WC men’s basketball has 5 players honored with national academic awards

The Wilmington Quakers men’s basketball team and five of their players were among over 350 programs and 2,000 student-athletes to receive 2023-24 academic year awards from the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC).

"Any time you get academic team success it speaks to the full embodiment of where the mindset of the team is." says Head Coach Micah Mills.

The Quakers were one of the programs to complete the academic year with a team GPA over 3.0, earning the NABC's Team Academic Excellence Award. The five athletes are juniors and seniors with a cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher, earning their place on the Honors Court list.

"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."

Gavin Heimlich, a senior forward majoring in education, says these awards "shows a shift in a successful team culture."

"That was one aspect I always wanted to make sure we took care of every semester, and seeing our guys do that makes me proud of our team and our maturity to handle our business outside of basketball first," says Heimlich.

Heimlich was one of five Quakers named to the Honors Court list, alongside Bryce Bird, a senior guard majoring in Business Management; Christian Duniver, a senior guard majoring in; Isiah Taborn, a recent Business Management graduate; and Nick Malagreca Jr., a senior guard majoring in Sports Management and Business Management.

"This is another example of us learning to [be our best selves every day]!" says Mills. "We want to keep raising the bar of our academic success.”

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