University of Tennessee Athletics
2022-23 Men's Basketball Roster
Roster
Awaka, Tobe
F
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Jersey Number 11
Tobe Awaka
- Class:
- Freshman
- Position:
- F
- Height:
- 6-8
- Weight:
- 250
- Hometown:
- Hyde Park, N.Y.
- High School:
- Cardinal Hayes High School
Bio
CAREER HIGHS
- Points: 18 // at Missouri, 2/20/24
- Rebounds: 12 // vs. NC State, 12/16/23
- Assists: 3 // vs. Georgia Southern, 12/12/23
- Steals: 1 (16x) // last vs. Purdue, 3/31/24
- Blocks: 5 // vs. Tarleton State, 12/21/23
- Field Goals: 6 // at Missouri, 2/20/24
- 3-Pointers: -- // --
- Free Throws: 6 // at Missouri, 2/20/24
- Minutes: 25:54 // at Texas A&M, 2/21/23
HONORS
- 2023-24 CSC Academic All-America Finalist & All-District
- 2023-24 Winter SEC Academic Honor Roll
- 2022-23 First-Year SEC Academic Honor Roll
2023-24 - SOPHOMORE
- Game-by-Game Statistics
- VIDEO: 2024 Player Feature
- Played in 35 of the team’s 36 contests, missing one due to injury.
- Tied for No. 18 on Tennessee's single-season offensive rebounding list with 74.
- Shot 59.1 percent from the floor while averaging 5.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and 0.6 blocks in 13.1 minutes per game.
- Led Tennessee (min. 25 FGA) in field-goal percentage, plus ranked second in offensive rebounding (2.1) and fourth in total rebounding, as well as fifth in free-throw percentage (74.2), made free throws (49) and free-throw attempts (66).
- Posted a 17.9 percent offensive rebounding rate that ranked sixth nationally among players with at least 400 total minutes of action.
- First—alone or with a teammate—player off the bench in 29 of his outings.
- Registered two double-doubles to rank fourth on the roster.
- Finished No. 11 in the SEC in total offensive rebounds and No. 14 in offensive rebounds per game.
- Paced the Volunteers or shared the team lead in rebounding on six occasions, fourth-most on the team, and in blocks thrice.
- Scored at least eight points 10 times and reached double digits in five contests.
- Pulled down five-plus boards 17 times and had three double-figure rebounding totals, with both marks top-three on the team.
- Twice tallied three-plus blocks and twice had three assists.
- Tied for the best single-game field-goal percentage (min. 5 FGM) by a Volunteer with a 5-of-6 (83.3 percent) mark and matched the top single-game block total (five).
- Despite playing only 11 minutes due to foul trouble, amassed 10 points, five rebounds and a block in the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 win against Texas (3/23/24), shooting 4-of-5 from the floor and 2-of-2 at the line.
- Logged eight points and four rebounds in the NCAA Tournament first-round win versus Saint Peter's (3/21/24), shooting 3-of-4 from the field and 2-of-2 at the line.
- Notched nine points, grabbed five boards and made all three of his field-goal attempts in the win against No. 11 Auburn (2/28/24).
- Finished with 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting, along with six rebounds, against Texas A&M (2/24/24).
- Registered his best outing as a collegian to lead Tennessee to a comeback victory at Missouri (2/20/24), notching a career-high 18 points and a co-game-best 10 rebounds, good for his second double-double, while shooting 6-of-8 from the field and 6-of-7 at the line to set new top marks in both makes categories.
- Scored nine points and went a perfect 5-of-5 from the line, tying a career best in makes, in the victory over No. 22/19 Ole Miss (1/6/24) in the SEC opener.
- Compiled his first collegiate double-double with a 10-point, 11-rebound performance against Norfolk State (1/2/24), finishing 4-of-6 from the floor to tie a career high in makes.
- Blocked five shots, over doubling his career high, against Tarleton State (12/21/23) and went 5-of-6 from the free-throw line to tie a career best in makes.
- Pulled down a career-best 12 rebounds, tied for the most by a Vol on the season, in the win over NC State (12/16/23) in San Antonio, Texas, adding five points and a co-career-high three assists.
- Totaled seven points on 3-of-4 shooting, six rebounds and a career-high three assists against Georgia Southern (12/12/23).
- After missing the game at No. 17 North Carolina (11/29/23) with a right ankle injury, returned against George Mason (12/5/23) and finished with a career-best 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting, tying his top mark in makes, to go along with a season-high seven rebounds.
- Tallied nine points in 13 minutes of work, to pair with six rebounds and one block as the Vols defeated Wofford (11/14/23).
- Posted six points on 3-of-4 shooting and six rebounds in just 12 minutes in the win at Wisconsin (11/10/23).
SUMMER 2023
- Started six of seven games for Team USA (5-2), which finished fourth, at the 2023 FIBA Men's U19 World Cup in Debrecen, Hungary. He was one of only three players in the tournament field to average a double-double, and his four double-doubles led all players.
- He was Team USA's second-leading scorer, averaging 11.6 points while shooting .600 from the field. His 10.6 rebounds per game led Team USA and were the second-most among all players in the tournament.
- His 18.1 FIBA efficiency rating for the tournament was the best on Team USA and fifth-best among all players at the elite global event.
- In the United States' semifinal loss to France (7/1/23), he totaled 14 points, 11 rebounds, four steals and a block.
- Scored a team-high 15 points and grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds during the win over China (6/28/23), including 10 points during a 17-0 run that blew the game open for Team USA.
- Led Team USA in both scoring and rebounds with a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double during a come-from behind win over Slovenia (6/25/23).
- From an initial group of 35 nationwide invitees, he made the 12-man roster for the 2023 USA Basketball Men's U19 World Cup Team.
2022-23 - FRESHMAN
- Game-by-Game Statistics
- AUDIO: OFWAF Podcast | Tobe Awaka
- Appeared in 34 games and was the first Vol off the bench eight times while averaging 10.3 minutes per game.
- Averaged 3.2 points and 3.8 rebounds per game, including 1.7 offensive rebounds per game (third-best on the team).
- Led the Vols in rebounding five times and blocks four times.
- Contributed four points and five minutes in his collegiate postseason debut against Ole Miss in the SEC Tournament (3/9/23).
- Despite ranking ninth on the squad in minutes played during SEC play, he led the Vols in offensive rebounding vs. league opponents (1.83 orpg).
- Led the Vols in rebounding with 10 at Auburn (3/4/23) and also dished out a season-high two assists in 18 minutes off the bench.
- In just 15 minutes, scored seven points and had eight rebounds—five offensive—against Arkansas (2/28/23).
- Totaled 10 points, seven rebounds and one steal in a season-high 26 minutes at Texas A&M (2/21/23).
- Pulled down seven rebounds—four offensive—and scored five points against Missouri (2/11/23) in 16 minutes of action—13 of which came as Tennessee was making its comeback in the second half. Was a team-high-tying +12.
- In a season-high 22 minutes at Vanderbilt (2/8/23), scored eight points and had nine rebounds, including three offensive boards.
- Had a career-high 10 points during the win over Georgia (1/25/23) on 3-for-3 shooting from the field and 4-for-4 at the free-throw line in just 13 minutes of action.
- Grabbed six rebounds—four offensive—in just 11 minutes at South Carolina (1/7/23), also scoring five points
- Scored a career-high nine points on 4-of-5 shooting and grabbed six rebounds in just 16 minutes against Mississippi State (1/3/23).
- Pulled down 11 rebounds in just 17 minutes against Austin Peay (12/21/22), also scoring six points on 3-of-5 shooting.
- Had a breakout performance against No. 13 Maryland (12/11/22), posting season-highs with seven points and eight rebounds in 17 minutes. Was a team-leading +17 in the win in front of his hometown crowd.
- Collected four rebounds and a steal in just four minutes against Eastern Kentucky (12/7/22).
- Grabbed five rebounds in just nine minutes of action against Alcorn State (12/4/22), also scoring two points on a dunk.
- Slammed home a putback dunk late in the second half of the win over McNeese State (11/30/22) during his five minutes of action off the bench.
- Played two minutes late in the win over Butler in the Battle 4 Atlantis opener (11/23/22), recording one block.
- Scored his first collegiate points against Florida Gulf Coast (11/16/22), tallying four points and five rebounds—three offensive—in just seven minutes of action.
- Made his official collegiate debut with six minutes of action in the season-opening win over Tennessee Tech (11/7/22), during which he totaled three rebounds and a steal.
HIGH SCHOOL
- Graduated from Cardinal Hayes High School in the Bronx, where he was coached by Joe Lods.
- Named the 2022 New York Gatorade Player of the Year—an award that former Vol and current Philadelphia 76ers swingman Tobias Harris won in 2010.
- As a senior in 2021-22, he averaged 19.2 points and 13.9 rebounds per game.
- Cardinal Hayes High School also produced former SEC and NBA standout Jamal Mashburn.
- Played his AAU ball with the New York Lightning program in the EYBL, coached/directed by Dana Dingle, and was a Lightning teammate of current Vol Zakai Zeigler for one year.
- Logged double-doubles in each of his four games at the 2022 Nike 17U EYBL Session 2 in Indianapolis, helping lead the Lightning to a 4-0 record with averages of 12.8 points and 13.8 rebounds per game on 55.3 percent shooting from the field.
PERSONAL
- Full name is Tobe Awaka
- Name pronounced: toe-BAY uh-WAH-kuh
- Born Jan. 30, 2004, in Poughkeepsie, New York
- Son of Henrietta and Sunny Awaka
- Continues a storied history of Vols who hail from the New York City area, including Naismith Hall of Famer Bernard King (Brooklyn), Ernie Grunfeld (Forest Hills), Howard Wood (East Hampton), Tobias Harris (Dix Hills), Kevin Punter Jr. (Bronx) and current Vols teammate Zakai Zeigler (Long Island).
- Academic Major: Supply Chain Management
- Recipient of the Dane Bradshaw Endowed Athletic Scholarship
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