GREENSBORO, N.C. (theACC.com) – Louisville junior forward Jordan Nwora and Duke sophomore guard Tre Jones have been named the ACC Men’s Basketball Co-Players of the Week, while Duke center Vernon Carey Jr. earned ACC Freshman of the Week honors for the second time this season.
ACC men’s basketball weekly honors are determined by a vote of a 15-member media panel and announced on Mondays throughout the regular season.
Jones led Duke to a pair of key road wins last week, at No. 11 Michigan State (87-75) on Tuesday and the ACC opener at Virginia Tech (77-63) on Friday. Jones played all but four minutes on the week, averaging 17.5 points and 8.0 assists. He posted his second double-double at MSU, scoring 20 points and matching his career high with 12 assists and three steals, while holding the Spartans’ Cassius Winston to 4-of-14 shooting from the field. On Friday, Jones scored 15 points with six rebounds and four assists (10-5-2 in the second half) as Duke rallied from 12 points down to win in Blacksburg for the first time since 2015. Defensively, Jones helped limit Hokies’ leading scorer Landers Nolley (18.6 ppg) to a season-low seven points, including zero in the second half, while holding Virginia Tech to a season-low 22 second-half points. Jones is ninth in the ACC in scoring and leads the league in both assists (7.1) and steals (2.1).
In a pair of victories last week, Nwora averaged 20.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.5 steals. In the Cardinals’ 58-43 victory over No. 4 Michigan, Nwora totaled 22 points and 12 rebounds, his 11th career double-double and the sixth game scoring over 20 points this season. Against Pitt, Nwora produced 19 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals while making 7-of-12 shots from the field. The preseason All-America selection is second in the ACC and 18th in the nation in scoring, averaging 21.6 points per game. His total of 194 points this year is the most for a Louisville player through nine games over the last 20 years.
Carey led Duke in scoring last week at 19.0 points, including his NCAA-leading seventh double-double in the win at No. 11 Michigan State with 26 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes. The freshman was 8-of-16 from the field and a career-best 9-of-12 at the free throw line in the MSU win, posting his fifth 20-10 game this season. With 12 points Friday at Virginia Tech, Carey has scored in double figures every game this season. He continues to lead the ACC in field goal percentage (.598), is sixth in scoring (18.5) and third in rebounds (9.2).
Player of the Week
Nov. 11 - Cole Anthony, Fr., G, North Carolina
Nov. 18 - John Mooney, Sr., F, Notre Dame
Nov. 25 - Michael Devoe, So., G, Georgia Tech; Vernon Carey Jr., Fr., C, Duke
Dec. 2 - Olivier Sarr, Jr., C, Wake Forest
Dec. 9 - Jordan Nwora, Jr., F, Louisville; Tre Jones, So., G, Duke
Freshman of the Week
Nov. 11 - Cole Anthony, G, North Carolina
Nov. 18 - Landers Nolley II, G/F, Virginia Tech
Nov. 25 - Vernon Carey Jr., C, Duke
Dec. 2 - Landers Nolley II, G/F, Virginia Tech
Dec. 9 - Vernon Carey Jr., C, Duke