The Associated Press national player of the week in men's basketball for Week 13 of the season: The 6-foot-3 freshman guard from Hickory, North Carolina, had two strong performances last week even as the 17th-ranked Wildcats lost twice. The Southeastern Conference's freshman of the week first had 20 points, four rebounds and four assists in an overtime loss to Florida. Then came a season-high 35 points on 14-for-20 shooting, including 6 of 8 from 3-point range, in a loss to No.
The senior guard from White Plains, New York, had 23 of his career-high 36 points after halftime as the third-ranked Tar Heels rolled to a win over Wake Forest. It was the most points scored by a North Carolina player at the Dean Smith Center since February 2008. Davis followed that with 24 points against Florida State, including a tough shot in the lane with 44 seconds left in a two-point game to help the Tar Heels win their fifth straight ACC road game.
The fifth-year senior from Thornton, Colorado, averaged 32.0 points and six rebounds in wins over Florida and Alabama. Knecht had 39 points and eight rebounds in an 85-66 win over Florida on Tuesday after scoring 36 against Georgia the week before to become the first SEC player since Shaquille O’Neal in 1991 to have consecutive 35-point games.