BURNSVILLE, Minn. – Southwest Minnesota State University men's basketball sophomore Jake Phipps has been named the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference South Division Player of the Week on Monday following his play in a pair of SMSU road victories this past weekend at Concordia-St. Paul and Minnesota State.
 
It's the second time this season he has earned the weekly award.
 
Phipps, a 6-foot-9, 255-pound center from Anoka, Minn., averaged 23.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 blocked shots, while shooting a combined 63 percent (22 of 35) from the field, including connecting on three 3-pointers in two Mustang victories.
 
On Friday, Phipps scored a career-high 25 points on 12 of 16 shooting, grabbed a team-high eight rebounds, dished out a career-high five assists and had two blocked shots in SMSU's 83-70 win over CSP.
 
In SMSU's 71-69 overtime victory over MSU on Saturday, Phipps scored a game-high 22 points on 10 of 19 shooting with a pair of 3-pointers and recorded his third double-double of the season securing a team-high 10 rebounds.
 
Through 12 games this season, Phipps leads SMSU in scoring (15.1) and rebounding (7.4), while shooting 58 percent (76 of 132) from the field, including 14 of 29 from 3-point range.
 
Phipps, a 2018 graduate of Anoka High School, has played in 52 career games with 26 starts and has scored 522 points, while shooting 61 percent (220 of 361) from the field.
 
Southwest Minnesota State, 8-4 overall, 4-3 NSIC, is off until Jan. 2 when the squad returns to play hosting the University of Sioux Falls at the R/A Facility with tip-off set for 2 p.m.