Hunter wins CAA player and rookie of the week awards

Georgia State’s R.J. Hunter was named the CAA player of the week and rookie of the week on Monday.

He is the first freshman to sweep both honors since Drexel’s Chris Fouch in 2010.

It is the sixth freshman of the week honor for Hunter this season and his first player of the week award.

Hunter matched his career high with 27 points in a 78-73 win over Northeastern, handing the Huskies their first loss in the Colonial Athletic Association this season.

He topped that with 38 points in Saturday’s 83-63 win over Old Dominion. He scored 19 consecutive points against the Monarchs during a second-half stretch. He hit 10 15 3-pointers, tying the conference record. It broke the previous school record of nine set most recently by Thomas Terrell in 2001. Hunter’s 38 is the seventh-most points in school history, tying the mark set most recently by Anton Reese in 1998. It is also the most points scored by a freshman this year.

Hunter leads all CAA freshmen in scoring (17.3) and rebounding (5.5). He is one of just four freshmen in the country averaging at least 17 points and 5 rebounds per game this season. He is sixth in the nation among all freshmen in scoring.