 38 minutes, the most action he'd seen on the floor all year. Against UTEP on Saturday, he dropped a career- and game-high 25 points. He shot 8-15 from the floor and 5-8 from the 3-point line. Allen added a perfect 4-4 mark from the charity stripe along with seven boards, all in 34 minutes.
 
Freshman of the Week – Mekhi Mason, Rice – Guard – Gilbert, Ariz.
Mason began the week scoring 12 points in a road loss to Louisiana Tech in which Rice battled back from a 24-point deficit to take a late lead. He also grabbed four rebounds and had a team-high four assists. Mason followed that by scoring a team-high 17 points while grabbing five rebounds against North Texas. He connected on 5-8 attempts from the field, including 2-3 from three-point range, and sank 5-6 from the charity stripe.
 
2022-23 C-USA Players of the Week
N14     Luke Frampton, WKU
N21     Alijah Martin, Florida Atlantic
N28     Jordan Walker, UAB
D5       Quincy Olivari, Rice
D12     Dayvion McKnight, WKU
D19     Quincy Olivari, Rice
D26     Abou Ousmane, North Texas
J2        Brice Williams, Charlotte
J9        Denver Jones, FIU
J16      Dayvion McKnight, WKU
J23      Max Fiedler, Rice
J30      KJ Buffen, UAB
F6        Dontaie Allen, WKU
 
2022-23 C-USA Freshmen of the Week
N14     Jordan Crawford, LA Tech
N21     Dashon Gittens, FIU
N28     Mekhi Mason, Rice
D5       Nick Boyd, Florida Atlantic
D12     DJ Richards, UTSA
D19     DJ Richards, UTSA
D26     Jordan Crawford, LA Tech
J2        Mekhi Mason, Rice
J9        Arturo Dean, FIU
J16      Arturo Dean, FIU
J23      Dashon Gittens, FIU
J30      Arturo Dean, FIU
F6        Mekhi Mason, Rice