Bruin Men's Basketball recognized for Academic Excellence
The BU Men’s Basketball team was recognized by the National Association of Basketball Coaches for their excellence in the classroom
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Bellevue University men's basketball team was recognized for their outstanding achievement in the classroom by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). It is the first time that the BU men's basketball program has received the honor.
The NABC announced the fifth annual Team Academic Excellence Awards, created by the NABC Committee on Academics. These awards recognize outstanding academic achievement be a team with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or better for the 2016-17 season.
In order to earn a NABC Team Academic Excellence Award, institutions in the NCAA, NAIA, and NJCAA must count the grade point averages of all men's student-athletes who competed during the 2016-17 season.
Earlier this season Jerred Cook was named a Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athlete while six student-athletes – Isaiah Brown, Jerred Cook, Garrett Ford, Nick Hilton, Blake Wilder, and Tyler Morgan – earned North Star Athletic Association Scholar-Athlete recognition.
On the court, Bellevue finished the 2016-17 season with a 25-11 overall record and an 11-5 mark in league play, advancing to the semifinals of the NAIA National Tournament. Bellevue won a share of the NSAA Regular-Season Title and downed Dickinson State in the NSAA Tournament Championship Game.
About the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC)
Located in Kansas City, Mo., the NABC was founded in 1927 by Phog Allen, the legendary basketball coach at the University of Kansas. Allen, a student of James Naismith, the inventor of basketball, organized coaches into this collective group to serve as Guardians of the Game. The NABC currently has nearly 5,000 members consisting primarily of university and college men's basketball coaches. All members of the NABC are expected to uphold the core values of being a Guardian of the Game by bringing attention to the positive aspects of the sport of basketball and the role coaches play in the academic and athletic lives of today's student-athlete. The four core values of being a Guardian of the Game are advocacy, leadership, service, and education. For additional information about the NABC, its programs, and membership, go to www.nabc.org.