Jan. 26, 2012

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Samford's Tyler Hood was honored by StatSheet on Thursday as the Bulldogs' forward from Kingston, Tenn., was named the Southern Conference Freshman of the Week after averaging 20 points and 5.5 rebounds per contest in league contests at Elon and UNCG.

Samford redshirt freshman Hood turned in the best game of his young collegiate career Thursday as he led the Bulldogs to a key 86-80 victory at SoCon North Division leader Elon.

In Samford's shootout win, Hood scored a career-high 25 points and turned in an 8-of-13 performance from the field. He also knocked down a career-high four 3-point field goals and connected on a personal-best five free throws. Against UNCG on Sunday, Hood tallied 15 points and four rebounds in 32 minutes of playing time. He went 5-of-13 from the field and knocked down 4-of-5 attempts from the charity stripe.

Hood averaged 35 minutes of playing time and started both games for Samford. His averages in both scoring (20 ppg.) and free throws (4.5 pg.) topped all SoCon freshmen.

Thursday marked the first time this season that Hood received the StatSheet SoCon Freshman of the Week. Samford's Raijon Kelly earned runner-up honors, while Lee Skinner from Wofford was named honorable mention.

Following Thursday's 7 p.m. (CST) home showdown with Georgia Southern, the Samford University basketball team will next be in action Saturday at 4 p.m. (CST) as the Bulldogs continue their three-game SoCon homestand against the first-place Davidson Wildcats in another key matchup to be held at the Pete Hanna Center.