Tobias Harris has come out of the gate fast for his Tennessee Volunteers. The freshman from Dix Hills, N.Y. was named the Southeastern Conference’s SEC Freshman of the Week for the first week of the season, ending November 22nd.
Harris currently leads his team in scoring (averaging just under 16 points per game) and minutes played, and is second in rebounding, averaging nearly 6 per game.
Harris played a major role in his team’s National Invitation Tournament Tip Off title, as the Volunteers defeated Villanova 78 - 68 at Madison Square Garden on Friday. In that game, Harris scored 15 points and pulled down 9 rebounds. In the semifinal 77 - 72 win against Virginia Commonwealth University, Harris put up another 15 points and gathered in 4 rebounds.
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In a release issued by the University of Tennessee, head coach Bruce Pearl said Harris being named freshman of the week “is a well-deserved honor. Tobias played with great focus last week, and he clearly plays to win. He showed great poise as a freshman in helping close out both games for us last week."
Pearl was referring to wins against Belmont (85 - 76) and Missouri State (60 - 56). Those two victories sent the Volunteers to MSG.
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Tennessee (5-0) is currently ranked first in the SEC and 24th nationally, in both the AP and ESPN/USA Today Coaches polls.
Their next game is Tuesday, when they host Middle Tennessee State. That game is on FSN South, beginning at 7:30. They then take a long break before continuing their season at Pittsburgh on December 11, in a nationally televised game on ESPN.