Dec. 31, 2007

Greenville, S.C. - Furman's Justin Dehm has been named Southern Conference Men's Basketball Player-of-the-Week after earning all-tournament honors and averaging 19 points per game this past weekend at the Shamrock Classic in Moraga, Calif., it was announced on Monday.

Dehm, a freshman from Peoria, Ill., poured in a career-high 23 points as Furman secured third place at the Shamrock Classic with a 67-62 victory over Howard on Saturday evening. The guard connected on 8-of-13 field goal attempts, including 4-of-7 beyond the arc, while also adding three free throws to seal the win in the final minutes.

In Friday's first round loss to Cal State Fullerton, Dehm came off the bench to total 15 points. The rookie converted 9-of-10 chances at the charity stripe and drained 2-of-4 three-point attempts.

For the week, Dehm shot 52.6% (10-19) from the field and 50.0% (6-12) from three-point range. He also made 12 of his 14 free throw attempts while adding five assists.

Dehm becomes the first Paladin to earn league player-of-the-week accolades since forward Maleye Ndoye grabbed the honors on February 10, 2004.

Furman returns to Southern Conference play Thursday night hosting Western Carolina in a 7 p.m. contest at Timmons Arena. The game marks the first of seven home contests for the Paladins during the month of January.