SPARTANBURG, S.C. - Appalachian State senior guard Donald Sims has been named the Southern Conference Player of the Week for all games played February 22-26 the league office announced Tuesday (March 1). Sims averaged 19.5 points, 5.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds as the Mountaineers earned home victories over College of Charleston (85-70) and The Citadel (70-59). The Player of the Week selections are made by the league office.
Sims scored a game-high 32 points against the Cougars, connecting on 6-of-9 attempts from beyond three-point range. He added six assists, five rebounds and a steal against CofC. His 32 points was his second-highest point total this season. In his final home game at Holmes Center against The Citadel, Sims continued his strong all-around play with four assists, three rebounds, three steals and a blocked shot. Sims went over the 600-point plateau for a single season last weekend, becoming the first Mountaineer in school history to achieve the milestone.
A native of Gaffney, S.C., Sims is second in the Southern Conference with 21.3 points per game. He is third in the league with 2.6 made triples per game and ranks seventh in the conference with 3.8 assists per game. Sims is the all-time leader in free throw percentage in the league has he has made 89.1 percent of his free throw attempts over his four seasons in Boone.
Appalachian State (15-14, 10-8 SoCon) takes on Georgia Southern (5-26, 1-17) in the first round of the Southern Conference Tournament Friday afternoon.
Other top performers in the Southern Conference included The Citadel's Cameron Wells, Davidson's Nik Cochran, Elon's Chris Long, UNCG's Brandon Evans, Chattanooga's Keegan Bell, Western Carolina's Mike Williams and Wofford's Cameron Rundles.
SoCon Men's Basketball Player of the Week
Nov. 16 - Omar Carter, Appalachian State
Nov. 23 - Donald Sims, Appalachian State
Nov. 30 - Cameron Wells, The Citadel
Dec. 7 - Noah Dahlman, Wofford
Dec. 14 - Brendan McKillop, Davidson
Dec. 21 - Jeremy Simmons, College of Charleston
Jan. 4 - Amu Saaka, Furman
Jan. 11 - Omar Carter, Appalachian State
Jan. 18 - Omar Wattad, Chattanooga
Jan. 25 - Amu Saaka, Furman
Feb. 1 - Noah Dahlman, Wofford
Feb. 8 - Andrew Goudelock, College of Charleston
Feb. 15- Andrew Goudelock, College of Charleston
Feb. 22 - Chris Long, Elon
March 1 - Donald Sims, Appalachian State