Vivians Named Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Victoria Vivians added another honor to her impressive freshman season as the Mississippi State standout was named an Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention.
The national honor comes after Vivians was tabbed second team All-SEC by the Associated Press and the league coaches.
Vivians becomes MSU’s first All-American since Alexis Rack in 2010 and the program’s first Associated Press honoree since Tan White in 2005.
Vivians averaged 14.9 ppg to lead the Bulldogs to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and to program marks for overall wins (27) and SEC victories (11).
Her scoring average currently rates third in the conference and fifth highest among freshmen in NCAA Division I.
The SEC regular-season scoring leader stands ninth in the SEC in field goal percentage (36.8 percent), seventh in free-throw percentage (74.6 percent) and third in 3-point field goal percentage (32.7 percent).
In conference games, the Carthage, Miss., native was the top rookie and seventh overall with a 13.8 scoring average.
Vivians, who averaged 5.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game, made 69 3-pointers on the year, seventh most in school single-season history. Her 505 points were the fourth most by a Bulldog freshman.
An MSU freshman record 39 points Feb. 12 at Kentucky started a hot finish to the season for the Carthage, Miss., native as she scored double figures in seven of the year’s final eight games, averaging 16.9 ppg in that stretch.
Her 39-point performance tied for the 18th-most points in the nation this season and the most by a freshman.
She capped her first MSU campaign with 15 points against No. 16 Duke, giving her a 17.5 scoring average against ranked foes this season.
A four-time SEC Freshman of the Week and MSU’s first USBWA National Freshman of the Week, Vivians hit a number of clutch buckets for the Bulldogs, including the go-ahead 3-pointer in overtime against No. 13 Texas A&M and the decisive basket in the team’s road victory at Alabama.
The Preseason WNIT MVP helped Mississippi State earn a No. 5 seed, the second highest in school history, in the NCAA Tournament’s Spokane Regional.