| Nathan Plotner, Washington & Jefferson Photo by Stephen Rydzak for W&J athletics |
The Team of the Week is D3hoops.com’s weekly honor roll, in season No. 29 of recognizing the top performance at each of the five positions from the previous week.
| Men | Pos. | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Sawyer Butler, Jr. Franciscan |
G | Sawyer White, Sr. Illinois Wesleyan |
| Ben Pearce, Sr. Emory |
G | Lauren Sabia, Jr. Hartford |
| Dimetri Iafrate, Jr. Wheaton (MA) |
G | Amanda Leary, Sr. Springfield |
| Nathan Plotner, Jr. Washington & Jefferson |
F | Riley Brady, Jr. Hendrix |
| Noah Cleveland, So. Illinois Wesleyan |
F | C | Elyse Warren, Sr. Millsaps |
| Games of Dec. 15, 2025 – Jan. 4, 2026 | Previous seasons | All-time honorees | ||
Women’s
Sawyer White
White helped lead Illinois Wesleyan to two top-25 wins in a four-game stretch, averaging 19 points, four assists, four steals, and three rebounds per game. She scored 15 in a 78-76 win over No. 22 Bethel while her three steals allowed her to tie the IWU career record. Against No. 21 Carroll, White scored a career-high 37 on 13-19 shooting, including 8 of 11 from three. She also had eight steals, four assists, and three rebounds.
Lauren Sabia
Sabia averaged 18 points, five rebounds, two assists, and a steal over three games, as the Hawks went 2-1 on the week. Sabia, who comes off the bench, had a career-high 29 points, including a perfect seven of seven from deep in the lone loss, a 67-65 nailbiter at Babson. Overall she ended the week shooting 53% from the floor and 57% from three.
Amanda Leary
Leary was the standout performer at the 2026 Naismith Classic, leading Springfield to victories over Rivier and then-ranked Colby College. She scored 19 points per game with an 11 rebound average, shooting 71% from the floor. Leary also had four assists, four steals, and one block for the tournament and anchored a defense that allowed Colby just 15 made FGs, 29% shooting and 39 points, all season-lows.
Riley Brady
Brady had a historic weekend, helping Hendrix to a 2-0 start to conference play in a home and home matchup against Ozarks. On Friday, she put up 14 points and 17 rebounds. Then on Sunday, Brady made history, posting a 21-31 double-double in a 75-73 thriller. Her 31 rebounds set a new single-game record for both Hendrix women’s basketball and the SCAC. In four games over the break, Brady averaged 15 points, 20 rebounds, an assist, and two steals.
Elyse Warren
Warren had a historic and phenomenal two weeks for the Majors in a pair of victories. She set the program and SAA single-game rebounding record with 33 boards in a 55-36 triumph at Rhodes, where she also tied a career-high 24 points to go along with two steals and an assist. She averaged 18 points and 23 rebounds per game on 51% shooting.
Men’s
Sawyer Butler
Butler had a prolific holiday stretch, averaging 33 points per game and leading the Barons to three wins. Franciscan won the Doc Greene Tournament at Juniata with wins over Stevenson and Juniata. Butler scored 20 points in just 24 minutes against Stevenson, while going a perfect 12-12 from the free-throw line; against Juniata, he scored a program record 49 points, including eight made three-point field goals. He followed that up with 29 points in a win over Capital. On the week, Butler shot 55% (24-44) from the floor, 45% (10-22) from beyond the arc, and 85% (40-47) from the free throw line.
Ben Pearce
Pearce had a dominating four-game stretch over the holidays as he led No. 3 Emory to a 4-0 record against very strong opponents: No. 20 Christopher Newport (98-65), TCNJ (95-69), Bates (104-66), and Hampden-Sydney (101-73). He averaged 24 points, seven assists, four rebounds, and two steals per game. Pearce tied a career-high with 35 points to go along with a season-best 11 assists in the win over HSC.
Dimetri Iafrate
Iafrate was brilliant in a pair of games for the Lyons, averaging 26 points, four rebounds, six assists, and four steals to go with a gaudy 61% (19-31) shooting mark, including 58% from the three point line. He poured in a career-high 29 points in an 82-78 victory over Middlebury College in the first round of the Dr. Carol V. De Costa/Go 4 the Goal Tournament hosted by Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn, N.Y. Iafrate returned the next day to net 23 points on 8-12 from the floor and was 3-5 from long range in addition to seven assists, three rebounds and five steals against Bridgewater College (Va.) in a 65-56 win to capture the tournament title.
Nathan Plotner
Plotner shot 74% from the field (25-for-34) while averaging 26 points, six rebounds, five steals, and five blocks per game as the Presidents secured a pair of victories. He recorded 18 points, seven rebounds, six blocks, and six steals in a victory at Capital on Dec. 16. Against La Roche on Dec. 19, Plotner posted a career-high 33 points with four rebounds, four steals, and three blocks.
Noah Cleveland
Cleveland turned in a great winter break for the Titans, leading the team to four straight wins. He averaged 22 points, 13 rebounds, and two assists, shooting 59% from the field. Cleveland opened with a 36-point, 12-rebound effort at No. 8 WashU, the most points by a Titan in one game in a decade. He then went for 12 and 16 in a tight win at Yeshiva and 22 and 14 against Hamilton, also in New York. Finally, Cleveland closed out the stretch with 17 points, eight rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and a steal against Carroll in league play.