This just in from the UGA Sports Communications Office:

ATHENS, GA. — Ashley Houts was tabbed first-team All-SEC and Jasmine Hassell and Jasmine James both were named to the Freshman All-SEC team on Tuesday. The SEC honors for women’s basketball, as selected by the head coaches, were announced by the league office.

“Those players should be very proud that they’ve been included because there are a lot of very good players in the Southeastern Conference,” Andy Landers said. “They should also be very proud that those teams were voted on by the coaches that they play against. Those coaches know better than anyone else the performances that deserve merit. While it should be a great source of pride for Ashley and Jasmine and Jasmine that they’ve been honored, they also should be very thankful that they play on a basketball team that’s unselfish and has positioned them to be as successful as they’ve been.”

Houts (pictured), a 5-6, senior from Trenton, GA, was a second-team All-SEC pick as both a sophomore and a junior. She leads the Lady Bulldogs and ranks among league leaders in scoring (12.3 ppg), free throw percentage (.812), assists (3.8 apg), assist-to-TO ratio (1.6) and steals (2.1 spg). She is one of 10 national finalists for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award and is among candidates for Naismith National Player of the Year honors as well.

“It’s always nice to be recognized, but it’s really a reflection of what we’ve done this year as a team,” Houts said. “All of my teammates and all of the coaches played a very big role in this individual honor so I’d like to thank them.”

Hassell (pictured), a 6-2, forward from Lebanon, TN, has made great strides as the season progressed. She struggled with conditioning early on but has worked tirelessly to improve. Hassell now leads the Lady Bulldogs in field goal percentage in SEC play (.533) and has averaged 7.6 points per game in league action. She scored a career-high 20 points against Ole Miss and was named SEC Freshman of the Week for that effort.

“At first, it was hard and some times you think ‘Why do I have to go through this?’” Hassell said. “I’m really proud that my teammates and my coaches were behind me when I was on the treadmill. It helped me realize that Coach was doing it to help me get better. I appreciate him for that and for other people like Coach (La’Keshia) Frett and (teammate) Tamika (Willis) and everyone who encouraged me to keep going when it was hard. They all played a role me winning this honor.”

James (pictured), a 5-9, guard from Memphis, TN, is Georgia’s second-leading scorer at 11.4 ppg and leads the Lady Bulldogs and ranks third in the SEC  in minutes played (35.8 mpg). She also ranks among league leaders in three-pointers per game, assists, assist-to-TO ratio and steals. On Monday, James was named SEC Freshman of the Week for the fifth time this season, tying the league record for most Freshman of the Week honors.

“It’s a big honor, but as I’ve constantly said, a big part of this is being to come up with wins throughout the season,” James said. “I appreciate it. It’s a very big honor and I’m glad to get it, but I just hope we can continue to have a great season to go along with that.”

(Ash, Jazz, and J.J. photos courtesy of Fastbreaker Bill Zachmann.)