Gardner, Averkamp Garner Recognition
CHICAGO – Loyola assistant coach Jason Gardner will be inducted into the Pac-12 Conference Hall of Fame, while men’s basketball senior Ben Averkamp (Germantown, Wis./Germantown) was named to the Capital One All-America District V Team.
Averkamp was named to the team for the second straight year, joining Aaron Craft (Ohio State), Cody Zeller (Indiana), Jordan Hulls (Indiana), and Andrew Smith (Butler) on the 2012-13 squad.
Earlier this season, Averkamp became just the 19th player in Loyola history to accumulate over 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in his career and in last night’s 76-65 win versus Milwaukee, he moved into a tie for 17th place alongside John Egan (1960-63) with 1,315 points. Through games of January 30, the 2011-12 Second Team All-Horizon League pick led the Ramblers in both scoring (15.5 ppg) and rebounding (6.7 rpg), and was also contributing 1.6 assists and 1.2 blocks per game.
One of only two players to rank among the top five in the Horizon League in both scoring and rebounding this season, Averkamp has scored in double digits on 16 occasions this year, four times posting 20 or more points. He totaled a season-high 27 points and added eight rebounds in a victory against Maryland-Eastern Shore on November 18, and in a 73-61 loss at No. 19 Michigan State put up 25 points and eight boards.
In addition to his accomplishments on the basketball court, Averkamp has also excelled in the classroom and epitomizes the term “student-athlete.” Last season, he was named to the Horizon League Men’s Basketball All-Academic Team, the I-AAA Men’s Basketball Scholar-Athlete Team, the National Jesuit Men’s Basketball All-Academic Team, the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Honors Court, and the Horizon League Academic Honor Roll. Twice this season, (November and December), he has been named Horizon League Male Scholar-Athlete of the Month.
The biology major is also the president of the Horizon League chapter of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and he is one of 30 candidates for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award.
Gardner will be inducted into the Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Hall of Honor at the Pac-12 Hall of Honor during the conference tournament.
A standout basketball player at the University of Arizona from 1999-2003, Gardner helped the Wildcats to the 2001 NCAA National Championship game, and earned All-America honors on 12 occasions.
Gardner will be inducted into the Pac-12 Hall of Honor, along with notable former athletes such as Shareef Abdur-Rahim (California), Keith Van Horn (Utah), and current Chicago Bulls guard Nate Robinson (Washington), on March 16 at the Pac-12 Men’s Basketball Tournament in Las Vegas, Nev.
During his illustrious career at Arizona where he played for legendary coach Lute Olson, Gardner was an All-American and led the Wildcats to a NCAA Runner-Up finish in 2001. As a junior in 2001-02, the guard averaged 20.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 4.6 assists, and 1.6 steals per game as Arizona posted a 24-10 record. The highest-scoring guard in Arizona history with 1,984 points, the Indianapolis native was named the 2003 Frances Pomeroy Naismith Player of the Year and was a John R. Wooden All-American.
Gardner began his prolific collegiate career with a bang, earning United States Basketball Writers Association National Freshman of the Year honors in 2000, while also becoming the first Arizona freshman to be named All-Pac-12 First Team. At the time of his graduation, he was one of only four players in Pac-12 history to amass over 1,500 points, 500 assists, and 200 steals.
He was also highly regarded high school player at North Central High School in Indianapolis and earned the state’s prestigious Mr. Basketball Award in 1999. As a senior, he helped North Central win the state championship and was also named both a McDonald’s and Parade All-American.
Gardner is in his second season as an assistant coach at Loyola following a long professional playing career in Germany.
Tags: Loyola - Men's Basketball
