FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas forward Bobby Portis is the SEC player of the week after the Razorbacks opened the conference season with back-to-back wins for the first time in seven years.
Portis combined to score 53 points, making 21 of 32 field goal attempts in Arkansas' wins over Georgia and Vanderbilt. He also had a combined for 16 rebounds, five steals and two blocked shots.
Against Vanderbilt on Saturday, Portis scored a season-high 32 points, including 21 in the second half. He recorded 11 rebounds for his third double-double in five games and had four steals, two of which he converted into breakaway dunks.
The sophomore became just the fifth player in Arkansas history to score at least 30 points twice against SEC teams. Only Todd Day and Jannero Pargo have more 30-point SEC games than Portis, who became the first player since Jonathon Modica to accomplish the feat.
Portis scored 21 points in the Razorbacks' win at Georgia last Tuesday, including 15 points in a first half in which Arkansas trailed by as many as 13 points.
The player of the week award is the first for Portis, who was a three-time league freshman of the week last season. He is the second Arkansas player to be named the SEC's player of the week this season after Michael Qualls won the award last month.
The Razorbacks will travel to Tennessee on Tuesday.