After winning his third Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Week award, freshman guard Joey Miller earned this week’s Top Cat honor.

In two wins against Tennessee Tech and Tennessee-Martin, Miller averaged 19 points.

His high-scoring average can be attributed to his record-breaking 28-point performance against Tennessee-Martin.

The 28 points marked the most points scored by a freshman in Eastern’s Division-I history.

The previous record was 27 points, formerly held by both Romain Martin and Tyler Laser.

Miller’s record game had him 6-of-12 shooting from the field, including 4-of-6 from the three-point line.

He also added 12-of-16 free throws to help close the game out late in the second half.

Although, he did most of his work offensively against the Skyhawks, Miller had a solid game in other areas stealing the ball three times and grabbing three rebounds.

Miller has easily been the Panthers most successful recruit this season. While also the son of head coach Mike Miller, Joey Miller is averaging the second most points per game on the team, behind only team captain, senior guard Jeremy Granger.

At nearly 11 points per game, Joey Miller has shown he solid second option in the backcourt along with Granger.

He is shooting 31 percent from the three-point line and shown poise on the foul line making 81 percent of his free throws.

Miller has hit many clutch three-point shots in his short time at Eastern and he said he feels comfortable shooting the ball in those situations.

The Panthers are currently 5-9 in the OVC and must win the rest of their OVC games to have a chance at making the conference tournament.

Joey Miller said the team just needs to take it day by day. “We got to keep our heads up,” Joey Miller said.

Joey Miller has now won three OVC Freshman of the Year awards; and if he keeps up his consistent play, he should be on pace to make the All-Freshman team at the end of the season.

He has been sort of an “x-factor” for the Panthers this season. In games where Miller has scored in double-digits, Eastern has a record of 8-5, and in games when he is held under 10 points the Panthers are 4-9.

Rob Mortell can be reached at 581-7944 or at dmortell@eiu.edu.