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smallcollegebasketball · 6 months

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Bevo Francis Award Top 25 Watch List Announced

2024 Bevo Francis Top 25 Watch List Announced

Kansas City, MO – The National Awards Committee and Small College Basketball are happy to announce the Bevo Francis Top 25 Watch List for the 2023-24 season. The Top 25 Watch List consists of some of the top players from the NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, USCAA, and NCCAA. With the amount of talented players and phenomenal seasons across all of these levels, the National Award Committee continues to have the difficult task of narrowing the list down. John McCarthy discussed this years Top 25 list:

"Congratulations to the 25 players that have made this prestigious Bevo Francis Award Watch List,” stated McCarthy. “This is a list of the elite of the elite in college basketball at the small college levels, based on our criteria. I am very grateful to our committee members, as they have provided great insight and information." 2024 marks the eighth year of the Bevo Francis Award. Past winners include Dominez Burnett of Davenport University in 2016, Justin Pitts of Northwest Missouri State University in 2017, Emanuel Terry of Lincoln Memorial University in 2018, Aston Francis of Wheaton College in 2019, Kyle Mangas of Indiana Wesleyan University in 2020 and Trevor Hudgins of Northwest Missouri State University in 2022. In 2023, RJ Sunahara of Nova Southeastern was named the winner of the Bevo Francis Award. The award was not presented during the 2021 season.

Next up on April 5th, the finalists of this year’s award will be announced. The Bevo Francis Award winner will be announced on April 8th .

The Bevo Francis Awards Committee consists of the following coaches: Gary Stewart - Stevenson (Md.), Chris Briggs - Georgetown (Ky.), Bill Dreikosen - Rocky Mountain (Mont.), Mark Berokoff – Oklahoma City, Mike Donnelly – Florida Southern, Sam Hargraves – Olivet (Mich.), Richard Westerlund – UNOH, Chase Tiechmann – Florida College, Aaron Siebenthall – Ottawa(Kan.), Mark Vanderslice – USC – Aiken, Matt O’Brien – Southwestern (KS), Chris Wright – Langston (OK), Ben Thompson – Emory & Henry, Justin Leslie – Midwestern State, Raul Placeres – Maryville College (TN), Chris Martin – Loras (IA), John Lamanna – Whitman (WA), Brian Miller – MSOE, Justin Downer – Point Loma Nazarene.

To stay up to date on all things Small College Basketball or to learn more about the Bevo Francis Award, please head to smallcollegebasketball.com.

2023-24 Bevo Francis Award Top 25 Watch List

Trevor Baskin 6’8” Jr. CO Mesa Drew Blair 6’5” Sr. MN-Duluth Frank Champion 6’7” Jr. North Georgia Luke Chicone 5’10” Jr. John Carroll Cevin Clark 5’11” Jr. Southwestern (KS) Tyler Dearman 6’3” Sr. Guilford Wes Dreamer 6’7” Sr. NW MO State Gus Etchison 5’11” Jr. Marian Spencer Freedman 6’0” Sr. New York U Zach Goodline 6’1” Sr. Huntington Jake Hilmer 5’11” Sr. Upper Iowa Jeff Hunter 6’7” Sr. Keene State Zawdie Jackson 6’0” Jr. West Georgia KJ Jones 6’6” Sr. Emmanuel (GA) Jaden Lietzke 6’7” Jr. Oklahoma Wesleyan Elijah Malone 6’10” Sr. Grace (IN) Anthony Mazzeo 6’3” Sr. Case Western Reserve Jalen Overway 6’9” So. Calvin James Paterson 6’7” So. STAC Logan Pearson 6’4” Jr. Wisconsin-Platteville Anthony Roy 6’5” Jr. Langston Tyler Schmidt 6’4” Sr. Olivet Nazarene Alex VanKalsbeek 6’6” So. Northwestern (IA) Malik Willingham 6’3” Jr. Minnesota State Larry Wise 6’5” Sr. West Texas A&M

#Bevo Francis Award #Rio Grande University #NCAA DII #NCAA DIII #NAIA #NCCAA

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manelyec · 3 years

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Jones Named To Bevo Francis Award Top 50 Watchlist!

Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee announced the Top 50 watch list for the 2022 Bevo Francis Award and KJ Jones II of Emmanuel represented Conference Carolinas on the list.

Jones currently leads the league in points (458) and points per game (20.8). He is shooting at a 49 percent (127-258) clip but leads the conference at the free-throw line with an 87.3 percent (185-212) mark. He is also top in the league with 45 steals (2.0/game) and third in assists with 99 (4.5 per contest).

The 2022 Bevo Francis Top 50 Watch List consists of some of the top players from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA.

The Clarence "Bevo" Francis Award is presented annually to the player who has had the finest overall season within Small College Basketball. Considerations will be season statistics and individual achievements, awards, personal character and team achievements. This is an incredibly prestigious award, as this award will only be given to one player within Small College Basketball per season.

2022 marks the sixth year of the Bevo Francis Award, after the award was not presented in 2021. Past winners include Dominez Burnett of Davenport University in 2016, Justin Pitts of Northwest Missouri State University in 2017, Emanuel Terry of Lincoln Memorial University in 2018, Aston Francis of Wheaton College in 2019 and Kyle Mangas of Indiana Wesleyan University in 2020.

On March 15th, the list will be reduced to the Top 25 players. On April 2nd, the finalists of this year's award will be announced, followed by the Bevo Francis Award winner being crowned on April 4th.

The Bevo Francis Awards Committee consists of the following coaches: Tobin Anderson - St. Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.), Gary Stewart - Stevenson (Md.), Chris Briggs - Georgetown (Ky.), Bill Dreikosen - Rocky Mountain (Mont.), Ryan Kane - Ripon (Wisc.), Mark Berokoff – Oklahoma City, Mike Donnelly – Florida Southern, Rhett Soliday – Vanguard (Calif.), Sam Hargraves – Olivet (Mich.), Stacy Hollowell – Loyola (La.), Stephen Brennan – Babson, Richard Westerlund – Great Lakes Christian, Chase Tiechmann – Florida College, Bart Lundy – Queens (N.C.), Aaron Siebenthall – Ottawa (Kan.), Tae Norwood – Humboldt State, Justin Parnell – Oregon Tech, Mark Vanderslice – USC - Aiken and Grant Leep – Seattle Pacific.

Learn more about the award and see the full Top 50 here.

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lakelandg · 5 years

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Hanson, Hinton Named to Bevo Francis Award Watch List

Florida Southern College men’s basketball standouts Brett Hanson and Jalyn Hinton have been named to the initial Top 100 Watch List for the prestigious Bevo Francis Award, it was announced on Wednesday by Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee. The Clarence “Bevo” Francis Award is given annually to the top non-division I men’s basketball player in the country and includes…

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smallcollegebasketball · 7 months

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Bevo Francis Award Watch List of 50 Players Released

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 15, 2024 Media Contact: Matt Ankenbrandt Sports Information Director │ Small College Basketball 616.780.1335 www.smallcollegebasketball.com

2024 Bevo Francis Top 50 Watch List Announced

Kansas City, MO – Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee are pleased to announce the Bevo Francis Top 50 Watch List for the 2023-24 season. After the Top 100 Watch List was announced on January 15 th, 2024, the National Awards Committee had the difficult task of narrowing the list down to the Top 50. The Top 50 Watch List is made up of some of the best players across the NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA. John McCarthy touched on the this years Top 50 list:

"Congratulations to all 50 players on the Bevo Francis Award Watch List,” mentioned McCarthy. “This is an incredible honor, as this represents 50 players out of approximately 13,000 - 16,000 players that are competing at the small college levels. Each player is in the midst of an outstanding season, both individually and as a team. I am very grateful to our SCB National Awards Committee for such tremendous input on this list."

2024 marks the eighth year of the Bevo Francis Award. Past winners include Dominez Burnett of Davenport University in 2016, Justin Pitts of Northwest Missouri State University in 2017, Emanuel Terry of Lincoln Memorial University in 2018, Aston Francis of Wheaton College in 2019, Kyle Mangas of Indiana Wesleyan University in 2020 and Trevor Hudgins of Northwest Missouri State University in 2022. In 2023, RJ Sunahara of Nova Southeastern was named the winner of the Bevo Francis Award. The award was not presented during the 2021 season.

On March 15th, the Top 25 players will be announced. On April 5, the finalists of this year’s award will be announced, followed by the Bevo Francis Award winner being crowned on April 8.

The Bevo Francis Awards Committee consists of the following coaches: Gary Stewart - Stevenson (Md.), Chris Briggs - Georgetown (Ky.), Bill Dreikosen - Rocky Mountain (Mont.), Mark Berokoff – Oklahoma City, Mike Donnelly – Florida Southern, Sam Hargraves – Olivet (Mich.), Richard Westerlund – Great Lakes Christian, Chase Tiechmann – Florida College, Aaron Siebenthall – Ottawa (Kan.), Mark Vanderslice – USC – Aiken, Matt O’Brien – Southwestern (KS), Chris Wright – Langston (OK), Ben Thompson – Emory & Henry, Justin Leslie – Midwestern State, Raul Placeres – Maryville College (TN), Chris Martin – Loras (IA), John Lamanna – Whitman (WA), Brian Miller – MSOE, Justin Downer – Point Loma Nazarene. To stay up to date on all things Small College Basketball or to learn more about the Bevo Francis Award, please head to smallcollegebasketball.com.

2023-24 Bevo Francis Award Watch List

Trevor Baskin 6’8” Jr. CO Mesa Drew Blair 6’5” Sr. MN-Duluth Octavio Brito 6’4” So. Keene State Martez Brown 6’9” Sr. Lincoln Memorial Frank Champion 6’7” Jr. North Georgia Luke Chicone 5’10” Jr. John Carroll Cevin Clark 5’11” Jr. Southwestern (KS) Toru Dean 6’0” Sr. Langston Tyler Dearman 6’3” Sr. Guilford Connor Dillon 6’2” Jr. Winona State Ely Doble 6’6” Sr. Morningside Wes Dreamer 6’7” Sr. NW MO State Gus Etchison 5’11” Jr. Marian Spencer Freedman 6’0” Sr. New York U Zach Goodline 6’1” Sr. Huntington CJ Hall 6’2” Jr. SAGU Jake Hilmer 5’11” Sr. Upper Iowa Jahn Hines 6’4” Jr. Christopher Newport Jeff Hunter 6’7” Sr. Keene State Zawdie Jackson 6’0” Jr. West Georgia Josiah Johnson 6’1” Sr. Mary Hardin-Baylor KJ Jones 6’6” Sr. Emmanuel (GA) Tavon Jones 6’3” Sr. Nichols Cameron Kahn 6’6” Sr. Dallas Baptist Zach Laput 6’4” Sr. Bentley Jaden Lietzke 6’7” Jr. Oklahoma Wesleyan Drew Lutz 6’1” Sr. Bethel (IN) Elijah Malone 6’10” Sr. Grace (IN) Jayvon Maughmer 6’6” Sr. Cedarville Anthony Mazzeo 6’3” Sr. Case Western Reserve Jaylin McCants 6’6” Jr. Dubuque KJ McClurg 6’3” So. Cal PA Erza McKenna 6’9” Jr. Mobile Josh Omojafo 6’5” So. Gannon Jalen Overway 6’9” So. Calvin Christian Parker 6’6” Jr. Mount Union James Paterson 6’7” So. STAC Ben Pearce 6’1” So. Emory Logan Pearson 6’4” Jr. Wisconsin-Platteville Ethan Porterfield 6’8” Sr. IUP Anthony Roy 6’5” Jr. Langston Tyler Schmidt 6’4” Sr. Olivet Nazarene Jeremiah Sparks 6’3” Sr. Oswego State DJ Talton, Jr. 5’10” Jr. OK Wesleyan Jo Valrie 6’5” Jr. Point Park

Joshua Van Gorp 6’10” Sr. Central (IA) Alex VanKalsbeek 6’6” So. Northwestern (IA) Jaden Wells 6’1” Jr. Central Oklahoma Malik Willingham 6’3” Jr. Minnesota State Larry Wise 6’5” Sr. West Texas A&M

#Bevo Francis Award

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smallcollegebasketball · 8 months

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Bevo Francis Award Watch List of 100 Players

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 15, 2024 Media Contact: Matt Ankenbrandt Sports Information Director │ Small College Basketball 616.780.1335 www.smallcollegebasketball.com

2024 Bevo Francis Top 100 Watch List Announced

Kansas City, MO – The National Awards Committee and Small College Basketball are extremely excited to announce the Bevo Francis Top 100 Watch List for the 2023-24 season. Once again this year, the Top 100 Watch List consists of some of the top players from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA. John McCarthy spoke about this years Top 100 list:

"Congratulations to all of the 100 players on the Bevo Francis Award Watch List,” stated McCarthy. “This is a very elite list of players, as there are only 100 players listed out of approximately 13,000 -16,000 players that are playing at the various levels of small college basketball. While the Bevo Francis Award is ultimately an individual award, team success is a big component, so these players have helped their teams to tremendous success thus far this season.”

“The Bevo Francis Award is the most prestigious award that is given to a player that has the finest overall season, based on our criteria, in a single season,” mentioned McCarthy. “Importantly, I am very grateful to our National Awards Committee for their tremendous insight and information."

On February 15th, the list will be reduced to the Top 50 players. One month later on March 15th, the Top 25 players will be announced. The finalists and Bevo Francis Award winner announcement release date is TBD. More information will be available in the coming months. The Bevo Francis Awards Committee consists of the following coaches: Gary Stewart - Stevenson (Md.), Chris Briggs - Georgetown (Ky.), Bill Dreikosen - Rocky Mountain (Mont.), Mark Berokoff – Oklahoma City, Mike Donnelly – Florida Southern, Sam Hargraves – Olivet (Mich.), Richard Westerlund – Great Lakes Christian, Chase Tiechmann – Florida College, Aaron Siebenthall – Ottawa (Kan.), Mark Vanderslice – USC – Aiken, Matt O’Brien – Southwestern (KS), Chris Wright – Langston (OK), Ben Thompson – Emory & Henry, Justin Leslie – Midwestern State, Raul Placeres – Maryville College (TN), Chris Martin – Loras (IA), John Lamanna – Whitman (WA), Brian Miller – MSOE, Justin Downer – Point Loma Nazarene.

To stay up to date on all things Small College Basketball or to learn more about the Bevo Francis Award, please head to smallcollegebasketball.com.

2023-24 Bevo Francis Award Watch List

Josh Angle 6’3” Sr. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Will Bartoszek 6’4” Sr. Hardin-Simmons Trevor Baskin 6’8” Jr.. CO Mesa Jacob Beeninga 6’0” Jr. MN State Moorhead Jesse Bingham 6’6” Jr. Indianapolis Drew Blair 6’5” Sr. MN-Duluth Follie Bogan 6’4” Sr. Milligan Nick Brenegan 6’3” Jr. Carson-Newman Octavio Brito 6’4” So. Keene State Martez Brown 6’9” Sr. Lincoln Memorial DJ Campbell 6’3” Sr. Stockton Frank Champion 6’7” Jr. North Georgia Luke Chicone 5’10” Jr.. John Carroll Cevin Clark 5’11” Jr. Southwestern (KS) Alijah Comithier 6’7” Sr. Emporia State Myles Corey 6’0” Jr. William Jessup Danquez Dawsey 6’2” Jr. Central Oklahoma Deng Deang 6’7” Jr. Post Vinny DeAngelo 6’1” Jr. Swarthmore Toru Dean 6’0” Sr. Langston Tyler Dearman 6’3” Sr. Guilford Omari DeVeaux 6’2” So. Virginia Wesleyan Connor Dillon 6’2” Jr. Winona State Robert DiSibio 6’6” Sr. Washington & Lee Ely Doble 6’6” Sr. Morningside Wes Dreamer 6’7” Sr. NW MO State Jahcoree Ealy 6’7” Sr. Eastern New Mexico Keyshawn Embery-Simpson 6’3” Sr. Angelo State Gus Etchison 5’11” Jr. Marian Brody Fox 6’6” Jr. UW-Stout Spencer Freedman 6’0” Sr. New York U Isaiah Fuller 6’2” Sr. Nova Southeastern Kevon Godwin 6’2” Sr. Angelo State Zach Goodline 6’1” Sr. Huntington Kyle Greeley 6’5” Sr. St. Martin’s Christian Green 6’6” Fr. Trinity (TX) Scott Gyimesi 6’6” So. Tufts Jesse Hafemeister 6’5” Jr. Catholic CJ Hall 6’2” Jr. SAGU Kaleb Hammeke 6’0” Jr. Fort Hays State Jackie Harris 6’6” Sr. Lourdes Jacobi Hendricks 6’0” Jr. IU Southeast Jake Hilmer 5’11” Sr. Upper Iowa

Jahn Hines 6’4” Jr. Christopher Newport Joey Holifield 6’4” Sr. Lourdes Davidson Hubbard 6’5” Sr. Hampden-Sydney Trent Hudgens 6’1” So. Arizona Christian Jeff Hunter 6’7” Sr. Keene State Shane Hunter 6’10” Sr. Nova Southeastern Zawdie Jackson 6’0” Jr. West Georgia Cedric Johnson 6’4” Sr. St. Xavier (IL) Josiah Johnson 6’1” Sr. Mary Hardin-Baylor Ryan Jolly 6’3” Sr. Piedmont KJ Jones 6’6” Sr. Emmanuel (GA) Tavon Jones 6’3” Sr. Nichols Cameron Kahn 6’6” Sr. Dallas Baptist Nordin Kapic 6’8” So. Lynn Zach Laput 6’4” Sr. Bentley Andre Leavell 6’2” Sr. Coker Jaden Lietzke 6’7” Jr. Oklahoma Wesleyan Kaleb Lowery 6’8” Jr. The Masters Drew Lutz 6’1” Sr. Bethel (IN) Elijah Malone 6’10” Sr. Grace (IN) Chris Martin 6’2” Sr. Clark Atlanta Jayvon Maughmer 6’6” Sr. Cedarville Anthony Mazzeo 6’3” Sr. Case Western Reserve Jaylin McCants 6’6” Jr. Dubuque KJ McClurg 6’3” So. Cal PA David McCullough 6’6” Sr. FL Tech Erza McKenna 6’9” Jr. Mobile Khalif Meares 6’3” Jr. Rowan Vincent Miszkiewicz 6’8” Sr. Keiser Latavious Mitchell 6’8” Jr. Florida Memorial Samaje Morgan 5’9” So. College of Idaho Josh Omojafo 6’5” So. Gannon Jalen Overway 6’9” So. Calvin Christian Parker 6’6” Jr. Mount Union James Paterson 6’7” So. STAC Ben Pearce 6’1” So. Emory Logan Pearson 6’4” Jr. Wisconsin-Platteville Ethan Porterfield 6’8” Sr. IUP Chase Rankin 6’1” Sr. Lincoln Memorial Kael Robinson 6’7” Jr. Rocky Mountain Anthony Roy 6’5” Jr. Langston Tyler Schmidt 6’4” Sr. Olivet Nazarene Joey Skoff 6’3” Sr. Morningside Jeremiah Sparks 6’3” Sr. Oswego State Jalen Stamps 5’10” Sr. Point Park Alex Steen 6’8” So. Florida Southern DJ Talton, Jr. 5’10” Jr. OK Wesleyan Reggie Thomas 6’1” So. Hastings

Jo Valrie 6’5” Jr. Point Park Joshua Van Gorp 6’10” Sr. Central (IA) Alex VanKalsbeek 6’6” So. Northwestern (IA) Milos Vicentic 6’8” St. McKendree Jaden Wells 6’1” Jr. Central Oklahoma A.J. White 5’10” So. North Georgia Calvin Williams IV 6’0” Jr. St. Thomas (TX) Malik Willingham 6’3” Jr. Minnesota State Larry Wise 6’5” Sr. West Texas A&M

#Bevo Francis Award #University of Rio Grande #Rio Grande Red Storm #Bevo Francis

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smallcollegebasketball · 2 years

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The Bevo Francis Award Watch List of 25 Players Has Been Released

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 15, 2023 Media Contact: Matt Ankenbrandt Sports Information Director │ Small College Basketball 616.780.1335 www.smallcollegebasketball.com

2023 Bevo Francis Top 25 Watch List Announced

Kansas City, MO – Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee are pleased to announce the Bevo Francis Top 25 Watch List for the 2022-23 season. The Top 25 Watch List consists of some of the top players from the NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA.

John McCarthy has this to say about this year’s Top 25 Watch List: “Congratulations to the 25 players selected for the Bevo Francis Award Watch List,” stated McCarthy. “There are approximately 13,000-16,000 players that play college basketball at the small college levels, and to be among the 25 players on this list, is obviously a very high honor. Based on our selection criteria, each of these players has earned their spot on this list, and they have had - or are still having - a phenomenal season. I am very grateful for the time and insight from our committee.”

The Clarence “Bevo” Francis Award is presented annually to the player who has had the finest overall season within Small College Basketball. Considerations will be season statistics and individual achievements, awards, personal character and team achievements. This is an incredibly prestigious award, as this award will only be given to one player within Small College Basketball per season. 2023 marks the seventh year of the Bevo Francis Award. Past winners include Dominez Burnett of Davenport University in 2016, Justin Pitts of Northwest Missouri State University in 2017, Emanuel Terry of Lincoln Memorial University in 2018, Aston Francis of Wheaton College in 2019, Kyle Mangas of Indiana Wesleyan University in 2020 and Trevor Hudgins of Northwest Missouri State University in 2022. The award was not presented during the 2021 season.

On April 1st, the finalists of this year’s award will be announced, followed by the Bevo Francis Award winner being crowned on April 3rd .

The Bevo Francis Awards Committee consists of the following coaches: Gary Stewart – Stevenson (MD), Chris Briggs – Georgetown College (KY), Bill Dreikosen – Rocky Mountain (MT), Mark Berokoff – Oklahoma City, Mike Donnelly – Florida Southern, Sam Hargraves – Olivet, Stephen Brennan – Babson, Richard Westerlund – Great Lakes Christian, Chase Teichmann – Florida College, Aaron Siebenthall – Ottawa (KS), Tae Norwood – Humboldt State, Mark Vanderslice – USC-Aiken, Grant Leep, Seattle Pacific, Matt O’Brien – Southwestern (KS), Chris Wright – Langston (OK), Nathan Champion – LeMoyne.

2022-23 Bevo Francis Award Top 25 Watch List

Kaden Anderson 6’8” Sr. Point Loma Nazarene Diego Bernard 6’0” Sr. NW MO State Jalen Brooks 6’5” Sr. LSU-Shreveport Bryce Butler 6’5” Jr. West Liberty Frank Champion 6’7” So. North Georgia Cevin Clark 5’11” Jr. Southwestern (KS) Tyshaun Crawford 7’1” Sr. Augusta Tyson Cruickshank 5’11” Sr. Wheaton (IL) Zach Goodline 6’1” Sr. Huntington Jeff Hunter 6’7” Sr. Keene State Josiah Johnson 6’1” Sr. Mary Hardin Baylor KJ Jones 6’6” Jr. Emmanuel (GA) Brandon Knapper 6’0” Sr. Cal State San Bernardino Akuel Kot 6’2” Jr. Fort Lewis Zach Laput 6’4” Jr. Bentley Jaden Lietzke 6’7” Jr. Oklahoma Wesleyan Miles Mallory 6’5” Jr. Randolph-Macon Sam Masten 6’2” Sr. Northern State Riley Minix 6’7” Sr. Southeastern (FL) Christian Parker 6’6” Jr. Mount Union Joel Scott 6’7” Sr. Black Hills State Matt Simpson 6’1” Sr. Florida College Alex Sobel 6’8” Sr. Middlebury RJ Sunahara 6’8” Jr. Nova Southeastern Mason Walters 6’9” Sr. Jamestown

#Bevo Francis Award

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smallcollegebasketball · 2 years

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smallcollegebasketball · 2 years

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Bevo Francis Award Watch List of 50 Players

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 15, 2023 Media Contact: Matt Ankenbrandt Sports Information Director │ Small College Basketball 616.780.1335 www.smallcollegebasketball.com

2023 Bevo Francis Top 50 Watch List Announced

Kansas City, MO – Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee are extremely excited to announce the Bevo Francis Top 50 Watch List for the 2022-23 season. The Top 50 Watch List consists of some of the top players from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA.

John McCarthy had this to say about this year’s Top 100 Watch List: “Congratulations to the 50 players on this prestigious list,” stated McCarthy. “There are approximately 13,000-16,000 players that compete at the small college levels; as such, this is a very elite list. Thank you to our National Awards Committee for all of their insight and guidance on the creation of this list.”

2023 marks the seventh year of the Bevo Francis Award. Past winners include Dominez Burnett of Davenport University in 2016, Justin Pitts of Northwest Missouri State University in 2017, Emanuel Terry of Lincoln Memorial University in 2018, Aston Francis of Wheaton College in 2019, Kyle Mangas of Indiana Wesleyan University in 2020 and Trevor Hudgins of Northwest Missouri State University in 2022. The award was not presented during the 2021 season.

On March 15th , the list will be reduced to the Top 25 players. On April 1 st , the finalists of this year’s award will be announced, followed by the Bevo Francis Award winner being crowned on April 3rd .

To stay up to date on all things Small College Basketball, please head to smallcollegebasketball.com.

2022-23 Bevo Francis Award Top 50 Watch List

Kaden Anderson 6’8” Sr. Point Loma Nazarene Josh Angle 6’3” Sr. Claremont-Mudd-Scripts Raheem Anthony 6’4” Sr. St. Mary’s (MN) Diego Bernard 6’0” Sr. NW MO State Jesse Bingham 6’6” So. Indianapolis Octavio Brito 6’4” So. Keene State Jalen Brooks 6’5” Sr. LSU-Shreveport Anthony Brown 6’5” Sr. Mid-America Nazarene Julius Brown 5’10” Sr. West Texas A&M Bryce Butler 6’5” Jr. West Liberty Frank Champion 6’7” So. North Georgia Luke Chicone 5’10” So. John Carroll Jack Clement 6’0” Sr. Ohio Wesleyan Tyshaun Crawford 7’1” Sr. Augusta Tyson Cruickshank 5’11” Sr. Wheaton (IL) Cole Frilling 6’6” Sr. Case Western Reserve Zach Goodline 6’1” Sr. Huntington Tristan Harper 6’6” Sr. Langston Jahn Hines 6’4” Jr. Christopher Newport Jarred Houston 6’10” Sr. Emerson Jeff Hunter 6’7” Sr. Keene State Josiah Johnson 6’1” Sr. Mary Hardin Baylor Reid Jolly 6’5” Jr. Thomas More KJ Jones 6’6” Jr. Emmanuel (GA) Shawndale Jones 6’3” Sr. IUP Brandon Knapper 6’0” Sr. Cal State San Bernardino Akuel Kot 6’2” Jr. Fort Lewis Zach Laput 6’4” Jr. Bentley Peter Lash 6’6” So. Nebraska Wesleyan Jaden Lietzke 6’7” Jr. Oklahoma Wesleyan Drew Lutz 6’1” Sr. Bethel (IN) Miles Mallory 6’5” Jr. Randolph-Macon Sam Masten 6’2” Sr. Northern State Seth Maxwell 7’0” Sr. Indiana Wesleyan Riley Minix 6’7” Sr. Southeastern (FL) Brendan Mora 6’5” Sr. Pomona-Pitzer Robert Osborne 6’5” Sr. Virginia Union Jalen Overway 6’9” Fr. Calvin Christian Parker 6’6” Jr. Mount Union Carlos Pepin 6’7” Sr. East Stroudsburg Chase Rankin 6’1” Sr. Lincoln Memorial Tyler Schmidt 6’4” Jr. Olivet Nazarene Joel Scott 6’7” Sr. Black Hills State Matt Simpson 6’1” Sr. Florida College Alex Sobel 6’8” Sr. Middlebury RJ Sunahara 6’8” Jr. Nova Southeastern

Blaise Threatt 6’3” So. CO Mesa

Markelle Turner 6’2” Jr. Union (KY) Mason Walters 6’9” Sr. Jamestown Jaden Wells 6’1” So. Central Oklahoma

#Bevo Francis Award

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smallcollegebasketball · 2 years

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 15, 2023 Media Contact: Matt Ankenbrandt Sports Information Director │ Small College Basketball 616.780.1335 www.smallcollegebasketball.com

2023 Bevo Francis Top 100 Watch List Announced

Kansas City, MO – Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee is proud to announce the Bevo Francis Top 100 Watch List for the 2022-23 season. The Top 100 Watch List consists of some of the top players from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA. John McCarthy had this to say about this year’s Top 100 Watch List:

“Congratulations to the 100 players on the Bevo Francis Award Watch List, as this is a prestigious honor to be included on the list of only 100 players out of approximately 13,000-16,000 players at the small college levels,” stated McCarthy. “This is an extremely challenging process for our committee, and I appreciate a great deal of information provided by our committee, and fromcoaches and supporters from throughout the country. Again, congratulations to the players on the Bevo Francis Watch List, and thank you to our committee.”

On February 15th, the list will be reduced to the Top 50 players. One month later on March 15th, the Top 25 players will be announced. On April 1 st , the finalists of this year’s award will be announced, followed by the Bevo Francis Award winner being crowned on April 3rd .

The Bevo Francis Awards Committee consists of the following coaches: Gary Stewart – Stevenson (MD), Chris Briggs – Georgetown College (KY), Bill Dreikosen – Rocky Mountain (MT), Mark Berokoff –Oklahoma City, Mike Donnelly – Florida Southern, Sam Hargraves – Olivet, Stephen Brennan – Babson, Richard Westerlund – Great Lakes Christian, Chase Tiechmann – Florida College, Aaron Siebenthall – Ottawa (KS), Tae Norwood – Humboldt State, Mark Vanderslice – USC-Aiken, Grant Leep, Seattle Pacific, Matt O’Brien – Southwestern (KS), Chris Wright – Langston (OK), Nathan Champion – LeMoyne.

To stay up to date on all things Small College Basketball, please head to smallcollegebasketball.com.

2022-23 Bevo Francis Award Watch List

Ethan Anderson 6’4” Sr. Wisconsin-Lacrosse Kaden Anderson 6’8” Sr. Point Loma Nazarene Shaw Anderson 6’5” Jr. Seattle Pacific Raheem Anthony 6’4” Sr. St. Mary’s (MN) Dejon Barney 6’9” Jr. IU South Bend Trevor Baskin 6’8” So. CO Mesa Diego Bernard 6’0” Sr. NW MO State Sam Beskind 6’4” Sr. CO School of Mines Jesse Bingham 6’6” So. Indianapolis Max Bjorklund 6’2” Sr. Northern Michigan Drew Blair 6’5” Sr. MN-Duluth Octavio Brito 6’4” So. Keene State Levi Borchert 6’5” Jr. UW-Oshkosh Marcus Boykin 6’1” So. Barton Jalen Brooks 6’5” Sr. LSU-Shreveport Anthony Brown 6’5” Sr. Mid-America Nazarene Julius Brown 5’10” Sr. West Texas A&M Fillip Bulatovic 6’5” Sr. Carthage Bryce Butler 6’5” Jr. West Liberty Rich Byhre 6’8” Sr. Rockhurst DJ Campbell 6’3” Jr. Stockton Jamal Cannady 6’1” So. Bryn Athyn Dan Carr 6’8” Sr. Augustana (IL) Frank Champion 6’7” So. North Georgia Taeshon Cherry 6’8” Sr. Marian (IN) Luke Chicone 5’10” So. John Carroll Cevin Clark 5’11” Jr. Southwestern (KS) Daniel Cook 6’6” Sr. St. John Fisher Tyshaun Crawford 7’1” Sr. Augusta Tyson Cruickshank 5’11” Sr. Wheaton (IL) Antwaan Cushingberry 5’8” Sr. St. Francis (IN) Frankie Davidson 6’7” Jr. Grace (IN) Vinny DeAngelo 6’1” Jr. Swarthmore Josiah De’laCerda 6’8” Sr. Ottawa (AZ) Omari DeVeaux 6’2” So. Virginia Wesleyan Ely Doble 6’6” Jr. Morningside Jacob Drees 6’7” Sr. Cedarville Nick Fort 6’6” Sr. Asbury Zach Goodline 6’1” Sr. Huntington Austin Grunder 6’6” Sr. Cortland Tristan Harper 6’6” Sr. Langston

Jesse Hafemeister 6’5” Jr. Catholic

Matt Helwig 6’4” Sr. North Central (IL) Jake Hilmer 5’11” Sr. Upper Iowa CJ Hines 6’1” So. Faulkner Jahn Hines 6’4” Jr. Christopher Newport Jarred Houston 6’10” Sr. Emerson Jason Hubbard 6’7” Sr. Taylor Trent Hudgens 6’1” So. Arizona Christian Jeff Hunter 6’7” Sr. Keene State Josiah Johnson 6’1” Sr. Mary Hardin Baylor Chaney Johnson 6’7” So. Alabama-Huntsville Reid Jolly 6’5” Jr. Thomas More KJ Jones 6’6” Jr. Emmanuel (GA) Shawndale Jones 6’3” Sr. IUP Jaeden King 6’6” Sr. St. Xavier Brandon Knapper 6’0” Sr. Cal State San Bernardino Akuel Kot 6’2” Jr. Fort Lewis John Paul Kromka 6’7” Sr. Pitt-Johnstown Zach Laput 6’4” Jr. Bentley Peter Lash 6’6” So. Nebraska Wesleyan Jaden Lietzke 6’7” Jr. Oklahoma Wesleyan Owen Long 6’3” Jr. Emporia State Drew Lutz 6’1” Sr. Bethel (IN) Rowan Mackenzie 6’3” Jr. Lubbock Christian Miles Mallory 6’5” Jr. Randolph-Macon Sam Masten 6’2” Sr. Northern State Seth Maxwell 7’0” Sr. Indiana Wesleyan Lakeem McAliley 6’6” So. East Stroudsburg Riley Minix 6’7” Sr. Southeastern (FL) Cody Mitchell 6’7” Sr. Illinois Wesleyan Jacksen Moni 6’10” So. Northern State Brendan Mora 6’5” Sr. Pomona-Pitzer Dave Morris 6’1” Sr. IUP Robert Osborne 6’5” Sr. Virginia Union Christian Parker 6’6” Jr. Mount Union Tylandrius Parks 6’5” Sr. Union (TN) Logan Pearson 6’4” Jr. Wisconsin-Platteville Carlos Pepin 6’7” Sr. East Stroudsburg Josh Pritchett 6’4” Sr. Evangel Chase Rankin 6’1” Sr. Lincoln Memorial Sesan Russell 6’2” Sr. Florida Tech Isaiah Sanders 6’5” Sr. Fairmont State Tyler Schmidt 6’4” Jr. Olivet Nazarene Joel Scott 6’7” Sr. Black Hills State Matt Simpson 6’1” Sr. Florida College Alex Sobel 6’8” Sr. Middlebury Bennett Stirtz 6’4” Fr. NW MO State RJ Sunahara 6’8” Jr. Nova Southeastern

Josh Talbert 6’2” Sr. Randolph-Macon Adam Thistlewood 6’8” Sr. CO School of Mines Ryan Thissen 6’6” Jr. St. John’s (MN) Blaise Threatt 6’3” So. CO Mesa Markelle Turner 6’2” Jr. Union (KY) Jo Valrie 6’5” So. Point Park Mason Walters 6’9” Sr. Jamestown Jaden Wells 6’1” So. Central Oklahoma Malik Willingham 6’3” Jr. Minnesota State Drew Wyman 6’5” So. College of Idaho Will Yoakum 6’5” Sr. Nova Southeastern

#Bevo Francis Award

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smallcollegebasketball · 3 years

Text

Bevo Francis Award Top 25 Watch List

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

March 15, 2022

Media Contact: Matt Ankenbrandt

Sports Information Director │ Small College Basketball

616.780.1335

www.smallcollegebasketball.com

2022 Bevo Francis Top 25 Watch List Announced

Kansas City, MO – Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee are excited to announce the Top 25 watch list for the 2022 Bevo Francis Award. The 2022 Bevo Francis Top 25 Watch List consists of some of the top players from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA. John McCarthy had this to say about this year’s Top 25 watch list:

"Congratulations to all 25 players on the Bevo Francis Award Watch List,” stated McCarthy. “It's an incredible honor and achievement to be on this list, as it's a great tribute to individual accomplishment AND tremendous team success. Thank you to our SCB National Awards Committee, as this is such a challenging process."

On April 2nd, the finalists of this year’s award will be announced, followed by the Bevo Francis Award winner being crowned on April 4th.

To stay up to date on all things Small College Basketball, please head to smallcollegebasketball.com.

2021-22 Bevo Francis Award Top 25 Watch List

Philip Alston 6’6” So. California (PA)

Buzz Anthony 5’11” Sr. Randolph-Macon

Marcus Azor 6’2” Sr. UMass Dartmouth

Kevion Blaylock 6’6” Sr. William Penn

Myles Burns 6’6” Sr. Loyola (LA)

Patrick Cartier 6’8” Jr. Hillsdale

Tyshaun Crawford 7’1” Jr. Augusta

Romeo Crouch 6’3” Sr. Embry-Riddle

Jack Davidson 6’1” Sr. Wabash

Alex Gross 6’10” Sr. Olivet Nazarene

Parker Hicks 6’6” Sr. Lubbock Christian

Trevor Hudgins 6’1” Sr. NW MO State

Josiah Johnson 6’1” Jr. Mary Hardin Baylor

Matthew Leritz 6’7” Sr. Illinois Wesleyan

Jaizec Lottie 6’2” Sr. Flagler

Matthew Schner 6’4” Sr. Emory

Jaylon Scott 6’5” Sr. Bethel (KS)

Joel Scott 6’7” Jr. Black Hills State

Andrew Sischo 6’9” Sr. Daemen

Jovan Sljivancanin 6’5” Sr. Carroll (MT)

RJ Sunahara 6’8” So. Nova Southeastern

Sekou Sylla 6’5” Jr. Nova Southeastern

Ryan Turell 6’7” Sr. Yeshiva

Mason Walters 6’9” Jr. Jamestown

Zach Wrightsil 6’7” Sr. Loyola (LA)

#Bevo Francis Award Watch List #Bevo Francis Award

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smallcollegebasketball · 5 years

Link

This is just phenomenal work from The Cannon Network! They took our initial Bevo Francis Watch List of 100 players and wrote a short bio on every single player on the list. This must have taken a tremendous amount of time......very well done!

Thank you, Cannon Network! Very well done!

#The Cannon Network

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smallcollegebasketball · 8 years

Link

First SCB Bevo Francis Award Top 100 Watch List of 2017 Announced

January 15, 2017

BALDWIN CITY, Kan. – Small College Basketball is excited to announce its first Watch List for the Bevo Francis Award consisting of 100 of the finest men’s basketball players in the country who compete in the affiliations of NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA Division I, NAIA Division II, USCAA and NCCAA of the 2017 season.

"I sincerely congratulate the 100 players that are listed on the Bevo Francis Watch List,” said SCB Founder, John McCarthy. “Clearly, this is a very elite group of players that are each in the midst of an outstanding season.

“It's incredibly difficult to come up with a list of 100 players for the Bevo Francis Award. There are a tremendous amount of players that are having outstanding seasons, yet when you try to choose 100 players from about 1,100 - 1,200 teams, it's a daunting task. Our committee has spent a good deal of time providing a lot of feedback, and I am grateful to have so many credible coaches that are engaged in this process.

“We are guided by our criteria for the Bevo Francis Award: individual achievements, statistics, awards, milestones and certainly team success is considered. In fact, Bevo's team went 39-0 as a freshman, and defeated multiple major college teams as a sophomore. The success of the TEAM was very important to Bevo; as such, while the Bevo Francis Award is an individual award, team success is an important component. As we move forward in the process, personal character will be researched and factored into the equation."

Members of the Bevo Francis Award committee include the following University President, coaches and SID’s: Dr. Michelle Johnston – President, University of Rio Grande, Tobin Anderson - St. Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.), Drew Diener - Rockhurst (Mo.), Gerald Holmes - Bloomfield (N.J.), Gary Stewart - Stevenson (Md.), Ken Ammann - Concordia (Calif.), Scott McClary - Muhlenberg, Arlen Galloway - Wentworth (Mass.), Tony Dominguez- Western Washington, Chris Briggs - Georgetown (Ky.), Bill Dreikosen - Rocky Mountain (Mont.), Patt Cunningham - Trinity (Texas), Klint Pleasant - Rochester (Mich.), Ryan Kane - Ripon (Wisc.), Mike McGrath - University of Chicago, Mark Berokoff – Hillsdale Baptist (Okla), Mike Donelly – Florida Southern, Matt Logie – Whitworth, Jason Zimmerman – Emory.

The committee chose this elite group from over 1,100 colleges and universities and took into consideration individual statistics, previous awards, milestones and team success.

On February 15, SCB will publish the next Watch List with 50 players. The list will be narrowed down to 25 players in a Watch List published on March 15. The finalists will be announced in a highlight video that will be released on April 1, while the 2017 Bevo Francis Award winner will be announced on April 3.

Small College Basketball is very grateful to the University of Rio Grande and Sheward-Fulks Insurance for their sponsorship and support of the Bevo Francis award.

Please click on the link above to visit the Bevo Francis Award page, as the entire list is now posted.

#2017 Bevo Francis Award #Bevo Francis Award Watch List

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smallcollegebasketball · 3 years

Text

Bevo Francis Award Watch List - 50 Players - Released

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 15, 2022

Media Contact: Matt Ankenbrandt

Sports Information Director │ Small College Basketball

616.780.1335

www.smallcollegebasketball.com

2022 Bevo Francis Top 50 Watch List Announced

Kansas City, MO – Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee are excited to announce the Top 50 watch list for the 2022 Bevo Francis Award. The 2022 Bevo Francis Top 50 Watch List consists of some of the top players from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA. John McCarthy had this to say about this year’s Top 50 watch list:

"Congratulations to every one of the 50 players on the Bevo Francis Award Watch List. Each player is in the midst of a tremendous season, and has helped to lead their respective teams to tremendous success thus far. This process is incredibly tough, as there are so, so many fantastic players within college basketball. I'm very grateful to our National Awards Committee for their time and insight."

On March 15th, the list will be reduced to the Top 25 players. On April 2nd, the finalists of this year’s award will be announced, followed by the Bevo Francis Award winner being crowned on April 4th.

To stay up to date on all things Small College Basketball, please head to smallcollegebasketball.com.

2021-22 Bevo Francis Award Top 50 Watch List

Nyameye Adom 6’1” Sr. Wheaton (IL)

Philip Alston 6’6” So. California (PA)

Buzz Anthony 5’11” Sr. Randolph-Macon

Marcus Azor 6’2” Sr. UMass Dartmouth

Ryan Batte 6’6” Jr. Thomas More

Darryl Baker 6’4” Sr. Talladega

Kevion Blaylock 6’6” Sr. William Penn

Levi Borchert 6’5” Jr. UW-Oshkosh

Tray Buchanan 6’1” Sr. Emporia State

Myles Burns 6’6” Sr. Loyola (LA)

Bryce Butler 6’5” So. West Liberty

Patrick Cartier 6’8” Jr. Hillsdale

Romeo Crouch 6’3” Sr. Embry-Riddle

Antwaan Cushingberry 5’8” Sr. St. Francis (IN)

Jack Davidson 6’1” Sr. Wabash

Conner Delaney 6’0” Sr. John Hopkins

Kenny Dye 6’0” Jr. Queens

David Ejah 6’7” So. St. Francis (IN)

Jordan Guest 6’9” Jr. Lincoln Memorial

Armoni Foster 6’4” Jr. IUP

Alex Gross 6’10” Sr. Olivet Nazarene

Matthew Helwig 6’4” Sr. North Central (IL)

Parker Hicks 6’6” Sr. Lubbock Christian

Trevor Hudgins 6’1” Sr. NW MO State

Josiah Johnson 6’1” Jr. Mary Hardin Baylor

KJ Jones 6’6” So. Emmanuel (GA)

Kyran Jones 6’5” Jr. Georgetown

Josh Kashila 6’3” Jr. SAGU

Matthew Leritz 6’7” Sr. Illinois Wesleyan

Jaizec Lottie 6’2” Sr. Flagler

Miles Mallory 6’5” So. Randolph-Macon

Seth Maxwell 7’0” Sr. Indiana Wesleyan

Riley Minix 6’7” Jr. Southeastern (FL)

Karmari Newman 6’4” Sr. William Penn

Tyler Riemersma 6’8” Sr. Augustana (SD)

Pat Robinson 6’3” Sr. West Liberty

Jaylon Scott 6’5” Sr. Bethel (KS)

Matt Simpson 6’0” Sr. Florida College

Andrew Sischo 6’9” Sr. Daemen

Jovan Sljivancanin 6’5” Sr. Carroll

Jamari Smith 6’8” So. Queens (NC)

Nick Smith 6’1” Sr. Nova Southeastern

RJ Sunahara 6’8” So. Nova Southeastern

Sekou Sylla 6’5” Jr. Nova Southeastern

Evan Thomas 6’4” Jr. Hope

Ryan Turell 6’7” Sr. Yeshiva

Alex Van Kalsbeek 6’6” So. Northwestern (IA)

Isiah Wade 6’7” Sr. Central Oklahoma

Mason Walters 6’9” Jr. Jamestown

Zach Wrightsil 6’7” Sr. Loyola (LA)

#Bevo Francis Award

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manelyec · 3 years

Photo

KJ Jones Represents EC on Bevo Francis Award Top 100 Watch List!

Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee announced the Top 100 watch list for the 2022 Bevo Francis Award and a pair of Conference Carolinas student-athletes made the list.

KJ Jones of Emmanuel and Spencer Levi of UNC Pembroke made the list from Conference Carolinas.

Jones currently leads the league in points (252) and points per game (21.0). He is shooting at a 48 percent (72-149) clip but leads the conference at the free-throw line with an 86.6 percent (103-119) mark. He is also tops in the league with 28 steals (2.3/game) and third in assists with 51 (4.3 per contest).

Levi is 10th in the league in scoring at 15.5 points per game and leads the league in rebounds with 136 and 9.1 per contest. He is also second in field goal percentage at 70.2 percent (99-141) and tied for the league lead with 30 blocked shots.

The 2022 Bevo Francis Top 100 Watch List consists of some of the top players from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division II, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA.

On February 15th, the list will be reduced to the Top 50 players. One month later on March 15th, the Top 25 players will be announced. On April 2nd, the finalists of this year's award will be announced, followed by the Bevo Francis Award winner being crowned on April 4th.

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smallcollegebasketball · 3 years

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A Few Notes About the Bevo Francis Award Watch List

I don’t typically comment about the Bevo Francis Award Watch Lists, yet as this award has gained tremendous popularity throughout the years, I’d like to make a few comments about the award itself, and then a few comments about the Watch List that was just released on Saturday, January 15.

Here’s the webpage for the Bevo Francis Award: https://www.smallcollegebasketball.com/bevo-francis-award-2

We were thrilled to learn this Summer that someone had created a Wikipedia page for the Bevo Francis Award. Here it is: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bevo_Francis_Award

Important info to know:

- The Clarence “Bevo” Francis Award is presented annually to the player who has had the finest overall season within Small College Basketball. Considerations will be season statistics and individual achievements, awards, personal character and team achievements. This is an incredibly prestigious award, as this award will only be given to one player within Small College Basketball per season.

- I want to emphasize that this is an individual award, yet TEAM success is an important part of the criteria as well. This was important to Bevo, himself.

- The e-mail address to send nominations and detailed information is [email protected].

- The evaluation process for the Bevo Francis Award is an ongoing process; as such, there is not a nomination form or deadlines. We will publish Watch Lists of 100 players on January 15, 50 players on February 15, and 25 players on March 15. In between games of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Final Four on April 2, we will release a video of the finalists. During halftime of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball National Championship Game, the winner of the 2022 Bevo Francis Award will be announced through a video presentation. The Bevo Francis Award will be presented during SCB National Awards Show on Friday, April 14.

- While you are encouraged to visit the webpage for the award to learn more about Bevo Francis himself, here is a short video that helps explain the Bevo Francis story, and the story of the Rio Grande Redmen (the name has since been changed to Red Storm) of 1952-54: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioPBkpF-V5A. Here’s the “Bevo Francis webpage” on the Rio Grande website: https://www.rioredstorm.com/f/Bevo.php)

......................................

In regards to the Watch List of 100 players that was just released on January 15, 2022, here are a few comments:

- This is a very challenging process, as there are approximately 1,1000 teams and 14,000-16,000 players that play at the small college levels. This means that there are many (MANY) very good players that did not make this list. Players that may have been the POY in their conference last year. Players that average 20+ ppg. We recognize that there are so, so many really talented players throughout the country, and we will continue to use our social media outlets to recognize such players. Please understand that this is really, really tough to limit this to 100 players.

- Without naming names, there were several of the top players within all of NCAA Division II that were injured - or are currently still injured - and missed a good portion of the season, thus far. While this was/is a really tough call on how to handle these situations, we didn’t include several very good players that missed a good portion of the season, thus far. Please note - and this is important - that the evaluation process is an ongoing process, and players may play themselves onto the list of 50 players - and beyond - with stellar play themselves, and with great team success.

- As mentioned above, TEAM success is a big part of the criteria. As such, we did not include anyone on this prestigious list that played on a team with a losing record at the time the list was completed (a few days before January 15). Again, if a player has a great individual success, and helps his team to great success moving forward, he can play himself onto the list of 50 players - and beyond - with stellar play themselves, and with great team success.

Thank you for your interest in the Bevo Francis Award.

John McCarthy

Founder

Small College Basketball

#Bevo Francis Award

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smallcollegebasketball · 3 years

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My Tribute to Kyle Mangas

I purposely waited until Kyle Mangas’ career at Indiana Wesleyan was completed to write this blog post. Now that it’s completed, here goes…..

Kyle Mangas is from Warsaw, IN, and he’s the son of Tim and Ann Mangas, and the younger brother of Jake Mangas. Tim was a 1,000-point scorer in high school, and Ann led her high school team to the state championship game. Jake was a forward on the Warsaw High School basketball team, the quarterback on the football team and was the Valedictorian of his class.

As a senior at Warsaw in 2016-17, Kyle averaged 22.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game to earn Indiana All-Star honors as he led the Tigers to the regional final. He averaged 19.4 points per game as a junior on a team that advanced to the Class 4A north semistate. He scored 1,450 career points at Warsaw, leading the Tigers to a 61-17 record in his three seasons as a starter. Remarkably, however, he wasn’t heavily recruited…..with the notable exception of Indiana Wesleyan, who had started recruiting him as a freshman in high school. Mangas committed to IWU before his senior season.

He chose IWU in part because of its tremendous basketball program…and in part because they recruited him for so long and he developed a strong relationship with the coaches….and, in great part, because it was the right “fit”. In this case, the right “fit” meant the IAM3rd culture that had been created at IWU by Coach Greg Tonagel. In short, this culture meant God first, others second and yourself third. If you want to be first, you first need to learn to be third. It’s a bit counter-culture in today’s society. This resonated with Kyle, and he embraced the challenges of growing within this culture.

…………

So, where to start with the collegiate career of Kyle Mangas…..

I don’t like to “compare”. It’s natural to try to compare his collegiate career with some of the all-time greats in the NAIA, such as Dick Barnett (Tennesse A&I – now Tennessee State), Travis Grant & Elmore Smith (Kentucky State), Philip Hutcheson & John Pierce (David Lipscomb), Lucious Jackson (Texas Pan American), Bob Love (Southern), Al Tucker (Oklahoma Baptist), Bob Hopkins and Willis Reed (Grambling), Scottie Pippen (Central Arkansas), M.L. Carr & Lloyd (World B) Free (Guilford), Eric Kline (Northern State) and so many others. It’s easy to start talking about some of the all-time greats within all of small college basketball, such as Earl “The Pearl” Monroe (Winston-Salem State), Jerry Sloan (Evansville), Walt Frazier (Southern Illinois), Jack Sikma (Illinois Wesleyan), George Tinsley (Kentucky Wesleyan), John Rinka (Kenyon), John Smith (Winona State), Phil Jackson (North Dakota), and so many more. Yet, as mentioned above, I don’t like to “compare”. As President Theodore Roosevelt said, “Comparison is the thief of joy.” I want to enjoy and appreciate what I just witnessed with the career of Kyle Mangas. As his career, progressed, I think that people that followed closely began to realize that we were watching something special. So let’s not compare. Let’s just enjoy and appreciate.

…………

Before he ever played a game at Indiana Wesleyan, the coaches realized that Kyle was the best player on the team….and it was a really good team (REALLY good). During his freshman year, he led the Wildcats to a 31-7 record, the Crossroads League regular season AND tournament titles AND the NAIA Division II National Championship. In the National Championship game, Kyle went for 23 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists and was named as the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. For the season, he scored 818 points and averaged 21.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 2.9 apg and had 42 steals, while shooting 52.6% fg and 79.5% ft. He was named Crossroads League Player of the Year and First Team NAIA Division II All American.

As a sophomore, IWU went 30-6 and won the Crossroads League regular season AND tournament titles, and reached the NAIA Division II National Quarterfinals. Kyle scored 801 points and averaged 23.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 3.8 apg and had 48 steals, while shooting 56.5% fg and 75.5% ft. He was named Crossroads League Player of the Year and First Team NAIA Division II All American.

As a junior, IWU went 29-4 and won the Crossroads League regular season AND tournament titles. The team was really rolling as the headed into the NAIA Division II Tournament, as they had just won their three conference tournament games by 32, 27 and 32 points, respectively. Shortly after they arrived in Sioux Falls, SD, to play their opening round game at the Pentagon, the tournament was cancelled due to COVID-19. This was heart-wrenching for a team that was really talented, and was playing so well. Kyle continued to get better and better, and he scored 860 points and averaged 26.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 4.2 apg and had 59 steals, while shooting 55.5% fg and 83.4% ft. He was named Crossroads League Player of the Year, First Team NAIA Division II All American, NAIA Division II National Player of the Year and the winner of the Bevo Francis Award.

As a senior this past season, the NAIA had combined the divisions, thus meaning that their was now going to be roughly double the number of teams competing for a single NAIA National Championship, and there would be roughly twice as many players vying for award and National recognition. IWU had a dominating regular season, starting off 17-0 and finishing the regular season with a 28-1 record, spending most of the season ranked #1 in the NAIA. I had the privilege of attending their final regular season game, which was a home game against Mount Vernon Nazarene. MVNU is a good, solid, well-coached team, yet IWU was clicking, and the Wildcats were phenomenal in a 117-78 win --- yes, a 39-point win against a good team. Kyle was fantastic, going for 40 points and 7 assists in 31 minutes. He went 13-22 fg (including 7-12 from the 3-point line) and 7-7 ft. Just a spectacular performance! …..oh, and by the way, it was the 50th consecutive home win for Indiana Wesleyan. 50 straight! Remarkable!

The Wildcats won the Crossroads League regular season once again, yet they were defeated by St. Francis (IN) in the conference tournament. In their first-round game of the NAIA Tournament – which was the final home game of Kyle’s career at Indiana Wesleyan – the Wildcats defeated IU-South Bend, 95-76. Kyle went for 30 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks. He only missed 6 shots total (fg’s & ft’s combined) in scoring 30 points.

#1 ranked Indiana Wesleyan moved on to the round of 16 in the NAIA Tournament at historic Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, where they faced conference foe, Bethel (IN). They had defeated Bethel by 3 early in the season, and then by 20 later in the season. In short, Bethel played great on the big stage and pulled off the huge win over Indiana Wesleyan, 83-77. In Kyle’s four-year career, Indiana Wesleyan was 9-0 against Bethel prior to the game in the NAIA Tournament, which turned out to be the final game in Kyle’s storied career at Indiana Wesleyan. He finished with 22 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists in his final game.

During his senior year, Kyle scored 974 points and averaged 29.5 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 5.1 apg and had 62 steals, while shooting 60.3% fg and 84.9% ft. He was named Crossroads League Player of the Year, NAIA First Team All American and the NAIA National Player of the Year for the second consecutive season. (The Bevo Francis Award was not presented in 2021 due to COVID-19).

For his four-year career at Indiana Wesleyan, Kyle led the Wildcats to a 120-20 record, thus winning 100 games MORE than they lost in a four-year span. Kyle was named Crossroads League Player of the Year AND First Team NAIA All American all four seasons. He was named NAIA National Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons, and won the Bevo Francis Award. He finished as the second all-time leading collegiate scorer in the history of Indiana Kyle finished with 3,453 points, 818 rebounds, 544 assists, 211 steals and 65 blocks. He shot 56.3% fg and 81.2% ft. As such, Kyle Mangas is the most decorated NAIA Player of this generation.

…………

Above are the numbers and awards, which are ridiculously impressive. But Kyle Mangas is so much more than statistics and awards. When you watch him play, you’ll realize that he doesn’t play for numbers. He’s remarkably unselfish. There was a game this season where IWU was up by 50 points (against Goshen), and Kyle wanted to make sure that other players got a chance to play. Coach Tonagel tried to put a sub in for Kyle, yet other players realized that Kyle was one rebound away from a triple-double. As the players tried to let the coach know about the impending triple-double, Kyle heard about this, and quickly tried to get the sub into the game. It was more important to him that his teammates get a chance to play than for him to get a triple-double. He finished with 31 minutes of playing time and 20 points, 11 assists and 9 rebounds (along with 3 steals).

IAM3rd in action: God first. Others second. Yourself third.

……….

Before his senior season started, Kyle Mangas was already the school’s all-time leading scorer. In a neutral-site game played at Bowling Green High School (KY) against Faulkner, Kyle surpassed the 3,000-point milestone, and surpassed Larry Bird to move into second place on the career scoring list among the top collegiate scorers in the state of Indiana. The next game was played at Huntington, the alma mater of Steve Platt. Platt – who passed away recently – is the state’s all-time leading scorer with 3,700 career points. Playing in Platt Arena in the game after Kyle moved into second place on the state’s career scoring list, Kyle went for 43 and only missed a total of 6 shots (between field goals and free throws, combined).

How about the game when Kyle set the school’s individual game scoring record by going for 51 points against Oakland City? He MADE 21 field goals – including 7 3’s – and added 6 rebounds and 5 assists. How about the game against a really talented St. Francis (IN) team when he went for 35 points, 13 rebounds 6 assists and 6 blocks? How about the game against Goshen on December 2, when he played just 28 minutes in a lopsided win, going 15-16 from the field for 30 points….and then followed that game with a 12-15 performance (and 2-2 from the free throw line) in a win against Taylor? Therefore, in back-to-back games he went a combined 27-31 from the field and 2-2 from the free throw line in two wins. Just remarkable.

……….

It’s easy to get lost in the numbers, the statistics. They’re pretty astonishing and impressive.

I’ve watched Indiana Wesleyan play a lot over the last several years. By “a lot”, I mean that I only missed 3-5 games this whole season, and have probably watched an additional 25-40 games over Kyle’s first three seasons at IWU. I’ve watch them play A LOT.

Here are a few lines that I’ve used to try to describe Kyle Mangas to people:

“If you want to learn how to play this game, watch Kyle Mangas.”

“Watching Kyle Mangas is like watching a basketball clinic.

“Since he’s from Indiana, I think it’s like watching the fictional ‘Jimmy Chitwood’ from Hoosiers.”

For me, as a former coach and basketball junkie, it’s just a pleasure and joy to watch Kyle Mangas play. When people talk about “playing the game the right way,” you can visualize Kyle Mangas. He dives after loose balls, takes charges, and does the “little things” so consistently that, well….coaches know that these really aren’t “little things”. They are the things that help you win basketball games. He pass fakes and shot fakes. With the ball, he changes directions and changes speed. Watch him without the ball…..watch how he uses screens, curls, fades, goes back door. Watch how he draws fouls – and finishes. Watch how he passes and watch how he gets put-backs and loose balls.

There are a couple of plays that I’m thinking about, from his junior season. The first one happened so quickly, so I’m glad that they showed it on replay as well. Kyle was posting up on the right block, and the ball was lobbed to him. The double-team came from the top, right away. He caught the ball and immediately pass-faked around the defender’s waist, along the baseline. The defender turned around to see the pass, while Kyle layed the ball in the basket for an uncontested layup. It looked so simple, so easy. Yet with a double-team coming, he had the instincts to give such a quick and effective pass fake that he ended up with an uncontested layup.

The other play that is popping to my head (among so, so many) is the time when he got a steal around half court. He had an uncontested dunk ahead of him. Yet 7’0” Seth Maxwell was also running with him, for a 2 on 0 fast break. Kyle pitched the ball back to Seth for the dunk. Again, pretty simple play. Simple yes, but Kyle was on the verge of becoming the school’s all-time leading scorer and had a wide open dunk, yet passed it up to give his teammate the dunk. While it had been obvious previously, I was just reminded that Kyle truly doesn’t care who scores. It is genuinely NOT about statistics for Kyle.

Again, IAM3rd in action. God first. Others second. Yourself third.

……….

Humble and kind. These words are used over and over about Kyle Mangas. His teammates told me that Kyle meets new students on campus, and they often walk away having no idea that he plays basketball. He doesn’t like to talk about himself. He’s remarkably humble.

Before I met Kyle, I was told: “You should meet his parents, and you’ll understand.” I met Tim and Ann Mangas, and I understand. Humble. Kind. Intelligent. They smile easily, and they are grateful. They are so proud of Kyle, and they feel fortunate that they all found Indiana Wesleyan, Coach Greg Tonagel and the IAM3rd culture. They’ve watched their son evolve as a person.

Tim and Ann both thought that Kyle would have a good career at Indiana Wesleyan. That said, they didn’t expect THIS….. THIS is one of the most historic careers in NAIA history. THIS is the impact of the IAM3rd culture on their son. THIS is watching their son, who has a 4.0 grade point average, enter the final stages of his degree in Finance. THIS is watching the evolution of their son from a quiet, shy boy into a strong man of confidence and faith. When Ann talks about her pride in her son, she gets emotional. What a ride it’s been…..

………

On Senior Day, here’s what Coach Greg Tonagel had to say about Kyle Mangas:

“Coaches, fans, and teammates have been able to witness firsthand one of the great NAIA basketball players of all time during these past four years. However, what makes Kyle special goes far beyond what he has done on the court. The humility and grace that he has led with is unmatched. From being asked to be a vocal leader as a freshman to becoming the standard for what an IAM3 leader looks like within the basketball program, he has accepted every challenge head on. He is the standard for mental toughness, as is evident by his unflappable demeanor, competitive nature, and his countless game-winning heroics. To the outside world, he's an incredible basketball player. To all of us who know him – he is that and a whole lot more. He's Mango – a teammate, a friend, a competitor, and a servant leader who has remained humble, fearless, authentic, and gracious throughout his decorated career.”

……….

When we presented the Bevo Francis Award to Kyle, Coach Greg Tonagel spoke about Kyle….

He talked about how Kyle has worked on his fundamentals, and the repetition of those fundamentals until they became habits, and then those habits and skills became instinctive. He talked about his own sons, and how they began to do “up-and-unders” and the “Mikan drill”. When they asked about “why” they were doing these drills, Greg Tonagel (Dad) would tell them, “because Kyle Mangas does ‘up-and-unders’ and the ‘Mikan drill’”. And then the boys would dutifully continue with the drills, because Kyle Mangas does those drills.

Here are a few quotes that stand out to me:

“Kyle has proven to us all that humility is actually a form of strength.”

“I doubt that there has ever been a player that has scored 3,000 points in his career without ever once showing up his opponent in any way.”

“His teammates would tell you that, in his senior year, he’s become the ultimate leader. He’s invested into the lives of his teammates. He has become a spiritual leader. Every day, he’s pouring into young players, not only about what it means to be a great basketball player, but what it means to be a follower of Christ. To me, that’s the ultimate compliment and the ultimate form of leadership.”

………

This past Summer (of 2020), Kyle had an internship that was closer to Indiana Wesleyan than to Warsaw, so he stayed with Coach Greg Tonagel, his wife (Amy) and their six children. The kids would wait by the door for Kyle to come home from his internship, so that they could go outside to play basketball with Kyle Mangas. The neighborhood kids would come over, and there would be Kyle Mangas playing basketball with the neighborhood kids. You can picture the scene, and you know that, in 5, 10 and 20 years from now, those kids will grow up telling the stories of those days when they played basketball with Kyle Mangas.

While those kids can dream of being the next Kyle Mangas the basketball player, the dream for the parents of those kids should be for their kids grow up to be like Kyle Mangas the human being.

………

Greg Tonagel finished his thoughts about Kyle Mangas during the presentation of the Bevo Francis Award with these words: “Somebody, someday, is going to put on the next Kyle Mangas uniform and carry on Kyle’s legacy. I doubt that they will pass all of these accolades. I doubt that they will pass these numbers. But they are going to carry on that legacy of what it means to be a Christ-followers that loves the game of basketball and doesn’t play for himself, and embodies what we call the IAM3rd culture: God first. Others second. Yourself third. If young people will continue to do that, they will have carried on the legacy of Kyle Mangas.”

……….

I’ve been watching this game for a long time now. I coached for eight seasons, collegiately: Four as an assistant coach and four as a Head Coach. I’ve served on the NCAA Division II National Basketball Committee (while I was an NCAA Division II Athletic Director) and served as the Director of the NAIA’s Division I Men’s Basketball Championship. I’ve been watching small college basketball closely for 25+ years. I don’t like to use the term “best”, as this implies a comparison. As noted towards the beginning of this post, I don’t like to “compare”, as “comparison is the thief of joy.” I’ll say this about Kyle Mangas: He’s the most consistently effective and efficient NAIA player that I’ve ever seen. It’s truly been a pleasure and a joy to watch him play.

Thanks for the memories, Kyle…..and thank you for being a humble role model for us all.

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Enjoy the senior year highlights of Kyle Mangas, as well as photos of Kyle in action: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0lkmBnajTU&t=182s

#Kyle Mangas #Indiana Wesleyan #Greg Tonagel #NAIA #collegebasketball

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