Valparaiso University men's basketball sophomore Cooper Schwieger (Overland Park, Kan. / Blue Valley Southwest [Link Year] was recognized as an Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association on Tuesday. He becomes the first Valpo player to win a National Player of the Week honor since Alec Peters in February 2016.
 
Schwieger averaged a double-double of 27.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game over two contests this week. In Wednesday's game vs. Bradley, he totaled 21 points and three blocks. He followed that up with a 33-point, 18-rebound, five-assist game on Sunday at UIC, setting career highs in all three categories and becoming the first player nationally to post that stat line since 2011.   
 
Schwieger's 33 points were the most by a Beacon since Ben Krikke scored 34 on Feb. 19, 2023, also at UIC. In the last 15 Valpo seasons, only Brandon Wood (twice), Cory Johnson, LaVonte Dority, Alec Peters (three times), Krikke and Schwieger have scored 33 or more in a game. Schwieger became the first Valpo with a 30-point double-double since Krikke's aforementioned game at UIC and joined Alec Peters (6x), Javon Freeman-Liberty and Krikke as the only players with 30-point double-doubles in the last 15 years.
 
Schwieger posted Valpo's first 30-point, 15-rebound, five-assist game on record. This marked just the third known 30-15-5 game by a Missouri Valley Conference player, joining Larry Bird on March 24, 1979 vs. DePaul and Oscar Robertson on March 31, 1959 vs. Louisville. He became the first player in the nation with a 30-point, 15-rebound, five-assist game this season and first nationally since Weber State's Dillon Jones on Feb. 29 of last season vs. Northern Colorado. Schwieger became the first player in the nation with a 30-point, 15-rebound, five-assist game in a regulation contest since Chattanooga's Jake Stephens on Dec. 18, 2022 vs. Belmont.
 
Schwieger became the first player in the nation with a 33-point, 18-rebound, five-assist game since Houston Baptist's Darius Lee on March 5, 2022 in a four overtime game. He became the first player nationally to record that stat line in a regulation game since Cleveland State's Norris Cole had 41 points, 20 rebounds and nine assists on Feb. 12, 2011 vs. Youngstown State.
 
Schwieger surpassed his previous career high of 28 points, which came in last year's regular-season finale on March 3, 2024 vs. Illinois State. His rebound total surpassed his previous best of 15 on Jan. 14, 2025 at Belmont. His assist total surpassed his previous best of four, achieved twice, most recently on Feb. 16 of this season at Evansville. Schweiger's 18 rebounds marked the most by a Valpo player since Zoran Viskovic on Jan. 7, 1999 at Oakland (18).
 
Full release
 
March 4 National Players of the Week
Silas Demary Jr., Georgia (SEC)
Eric Dixon, Villanova (Big East)
Izaiyah Nelson, Arkansas State (Sun Belt)
Jeff Planutis, Mercyhurst (Northeast)
Cooper Schwieger, Valparaiso (Missouri Valley)