Smith Collects SEC Player of the Week Accolades

by Matt Dunaway, Director/Communications

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – After a perfect opening week which featured a trio of double-digit victories to start the Chris Jans era, Tolu Smith secured SEC Player of the Week honors announced Monday by the conference office.

Mississippi State has captured at least one SEC Player of the Week award in each of the last eight seasons. It's the first career SEC weekly honor for Smith.

The Bay St. Louis, Mississippi native nearly averaged a double-double for the week and is the only SEC player to rank among the league's top 6 in points (18.3 – 6th), rebounds (9.3 – 4th) and field goal percentage (76.7 – 1st).

Smith amassed a non-conference career-high with 26 points, one away from a career-best, versus Akron. It marked the SEC's first win on a neutral court in 2022-23. He was named the Barstool Sports Invitational Game MVP after he piled up his 14th career double-double with 19 points, 11 rebounds and three assists against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.

UP NEXT
Mississippi State makes its season debut on national television as the Bulldogs play host to South Dakota from The Summit League on Thursday. Tip time is slated for 8 p.m. CT televised by the SEC Network and streamed online courtesy of the ESPN app.

Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets by searching 'HailStateMBK' on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Smith Collects SEC Player of the Week Accolades

Players Mentioned

Tolu Smith III

Mississippi State University Athletics