Damian Jones Named SEC Freshman of the Week

Damian Jones earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors, finally earning some recognition from the league during a season in which he's helped keep a bare bones Vandy team afloat.

The Commodore center is the second member of the 2013-2014 team to earn league honors this season. Senior Rod Odom was named Player of the Week two weeks earlier.

Jones earned the award thanks to a solid week, but it may not have even been his best performance in February. The freshman averaged 13 points, 11.5 rebounds, and four blocks per game in a 1-1 run where Vandy lost to South Carolina and defeated Texas A&M a week ago. However, the Commodores' upset loss to USC may have been enough for league officials to overlook his efforts.

Damian Jones is averaging 13.3 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks over his last seven games. He's shot a blistering 66.7% from the floor over that span to emerge as Vanderbilt's most efficient scorer.

Jones earned FrOTW honors while another first-year player, Kentucky's Julius Randle, took home the Player of the Week award. Randle was a monster in wins over LSU and Ole Miss, averaging 16 points and 14.5 rebounds for the Wildcats.

Congratulations to Jones, who has been key in getting a team with just seven scholarship players up to .500 in one of the NCAA's high-major conferences.