PARKVILLE, Mo. – Small College Basketball announced this morning the first Watch List for the Bevo Francis Award of 2019 consisting of 100 of the finest men's basketball players in the country who compete in the affiliations of NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, NAIA Division I, NAIA Division II, USCAA and NCCAA. Northern State senior Ian Smith was named to the list of 100 for the second straight season.
 
Smith is currently leading the Wolves averaging 13.3 points per game this season. He has dished out a team high 90 assists, and recorded 13 steals and 93 rebounds. The senior is shooting 45.8 percent from the floor and 33.3 percent from the 3-point line. He recently moved into the top-30 on Northern States all-time scoring list with 1,221 career points. Smith notched a season high 23 points last weekend in the Wolves victory over Bemidji State.
 
Members of the Bevo Francis Award committee include the following coaches: Tobin Anderson - St. Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.), Gerald Holmes - Bloomfield (N.J.), Gary Stewart - Stevenson (Md.), Arlen Galloway - Wentworth (Mass.), Chris Briggs - Georgetown (Ky.), Bill Dreikosen - Rocky Mountain (Mont.), Klint Pleasant - Rochester (Mich.), Ryan Kane - Ripon (Wisc.), Mark Berokoff – Hillsdale Baptist (Okla.), Mike Donnelly – Florida Southern, Rhett Soliday – Vanguard (Calif.), Sam Hargraves – Alma (Mich.), Greg Mason – Centre (Ky.) and Ryan Looney – Point Loma Nazarene (Calif.).
 
The committee chose this elite group from over 1,100 colleges and universities and took into consideration individual statistics, previous awards, milestones and team success.
 
On February 15, SCB will publish the next Watch List with 50 players. The list will be narrowed down to 25 players in a Watch List published on March 15. The finalists will be announced in a highlight video that will be released on April 6.
 
The 2019 Bevo Francis Award winner will be announced on April 8. The award will be presented to the award winner on May 11 at the SCB National Awards Show in conjunction with the SCB Alumni Association's Celebration of the Game event at the Crowne Plaza in downtown Kansas City, Missouri.
 
Small College Basketball is very grateful to the University of Rio Grande and Sheward-Fulks Insurance for their sponsorship and support of the Bevo Francis award.