Dec. 31, 2001

LAS VEGAS - UNLV junior guard Marcus Banks has been named the Mountain West Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week after leading the Runnin' Rebels to two victories last week.

Banks averaged 30 points, four rebounds, five assists and 3.5 steals in victories over Tennessee State and Old Dominion at the Thomas & Mack Center. He shot 64 percent from the field (18-of-28), 67 percent from 3-point range (4-of-6) and 95 percent from the free throw line (20-of-21).

In the 101-83 win vs. Tennessee State, Banks scored a then career-high 29 points on 9-of-13 shooting, including 2-of-3 from 3-point range and 9-of-10 from the charity stripe. He also had a career-high tying six assists, five rebounds and five steals in 30 minutes of action.

Against Old Dominion, Banks led the Runnin' Rebels to a second-half comeback win, 84-76, with a career-high 31 points on 9-of-15 shooting, including 2-of-3 from 3-point land and a perfect 11-of-11 from the free throw line. He also had four assists, three rebounds and two steals in 35 minutes of action.

Banks currently ranks third in the conference in scoring at 17.6 points per game and has posted new career highs for points in each of the last four contests (22, 26, 29, 31).

This is Banks' first player of the week honor of his career and the second for a UNLV player this year. Junior forward Dalron Johnson was named player of the week on Dec. 17.