Big Rapids, Mich. – The Ferris State University men’s basketball team, which reached the NCAA Division II Elite Eight and won the NCAA D2 Midwest Regional Championship this past year, has also been recognized for its academic achievements. The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) announced its 2023-24 Team Academic Excellence Awards along with the NABC Honors Court selections.
The Bulldogs earned the NABC Team Academic Excellence Award for the first time. This distinction is awarded to programs that achieve a team grade point average of 3.0 or higher.
The NABC Honors Court includes junior, senior, and graduate student men’s basketball players who finished the 2023-24 year with a cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher. Eight student-athletes from Ferris State achieved this distinction: graduate seniors Amari Lee (Rochester, N.Y.) and Ben Davidson (St. Clair), juniors Ethan Erickson (Grand Rapids/Forest Hills Northern), Reece Hazelton (Glen Lake), and Jimmy Scholler (Grand Rapids/Forest Hills Central), as well as sophomores Brandon Claerbaut (Zeeland/East), Nate Claerbaut (Zeeland/East), and Cole Vickers (Canton).
“The NABC is proud to celebrate these accomplished student-athletes, along with the coaches and staff who champion success in the classroom,” said NABC Executive Director Craig Robinson. “Education is a core value of the NABC, and the teams and athletes who earned these awards are proof that academic achievement remains a priority across every level of our sport.”
Over 2,100 players earned spots on the NABC Honors Court, and over 360 programs received NABC Team Academic Excellence Awards for 2023-24.
Ferris State concluded their season by winning both the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Tournament Championship and the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional title. They closed out with a 28-8 overall record, tying for second-most wins in program history. This marked their first trip to the D2 Elite Eight in six years; their last appearance was in 2018 when they captured their first NCAA D2 National Championship. This year’s appearance was their third overall in program history.
Visit this link for the official NABC Academic Award Release:
https://nabc.com/nabc_releases/2024/nabc-announces-2023-24-academic-award-honorees/
