For the second week in a row, Wisconsin forward Nigel Hayes has been awarded Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors.
After scoring a career-high 19 points against Northwestern last Thursday on a night when seemingly everything he threw up went in (8-for-12 shooting), Hayes put forth a more workman-like effort in last night's clash with Iowa.
Surprisingly, Hayes was UW's highest-usage player in the team's 75-71 win over the Hawkeyes. The freshman scored only eight points in his 14 minutes, but was a steady, go-to player on the block as Iowa could not stop him without fouling. He earned as many trips to the charity stripe (five) than he had official field goal attempts (four). Hayes hit six of those free throws, including a crucial pair with 3:38 remaining to maintain a two-possession lead.
Hayes is averaging 13.5 points and five rebounds in Big Ten play and is second on the team in free throw attempts (61).