University of Georgia women’s basketball sophomore Caliya Robinson has been named the ESPNW National Player of the week. Caliya led the Lady Bulldog basketball team to back-to-back wins, including a thrilling 81-78 double overtime victory against No. 25 Tennessee on Sunday.
Robinson becomes just the second Lady Bulldog all-time to win the National Player of the Week honor, joining Kedra Holland-Corn, who earned the distinction in 1997. ESPN analysts Charlie Creme, Graham Hays and Mechelle Voepel each vote to determine ESPNW’s National Player of the Week, which is awarded every week of the women’s college basketball season.
“What a tremendous accomplishment for Caliya,” head coach Joni Taylor said. “Caliya’s numbers speak for themselves. To score over 20 points on the road and then to follow with a 28-point performance against Tennessee was really impressive. She has the potential to be one of the best players in this conference if she makes her mind up to do so. She has made a conscious effort to do more the last few games and I’m happy that her efforts paid off.”
Robinson finished with 28 points, just two shy of matching her career high, against Tennessee. She scored 21 of those in the second half and overtime periods with a couple of big shots late in the game, including a put back off a missed 3-pointer that put the Lady Bulldogs up by five with 33 seconds remaining in the second overtime.
The performance against Tennessee followed just days after Robinson came close to recording the program’s fourth all-time triple double with 20 points, nine rebounds and a career-best seven blocks at Arkansas.
Among other notable accomplishments, Robinson has now scored 20 or more points seven times this season and is one of only four Lady Bulldogs since 2000, joining Tasha Humphrey, Christi Thomas and Kara Braxton, to record three or more 20-point, 10-rebound games in their careers. Earlier this season, Robinson scored 30 points against Minnesota, becoming the first Georgia player since Humphrey in 2008 to reach the 30-point mark in a single game.
This week, Robinson and the Lady Bulldogs host Kentucky at 7 p.m. ET Thursday inside Stegeman Coliseum. The Wildcats come into the contest ranked No. 25 nationally in the latest Associated Press poll.