The Rhodes men’s basketball team earned national recognition as they were honored for their academic excellence by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) for the 2012-2013 season.
The Lynx were awarded the inaugural NABC Team Academic Excellence Award, earning the accolade by posting a cumulative team grade point average of 3.0 or better in 2012-13.
Under the direction of head coach Mike DeGeorge, Rhodes is one of only 97 NCAA Division I, II, and III programs to earn the recognition, as the squad combined for a +3.0 GPA in the 2012-13 academic year. Rhodes is the only SAA Conference program to be honored, joining Belmont University as the only teams in the state to earn the award.
“The vision of our program is to pursue excellence on the court, in the classroom and in the community,” says DeGeorge. “This is another example of how this group has embraced our vision. I am honored to be associated with this group.”
The team achievement comes on the heels of numerous individual academic accolades for the Lynx. The NABC named Reid Cates, Joey Miller, Theo Hartwell, and Johnny Dunavant to its Honors Court for upperclassmen with a cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher.
In order to be named to the NABC Honors Court, student-athletes had to meet a set of standards that includes being either a junior or senior, having a cumulative 3.20 or higher grade point average at the conclusion of the 2012-13 academic year, and having matriculated at least one year at their current institution (which must be a Division I, II, III or NAIA member).
Located in Kansas City, 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 and enhance the sport. The NABC currently has nearly 5,000 members consisting primarily of university and college men′s basketball coaches.