Moon Township, Pa. – The RMU men's basketball team was honored Thursday for its work in the classroom, earning the 2022-23 National Basketball Coaches Association (NABC) Team Academic Excellence Award.
The NABC Team Academic Excellence Awards recognize men's basketball programs that completed the 2022-23 academic year with a team grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 or higher. During the 2022-23 academic year, the Colonials finished with a team GPA of 3.169.
In addition to earning the NABC Team Academic Excellence Award, fifth-year forward
Kahliel Spear earned a spot on the NABC Honors Court. To garner the accolade, a junior, senior or graduate student student-athlete must post a cumulative GPA of 3.20 or higher at the conclusion of the 2022-23 season. Spear earned a Bachelor of Science degree in economics from RMU while posting a 3.91 GPA.
Over 1,800 players earned spots on the NABC Honors Court and over 300 programs received NABC Team Academic Excellence Awards. The NABC's academic awards include honorees from all levels of college basketball.
RMU Pat Gallagher Head Coach
Andrew Toole enters 14th season at the helm of the Colonials in 2023-24. RMU returns three starters from a 2022-23 squad that advanced to the quarterfinals of the Horizon League Tournament for the second consecutive season.
Included among RMU's returning starters is senior guard
Josh Corbin, junior guard
Jackson Last and sophomore forward
Stephaun Walker. Corbin is RMU's active leading returning scorer with 640 career points, including 345 with the Colonials. Last season Corbin averaged 10.5 points per game and connected for 93 three-pointers, which is tied for fourth in the RMU single-season record book.
Walker and Last supplied RMU with averages of 6.8 and 5.8 points per game, respectively. Walker also averaged 6.0 rebounds per game, finishing with at least 10 rebounds in five games, including a pair of double-doubles.
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