Iowa Energy Big Man Jarvis Varnado Records Triple-Double In Win Over Vipers

On Sunday night against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Iowa Energy's Jarvis Varnado put together one of the most impressive performances of the young season.

In 33 minutes, the 6-foot-9 center recorded the first triple-double of his pro career, scoring 14 points on 5-for-10 shooting from the field, grabbing 16 rebounds and blocking 10 shots. In fact, he should have been credited for a few more blocks, since at least three weren't recorded in the box-score, as you'll see in his highlight reel below. Nevertheless, it came in a winning effort, thanks to a strong fourth quarter by the Energy, which saw them outscore the Vipers by 24 points.

It's not the first time Varnado has recorded double-digit blocks in a game this season. On December 6th against the Erie Bayhawks, he blocked 10 shots, but just missed a triple-double by grabbing only eight rebounds. He's come close to that mark a couple of other times, too, swatting away nine of the Mad Ants' shots on December 12th and another seven against the Jam on January 7th.

As a result, he is now averaging 5.0 blocks per game on the season, by far the most in the D-League. He's also 77 blocks shy of tying Kurt Looby's four-year old record for most blocks in a season.

Before his monstrous performance last night, Yahoo's Marc J. Spears reported that the Philadelphia 76ers are holding a work out on Monday, which will include the Santa Cruz Warriors' Dewayne Dedmon, as well as the Energy's Jarvis Varnado. While Dedmon is the more enticing prospect for the future - he's only played in about 70 games of organised basketball - Varnado may be able to make more of an immediate impact, thanks to his defensive prowess. His offensive game is still a work in progress, yet for a rebuilding team like the 76ers, that's not something they can't work with.

Varnado's Highlights