By Laura Klein, Samford Athletics Communication
 
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Christen Cunningham's freshman season has been nothing short of accomplished. At the conclusion of Samford's home schedule Saturday, Cunningham held the top spot in all meaningful statistical categories among Southern Conference freshmen and has earned the most CRONS Freshman of the Week honors in the conference with four.
 
Cunningham is considered by many to be the frontrunner for the SoCon Freshman of the Year award, but when asked about the opportunity and what it would mean for he and his family to receive the honor, Cunningham quickly turned the spotlight away from himself and to his team.
 
"It would mean the world to both me and my family," said Cunningham. "I would really like to get the award, but I'm just trying not to think about that as much. I'm just trying to think about winning and team success, because the individual awards are all a product of team success, but it would certainly mean a lot. It would be a good landmark to end my freshman year."
 
Cunningham, a 6-foot-2 freshman point guard from Georgetown, Kentucky, has averaged 9.6 points per game and a team-high 4.0 assists per contest this season. He also leads all SoCon freshmen in several statistical categories, including total points, assists, steals, free-throw percentage and minutes played.
 
Additionally, Cunningham ranks second among SoCon freshmen in points per game and third among all players in assists per outing.

 
These numbers have helped Cunningham garner a conference-high four CRONS Freshman of the Week honors. However, Cunningham was quick to highlight the top-notch quality of freshmen in the conference.
 
"The awards mean a lot, especially because there are a lot of very good freshmen in our conference," Cunningham said. "To win the award four times, really means a lot. I try not to pay too much attention to it but it's always good to hear."
 
Growing up, Cunningham was always an athlete. He began playing basketball when he was four years old and also played baseball and football. Cunningham's childhood was not without difficulty, as his father was absent for most of his childhood, leaving his mother to care for Cunningham and his two brothers.
 
His older brothers were extremely influential in his life, and his mother did an exemplary job of raising three rambunctious boys.
 
"We went through so much growing up and my mom just stayed strong, stayed steady and always made sure I had everything I needed, me and my brothers," Cunningham said.
 
Although his father wasn't around on a day-to-day basis, he still had an active role in Cunningham's life through either a phone call or an email.
 
A highly-touted prep standout, Cunningham's recruiting process landed him at Samford University, mostly because of his relationships with Head Coach Scott Padgett and Assistant Coach Charles Newton.
 
Cunningham chose to attend Samford over interest from nearly 20 Division I schools, including Houston, Western Kentucky, Marshall and Wright State. So far this season, he has started at point guard in every game for the Bulldogs, which he considers to be a true honor.

 
"Not very many freshmen start in the country in any sport, so to have that opportunity means a lot," Cunningham said. "It's given me experience that will make me better next year and the year after next."
 
Though Cunningham's freshman season has been highlighted by many individual accolades and accomplishments, his favorite highlight came when the entire team succeeded.
 
"It probably would be the win against Western Carolina a couple weeks back," said Cunningham. "Typically, teams don't play very well on the road at Western Carolina and we got down like 18 or 20 points. At the beginning of the year, I think we just would have folded, but it shows our growth in that we came back and ended up winning. It felt like a turning point in the season to me."
 
Cunningham totaled 12 points, five assists and four steals in the Feb. 5 contest. All 12 of Cunningham's points came in the second half in a crucial 24-2 run to lead the Bulldogs to victory over the Catamounts.
 
For the freshman phenom, Cunningham cites the Bulldogs' three seniors, Tyler Hood, Michael Bradley, and Brandon Hayman, as having a great impact on his freshman season and his transition to Samford.

 
"I was telling Tyler the other day that we're going to miss the seniors a lot," Cunningham said. "As far as when you get to college and you come in, you have conditioning and you move in and such. Those guys, Hayman and Mike and Tyler, they made a big influence on me. They might say a little thing like when I might be down on myself they would say something like, 'it's okay man, we all went through this.'
 
"It's also all the little things that they do, like Tyler, he's 30 minutes early for everything. He never misses a practice. Hayman comes in and works hard every night and then you have guys like Mike, the guys who are older, whose bodies are beat up, but they still give it everything they have. They've had a big influence on me.
 
"I would love to give them a SoCon championship. They've been through a lot as a program here. I know Tyler and Brandon have been through three coaches, so just to give them a winning environment, something to go out on, that would be great."
 
Unlike the graduating seniors, Cunningham's Samford career is just beginning, and with a team-first mentality and potential honors on the horizon, the possibilities for the Bulldogs' Freshman Phenom are endless.