EIU's Cornell Johnston named OVC Player, Freshman of Week

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Published on January 19 2015 10:48 am
Last Updated on January 19 2015 10:48 am
Written by Millie Lange

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – Eastern Illinois freshman guard Cornell Johnston was named the Ohio Valley Conference Player and Freshman of the Week after helping lead the Panthers to a pair of road wins at Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State last week.  EIU is set to host Murray State on Thursday night at 8 p.m. in Lantz Arena.  The game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports.  All fans are encouraged to wear EIU Blue for a BLUE OUT LANTZ night.
 
Johnston scored 22 points on Saturday at Morehead State as he helped lead EIU to its ninth straight win.  The freshman guard was 7-of-8 from the floor including 4-of-4 from 3-point range in the win.  During Thursday’s win at Eastern Kentucky, Johnston scored 10 points making both of his 3-point attempts.  For the week he averaged 16 points per game with seven assists and three rebounds.  He was 6-of-6 from 3-point range and 10-of-14 (71 percent) from the floor.
 
For the season Johnston is averaging 7.8 points per game and shooting 45 percent from 3-point range.  He leads the team with 76 assists.
 
EIU enters the Murray State game with a 12-6 record, 6-0 in the OVC.  The Panthers nine straight wins set the school’s NCAA Division I record for consecutive wins and is the longest win streak for the school since the 1978 season when they placed 3rd in the NCAA Division II National Tournament.