Winthrop’s Xavier Cooks named Big South player of the week

Winthrop junior forward Xavier Cooks was named the Big South Conference men’s basketball player of the week on Monday, while Charleston Southern freshman guard Christian Keeling was selected the freshman of the week for games played Feb. 13-19.

Cooks averaged 17.5 points, 16.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and two blocks in leading Winthrop to a pair of Big South wins. He opened the week with 21 points, 20 boards and two rejections in the Eagles’ victory at Longwood last Wednesday, which included a double-double in the first half. It was Winthrop’s first 20-20 game since 2003.

Cooks added another double-double in Winthrop’s win over Liberty on Saturday with 14 points and 13 rebounds, in addition to four assists and two blocks. The junior from Australia grabbed double-digit defensive rebounds in both contests and shot 52 percent from the field.

The 6-foot-8 Cooks has 200 defensive rebounds on the season, 19 more than any other Big South player. This week’s award is his second of the season.

Keeling posted averages of 18.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals in two Charleston Southern victories last week.

This story was originally published February 20, 2017 at 3:39 PM with the headline "Winthrop’s Xavier Cooks named Big South player of the week."