DETROIT -- The 2025-26 Wayne State University men's basketball squad has been honored with a National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Team Academic Excellence Award for finishing the academic year with a team GPA of at least 3.0.

In addition, 10 Warriors were named to the NABC Honors Court for accumulating a 3.2 GPA or better in 2025-26.  Those 10 student-athletes include Adam Ayrault (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich. / Grosse Pointe North), Jon Brantley (Farmington Hills, Mich. / Brother Rice [Lafayette College]), Jordan Briggs (Muskegon, Mich.), Cooper Craggs (Northville, Mich. / Detroit Catholic Central [Oakland]), Bryce Esman (Metamora, Mich. / Oxford), Eli Lohr (China Township, Mich. / St. Clair), Chris Mutebi (Farmington Hills, Mich. / Univ. of Detroit Jesuit), Jotham Nweke (Oak Park, Mich. / Detroit Loyola [Macomb C.C.]), Kelvin Tamakloe (Accra, Ghana / Spring Creek Academy [Blinn College]), and Marshall Thorn (Canton, Mich. / Plymouth [Schoolcraft C.C.]).

NABC Team Academic Excellence Award Requirements
- The NABC recognizes men's college basketball programs that excelled in academics during the previous season with the NABC Team Academic Excellence Award.  In order to receive the Team Academic Excellence Award, a program must achieve a team GPA of 3.0 or higher for the previous academic year.

- Each institution must count the GPA of all men's basketball student-athletes who were listed on the team roster during the previous season.  All four-year and two-year colleges with at least one active NABC-member coach are eligible.

For the 2025-26 academic year, Wayne State turned in a GPA of 3.393, which included a 3.344 for the Fall semester before a 3.445 in the Winter.

NABC Honors Court Requirements
- The NABC Honors Court recognizes men's college basketball student-athletes who excelled in academics during the previous season.  In order to be named to the Honors Court, a student-athlete must meet a high standard of academic criteria.  The qualifications are as follows:

    1. Academically a junior, senior or graduate student and a varsity player.
    2. Cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher at the conclusion of the academic year.
    3. Member of a four-year institution with at least one active NABC-member coach.

Ayrault - Management
Brantley - MBA
Briggs - Marketing
Craggs - Communication Studies
Esman - Marketing
Lohr - Biomedical Engineering
Mutebi - Public Health Honors
Nweke - Finance
Tamakloe - Finance
Thorn - Exercise & Sport Science

NABC Release
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The NABC has announced the recipients of the 2025-26 NABC Team Academic Excellence Awards and NABC Honors Court, representing achievement in the classroom by men's college basketball teams and individual players.

The NABC Team Academic Excellence Awards recognize programs that completed the 2025-26 academic year with a team GPA of 3.0 or higher. The NABC Honors Court, meanwhile, includes junior, senior and graduate student men's basketball players who finished the 2025-26 year with a cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher.

The NABC's academic awards are presented annually to teams and athletes from all levels of college basketball.

"College basketball student-athletes do incredible things on the court, but their achievements in the classroom are equally worthy of celebration," said NABC Executive Director Craig Robinson. "Education is one of the NABC's core values, and the hundreds of programs and thousands of athletes represented on these awards reinforce the commitment to academic success that exists across all levels of our sport."

Over 2,300 players earned spots on the NABC Honors Court and over 400 programs received NABC Team Academic Excellence Awards for 2025-26.