SEATTLE -- The Seattle Pacific men's basketball program was recognized as one of the nation's Top-20 "Programs That Inspire," receiving a No. 9 ranking in the annual compilation produced by College Athletic Advisor.
 
The rankings were created to highlight non-NCAA Division I programs that have achieved consistent elite status in competition and in elevating the lives of participating student-athletes.
 
"While this is a subjective list, we believe these rankings present an informed starting point for a discussion about where student-athletes can excel as "triple-threat" competitors (academics, athletics, and socially) in college and in their future lives," the organization states.

 

College Athletic Advisor is a company whose goal is to assist student-athletes through the recruiting process, helping find their best fit for success in the search process. Seattle Pacific men's basketball fits the profile of a program the offers an optimal blend of excellent academics and elite athletics.
 
The Falcons recently received a prestigious Team Academic Excellence Award from the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). The entire team combined to compile a 3.20 grade point average.
 
Along with their quality in the classroom, the Falcons also flourished on the floor in 2020.
 
Coach Grant Leep's basketball team registered a 22-7 record and captured the GNAC regular-season championship with an 18-2 league ledger. The Falcons qualified for the NCAA Division II Tournament as the West Region's No. 5 seed, but the playoffs were cancelled on March 12 due to the Covid-19 crisis, one day before the first-round games were scheduled to begin.
 
The start of the 2020-21 basketball season has been delayed and will not begin until early January. The schedule is expected to be released by late November.
 
The College Athletic Advisor website details the criteria for their Programs That Inspire award:
These holistic program rankings are open to all four-year U.S. collegiate level programs sponsoring each sport outside of NCAA Division 1 (so this is a top 20 out of over 1,500 colleges & universities that could potentially sponsor a given sport). Rankings are based on a subjective assessment of student experience in four areas:

• Holistic development of student-athletes in the institution
• Academic achievement & support for the academic success of student-athletes
• Overall college experience for participants within the program
• Affordability/Graduation Rates/Student Satisfaction

"It's critical, particularly in this moment, to recognize individual programs and coaches, as well as athletic departments that provide exceptional experiences to student-athletes. These athletic programs strengthen their institutions as a whole. Participating student-athletes develop into successful alumnae with powerful ties to the college and the capacity to pay their experience forward," says College Athletic Advisor's CEO, Dave Morris.
 
"It's exciting to be able to recognize this particularly elite collection of programs and also remind folks that many programs in NCAA Divisions 2 and 3, the NAIA, and the USCAA are serving student-athletes and their institutions in life changing ways."
 
2020 College Athletic Advisor Men's Basketball Programs That Inspire
Rank,  School (Affiliation)
1, Wisconsin-Oshkosh (NCAA Division 3)
2, Northwest Missouri State (NCAA Division 2)
3, Williams (NCAA Division 3)
4, Azusa Pacific (NCAA Division 2)
5, Rochester (NCAA Division 3)
6, Middlebury (NCAA Division 3)
7, St. Anselm (NCAA Division 2)
8, Pomona – Pitzer (NCAA Division 3)
9, Seattle Pacific (NCAA Division 2)
10, Emory (NCAA Division 3)
11, Carroll (NAIA)
12, Christopher Newport (NCAA Division 3)
13, Wittenberg (NCAA Division 3)
14, West Chester (NCAA Division 2)
15, Nebraska Wesleyan (NCAA Division 3)
16, Augustana (NCAA Division 3)
17, Indiana Wesleyan (NAIA)
18, Queens (NCAA Division 2)
19, Swarthmore (NCAA Division 3)
20, Yeshiva (NCAA Division 3)