By Mike Bogen, The Republican


American International College guard Isiah Wallace has been named Northeast-10 Men's Basketball Freshman of the Week.

That's about as exciting as a game of Home Run Derby without the steroids - and it's Wallace's fault, pure and simple.

Wallace, the former Lahovich Award winner out of Sabis International Charter School, and son of Ricky Wallace, one of the all-time greats of Springfield high school basketball, has won the yearling award six times now and is practically a lock to become the conference's Rookie of the Year.

Only 23 games into his college career, Wallace is fifth in the NE-10 in scoring, averaging 17.7 points per game. He's sixth in rebounding, with 8 per game.

In his last game, He had 30 points, on 13 for 21 shooting in a 74-73 victory over Assumption, a performance that made the 6-foot-4 small forward optimistic.

"When I started college I really wanted to try to lead the conference in scoring and rebounding," says Wallace, "And I think I can if I can keep on like I did my last game."

The Assumption game was not, however, the contest Wallace considers his best of the season. That was the Yellow Jackets' 76-74 overtime victory over Merrimack, a game in which Wallace did not start, but scores 18 points, grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds and shot 75 percent (8 for 12) from the floor.

"I think I played my best against Merrimack at their house," Wallace says. " I had a good overall game, including defense. I played a lot of defense that game."

"Isiah has a unique feel for the game, a great knack for scoring," AIC coach Art Luptowski says. "He's got terrific hands, great balance, and he finishes ... he finishes against much taller players. He's not a great jumper, but he scores on people who other guys don't score on. Usually great finishers are tall, but he's not, and he's not exceptionally athletic, but he has the knack. He's just a great finisher."

What Wallace is not, Luptowski says, is a great perimeter shooter. But, the coach sees no reason why he can't become one.

"With all the things he brings, Isiah is not a 3-point shooter., His range is something he needs to work on. But he's real good from 15 to 17 feet. Increasing that range on a consistent basis will be a real key to his growth as a player," Luptowski says.

And just how much growth can Wallace sustain in the next three years?

"I think he has the potential to be one of the best players who ever played here," Luptowski says. "He's got some things to work on, but it's always good to know that when somebody achieves his level of success, there's still something to work on, something left to improve. That's potential.