SEC Player of the Week – Missouri guard Dru Smith, a 6-foot-3, 203-pound senior from Evansville, Ind., averaged 16 points, 2.5 rebounds and two assists in wins over Liberty and No. 6 Illinois. Smith guarded the opponent’s best player for nearly the entirety of each win and led Mizzou in scoring against the Illini, helping the Tigers start 5-0 for the first time since 2013 and knock off a Top-6 opponent for the first time since 2014. Smith shot 12-of-13 from the free throw line for the week.
SEC Freshman of the Week – Auburn guard Justin Powell, a 6-foot-6, 205-pound freshman from Prospect, Ky., tied career high and led Auburn with 26 points on 9 of 13 from the floor, including 4 of 6 from deep in a 74-71 win over Memphis in Atlanta. Had 15 of Auburn’s 37 second-half points to lead a come-from-behind victory in which Auburn trailed by as many as eight. He hit a 3-pointer with shot clock expiring to give Auburn a 4-point lead with just under three minutes remaining – a lead Auburn would not relinquish.