St. LOUIS, Mo. -- Missouri State's Jasmine Franklin earned Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Week honors for the third time this season on Monday after helping the Lady Bears (17-8, 13-1 MVC) to a pair of road wins over the weekend.

The freshman forward averaged 14 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 2.0 blocks while shooting 62.5 percent from the floor at Valparaiso and Loyola on the way becoming MSU's first three-time winner of the award since Christiana Shorter in 2010.

Sunday, the Fayetteville, Ark., native tallied a career-high 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting at Loyola, adding five boards, three blocks and three steals against the Ramblers. Friday at Valpo, the rookie had 10 points and eight rebounds, shooting 50 percent with two steals and a block.

Franklin ranks second in the MVC with a .574 field goal percentage, a figure that currently sits ninth on MSU's single-season list and first among freshmen. Her 33 blocks are already the 11th-most in a season at Missouri State. She leads all MVC freshmen in field goal percentage, rebounds and blocked shots, and ranks third in scoring.

The Lady Bears are back at JQH Arena this weekend, taking on UNI at 7 p.m. Friday, March 1, and Drake at 2 p.m. on March 3. Tickets are half price in all sections for the two games, starting as low as $2, and are available now at MissouriStateBears.com or by visiting the Old Missouri Bank Box Office at JQH Arena, (417) 836-7678, during regular box office hours.