Release courtesy USBWA
INDIANAPOLIS (USBWA) – Marcus Montagnino of Endicott College (Beverly, Mass.) and Alexa Charles of Hunter College (New York, N.Y.) were named the Basketball Writers Association Division III National Players of the Week for the period ending November 16.
Montagnino, a 6-4 graduate student forward from Gloucester, Mass., averaged a double-double in leading Endicott to a pair of victories last week. In a 71-62 win over MIT on Wednesday, he scored 24 points (7-of-12 FG, 10-of-12 FT), grabbed 11 rebounds and added five assists. On Sunday, Montagnino finished with 28 points (11-of-19 FG, 4-of-7 FT, 2-of-3 3FG), nine rebounds, an assist, and four steals in the Gulls’ 76-73 win over No. 4 (D3hoops.com) Tufts, Endicott’s first victory over a ranked opponent since 2018. For the week, he averaged 26.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2.0 steals, while shooting 58.1 percent (18-of-31) from the field, 73.6 percent (14-of-19) from the foul line and 66.6 percent (2-of-3) from behind the arc. For his efforts, Montagnino was also named the Conference of New England Player of the Week.
Charles, a 5-8 senior guard from Tarrytown, N.Y., produced outstanding numbers in three games for the Hawks last week. Against the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (receiving votes, D3hoops.com) on Monday, she posted her second triple-double of the season with 33 points (13-of-25 FG, 5-of-8 FT, 2-of-5 3FG), 12 rebounds and 10 steals, while adding five assists. Against Wesleyan on Saturday, Charles finished with 24 points (10-of-25 FG, 2-of-7 FT, 2-of-10 3FG), 13 rebounds, three assists, two steals, and block in a 65-57 loss. The next day, she totaled 40 points (15-of-27 FG, 7-of-8 FT, 3-of-7 3FG), five rebounds, two assists, seven steals, and two blocks in a 79-52 victory over Albertus Magnus. For the week, Charles averaged 32.3 points, 10.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 6.3 steals, and 1.0 blocks, while shooting 49.4 percent (38-of-77) from the field, 60.8 percent (14-of-23) from the foul line and 31.8 percent (7-of-22) from behind the arc. She is the active leader in NCAA Division III women’s basketball with 2,054 career points. For her efforts last week, Charles was selected to the Marriott Classic All-Tournament Team and was named the City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) Player of the Week.
Each Tuesday, the USBWA is selecting men's and women's Division III National Players of the Week. This is the 11th season that the USBWA will recognize national players of the week from Division III.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. It has selected an All-America team since the 1956-57 season. For more information on the USBWA and its award programs, contact executive director Malcolm Moran at 814-574-1485.
2025-26 USBWA Division III National Players of the Week
• Week ending Nov. 9: Sam Grieger, University of Wisconsin–La Crosse; Mary Schleusner, Washington & Lee University
• Week ending Nov.16: Marcus Montagnino, Endicott College; Alexa Charles, Hunter College
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