Editor's note: Charlie Creme, Graham Hays and Mechelle Voepel each vote to determine espnW's national player of the week, which is awarded every week of the women's college basketball season.
Florida State has topped 100 points five times this season, and the No. 12 Seminoles lead the ACC in scoring at 85.8 points per game. But they won their biggest game of this season with their lowest point total in more than two years.
And for her contributions in Sunday's 50-49 victory at No. 2 Louisville and in an 81-79 overtime victory at Wake Forest on Thursday, Florida State senior Shakayla Thomas is the espnW national player of the week.
It's the second such honor this season for Thomas, who also was player of the week on Dec. 4. The 5-foot-11 forward is fifth in the ACC in scoring average at 18.5 PPG, and she's in the top 15 in the league in rebounding (7.4).
Thomas got her 103rd victory as a Seminole on Sunday, and this one was unexpected. The Cardinals came in 20-0 and were at home, where 10 days earlier they clobbered Notre Dame 100-67.
And Louisville opened well, leading Florida State 22-9 after the first quarter. But after that, it was all defense, and the Seminoles got the better of the Cardinals. Thomas finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds as Florida State won the board battle 52-42.
Sunday's point total was Florida State's lowest output since a 73-49 loss to UConn on Dec. 11, 2015. And as unlikely as it seemed that the Seminoles would get their ninth win in program history over a top-five team by scoring just 50 points, it happened.
It helped create a four-way tie atop the ACC with Florida State, Louisville, Notre Dame and Virginia all at 6-1. The Seminoles (18-2) take on the Irish next and have a week to prepare, as they'll host Notre Dame on Jan. 28 (ESPN2, 4 p.m. ET).
As big as Sunday's win was for Florida State, the Seminoles' ability to rally on the road Thursday also was critical. Thomas had 28 points at Wake Forest, including all six of the Seminoles' points in overtime. She and teammate Imani Wright (who hit nine 3-pointers and scored 31 points) led a 17-2 surge in the fourth quarter that tied the score. Thomas also had 11 rebounds against the Demon Deacons.
All in all, it was a gutsy week for the Seminoles, who got contributions across the board in both games. Thomas led the way in two victories -- by a combined total of three points -- that could loom large for Florida State's hopes of winning the ACC title.
Also nominated: Kalani Brown; Baylor; Cierra Dillard, Buffalo; Haley Gorecki, Duke; Sabrina Ionescu, Oregon; Kaylee Jensen, Oklahoma State; Paris Kea, North Carolina; Arike Ogunbowale, Notre Dame; Hallie Thome, Michigan; Kat Tudor, Oregon State
Previous winners: Louisville's Durr (Nov. 20) | Ohio State's Mitchell (Nov. 27) | Florida State's Thomas (Dec. 4) | Oklahoma State's Goodwin (Dec. 11) | Texas A&M's Carter (Dec. 18) | Western Illinois' Clemens (Dec. 26) | Stanford's McPhee (Jan. 1) | Houston's Harris (Jan. 8) | Louisville's Durr (Jan. 15)