Shannon Evans has been exhibiting something during his sophomore college basketball season that every great player needs to have – consistency.

The former Nansemond River High School standout was recently named Mid-American Conference East Division Player of the Week for the third time this season as he continues to star for the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York.

“It meant a lot to me,” Evans said. “I worked really hard for it. But at this time of the year, the only award that I want is a MAC championship.”

He gave Bulls fans reason to be optimistic about their team claiming the title with his performance against Bowling Green State University during the week for which he received the honor.

Buffalo played two games that week, both on the road, recording wins both times. The Bulls defeated the MAC East-leading Bowling Green 68-56 on Feb. 21 with help from Evans, who supplied 19 points, going 5-for-6 from three-point range, and three assists.

He said he put in a lot of preparation before the game, came into it with a good mindset and then started well.

“I had a couple easy shots drop for me early, so I kind of got hot, and my teammates gave me the ball in great spots,” he said.

Evans said he had been in a slump until the game on Feb. 18, a 78-63 victory over Eastern Michigan University during which he shot 62.5 percent from the field. He produced 14 points to go with six boards, four steals and three assists.

“I was proud of my performance,” he said. “It felt good to actually finally play halfway decent again. So, I felt like that game really got me going.”

He said he recently began going back to his old workout routine from the summer, which he felt helped him get through the last few games.

“He leads by example and doing all the right things every day,” Buffalo coach Bobby Hurley said. “He’s an example of how it should be done. Out there, he guards, he challenges the ball, and he doesn’t cheat you on effort, ever. When guys do that, they’re in a position to lead.”

Through 27 games, including a 67-62 home win on Tuesday against the University of Akron, Evans leads the team in assists — with 117 — and steals — with 47 — and is averaging 15.1 points per game, second on the team.

“Shannon plays like I did when I was a player, so I am kind of living through him now,” said Hurley, a renowned former point guard for Duke University, which he helped lead to two national titles. “He makes all the hustle plays out on the floor, including the things that don’t always show up in the final box score.”

After hearing his coach’s comparison, Evans said, “That’s definitely a great feeling, because he’s one of the best point guards to play college basketball. I have a lot of work to do to be actually compared to him. I just try to get better and better every day.”

Buffalo (18-9, 9-6) visited Kent State University on Saturday evening and hosts Ohio University on Tuesday.