Cambridge, Mass.—UMBC freshman wing Chauncey Gilliam (Columbia, Md./Brewster (N.H.) Academy) has been named America East Conference Men’s Basketball Rookie of the Week for games ending Dec. 28, 2008. Gilliam and the Retrievers are in St. Louis, Mo. to take on the Saint Louis Billikens on Dec. 30. Coverage on Fox 1370 Sports starts at 8:55 p.m. EST.

Gilliam was brilliant in UMBC’s 66-64 win over Nebraska in Lincoln on Dec. 23. He led the Retrievers with a season-high 21 points and corralled a season high eight rebounds in 33 minutes of action. In his third start of the season, the young Retriever hit nine of 11 shots from the floor and three of four from the charity stripe.

He leads the conference in field goal percentage at 64.7 percent, hitting 44 of 68 attempts. Gilliam has converted 28 of his last 39 attempts (71.8%) from the floor in his last six outings and has raised his scoring average to 9.5 points per game, the third-highest figure on the 6-5 Retrievers.

Gilliam’s 21 points were the most for a UMBC freshman since Brian Hodges scored 28 points vs. UNH on March 4, 2005. He is the first Retriever to be win this weekly honor since Hodges shared the award with Northeastern’s Shawn James on Feb. 27, 2005.