Red Hawks’ Thomas named NJCAA DII Player of the Week

For only the second time in program history, the Catawba Valley Community College men’s basketball program has received a weekly honor from the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA).

12/02/2021

Shad Thomas

Red Hawks freshman forward Shad Thomas was named the NJCAA’s Division II Player of the Week following two solid performances on the court last week.

Thomas was shocked when he found out the news on Wednesday afternoon.

“I was surprised first and foremost because I am a freshman,” Thomas said. “I didn’t expect that. I play hard every day, but I wasn’t expecting to be Player of the Week for NJCAA. I came here (to CVCC) with the mentally to work every day. Coach gets on us to go hard every day. If you don’t go hard in practice, you can’t play hard. You’ve always got to go hard every day.”

Thomas finished the week with 30 points scored, 26 rebounds, five steals and three blocks. His best performance in two games last week came on Saturday against Central Carolina where he scored 19 points and grabbed a career-high 19 rebounds.

The 6-foot-5 product from Winston-Salem is averaging 13.8 points and 11.7 rebounds per game this season. He’s recorded a double double in five of the Red Hawks’ seven games so far this 2021-22 season.

“I want to show my family that I’m doing something and not wasting time here,” Thomas said. “I focus each day on going to practice, doing my school work and just getting after it every day.”

Thomas joins former Red Hawk forward Jordan Powell as the only other winner of an NJCAA weekly honor. Powell was honored for his play on the week of Dec. 10-16, 2018.

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