Roslyn resident Mark Gjonlekaj, a sophomore forward at The SUNY College at Old Westbury has been named Men’s Basketball Divisions II-III Honorable Mention for games played in early January. The honor came right after Gjonlekaj was named the Skyline Conference Co-Player of the Week after leading the Panthers to a pair of conference wins.
During is award-winning week, Gjonlekaj averaged 19.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.5 blocks, 1.0 steals and 1.0 assists per game while shooting 69.2 percent from the field (18-26) and 37.5 percent from three-point territory (3-8).
Gjonlekaj opened his big week with a season-high 21 points to lead all scorers in Old Westbury’s 95-54 Skyline Conference win at Sarah Lawrence on Jan. 7.
Three days later, on Jan. 10, Gjonlekaj followed with a team-leading 18 points to go along with seven rebounds, three blocks and one steal to pace the Panthers past Mount Saint Vincent with an 86-78 conference win.
Entering the week, Gjonlekaj ranked among the conference leaders in scoring (10th, 13.0 points per game), field goal percentage (6th, 51.6 percent) and blocked shots (8th, 1.2 blocks per game). Gjonlekaj is also averaging 6.0 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.1 assists per game.
In recent games, Old Westbury has continued their winning ways, topping Mount Saint Mary, 69-57, defeating Farmingdale State College, 69-61, rallying past Maritime College for a 79-72 overtime win and having an easier time of it in a big win over Sarah Lawrence, 85-48. In the win over Mount Saint Mary, Gjonlekaj scored eight points, including going two for two from the three-point line.
In the Farmingdale win, Gjonlekaj returned to form as the Panther’s top scorer, scoring 15 points on five field goals, including three three-pointers on nine attempts. In the overtime win, Gjonlekaj scored 10 points. He did not see any action in the Sarah Lawrence game.
Meanwhile, out in Oklahoma, another Roslyn High School great, George Beamon, is battling injuries as he gets his professional career underway.
Beamon, also a star for Manhattan College, was drafted in the third round by the Oklahoma City Blue of The NBA’s D-League. Already, Beamon has been activated and deactivated from the Blue roster on five different occasions. He has also seen playing time in four games as he looks to make his mark on the league that leads to the NBA.
