WILMINGTON, N.C. – The UNC Wilmington men’s basketball program has received a Public Recognition Award from the NCAA’s Academic Performance Program for placing among the top 10 percent among institutions nationally for its academic work.

 UNCW’s program was one of just two in the 12-team Colonial Athletic Association and one of six in the state to earn the distinction. CAA member Drexel also made the list, along with state schools Davidson, Duke, Elon, UNC Chapel Hill and Wake Forest.

            “We’re very pleased and proud of our men’s basketball team for its diligence in the classroom,” said Kelly Mehrtens, UNCW’s athletic director. “I think this shows our student-athletes have their priorities in order. I commend Coach Moss, his staff and the players for this most-deserving award.”

The NCAA honored Division I teams Thursday with public recognition awards for their latest multi-year Academic Progress Rate scores. The teams posted multi-year APR scores in the top 10 percent of all squads in their respective sports. The public recognition awards are part of the broad Division I academic reform effort.

The APR provides a real-time look at a team’s academic success each semester by tracking the academic progress of each student-athlete. The APR includes eligibility, retention, and graduation in the calculation and provides a clear picture of the academic culture in each sport. High-performing teams receiving awards posted APR scores ranging from 965 to a perfect 1,000.

Multi-year APR scores for all 6,110 Division I sports teams, including the teams receiving public recognition awards, will be announced May 6. The announcement also will include immediate and historical penalties for low-performing teams.  - Courtesy UNCW Sports Information