MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The leading scorer in the SSAC, Jordan Bedford of Belhaven (Miss.), has been selected as the SSAC Men's Basketball Player of the Week, the conference office announced Monday. The senior guard was chosen for his performance during the week of Feb. 9-15.
With a spot in the SSAC Men's Basketball Championship hanging in the balance, Bedford led Belhaven to a 2-0 week by upsetting Auburn Montgomery (Ala.), 77-76, on Feb. 12 and No. 19 Bethel (Tenn.), 69-63, on Feb. 14.
On the road against Auburn Montgomery, Bedford dropped 20 points for the 18th time this season, including the buzzer-beating three-pointer that sealed the win for the Blazers. He also added six rebounds, two assists and a steal in the contest.
The Covington, La., native then scored 14 points—to go along with four rebounds, two assists and two steals—against Top 25-ranked Bethel to help secure a second-straight upset bid for Belhaven.
The Blazers guard shot .400 from the field (12-of-30), .273 from three-point range (3-of-11) and .636 (7-of-11) from the free throw line over the two-game span.
With an undefeated week, Belhaven improves to 10-16 overall and 6-8 in SSAC play. The Blazers are one of three teams tied for sixth place in the conference standings.
Bedford leads the SSAC in points (617), points per game (23.73), three-point field goals made (89) and three-point field goals made per game (3.42), while ranking among the conference leaders in three-point field goal percentage (3rd, .432), field goal percentage (5th, .459), steals (11th, 35), free throw percentage (13th, .740), assists (14th, 64), steals per game (16th, 1.35) and assists per game (18th, 2.46).
Bedford also owns six of the top 15 scoring performances in the SSAC this season, including a chart-topping 41-point outburst in a losing effort against Bethel on Jan. 29.
Nationally, Bedford is among the top three in the NAIA in points (2nd, 617), three-point field goals made (2nd, 89), points per game (3rd, 23.72) and three-point field goals made per game (3rd, 3.42). He also ranks 30th in the nation in three-point field goal percentage (.432).
Bedford is the second repeat winner of the SSAC Men's Basketball Player of the Week award during the 2014-15 season, having also earned the recognition on Jan. 19. Ladaris Green of Dalton State (Ga.) became the first repeat winner by earning the honor on Dec. 1 and Jan. 5.
Nominees: Shane Butler, Blue Mountain (Miss.); Reggie Burke, Coastal Georgia; Sean Tate, Dalton State (Ga.); Alexander Ovcharenko, Faulkner (Ala.); Robert Lovaglio, Loyola (La.) and Cody Scott, Mobile (Ala.).
2014-15 SSAC Men's Basketball Player of the Week Honorees
Week 1 (Nov. 24): Preston Earle, Dalton State (Ga.)
Week 2 (Dec. 1): Ladaris Green, Dalton State (Ga.)
Week 3 (Dec. 8): Daouda Soumaoro, Mobile (Ala.)
Week 4 (Dec. 15): Jalen Gray, Loyola (La.)
Week 5 (Jan. 5): Ladaris Green, Dalton State (Ga.)
Week 6 (Jan. 12): Caleb Hardy, Bethel (Tenn.)
Week 7 (Jan. 19): Jordan Bedford, Belhaven (Miss.)
Week 8 (Jan. 26): Donta Pittman, William Carey (Miss.)
Week 9 (Feb. 2): Reggie Brown, Auburn Montgomery (Ala.)
Week 10 (Feb. 9): Monte Burney, Martin Methodist (Tenn.)
Week 11 (Feb. 16): Jordan Bedford, Belhaven (Miss.)
