WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Excelling both on the court and off, the 2016-17 Purdue men’s basketball squad was awarded a Team Academic Excellence Award by the National Association of Basketball Coaches the organization announced today.
It marks the first time that Purdue has earned the award in the brief five-year existence of the honor. The award recognizes outstanding academic achievement by a team with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or better.
Purdue finished the year with a 3.01 cumulative GPA, including a 3.07 GPA during the spring semester. The team had five players on the Big Ten’s All-Academic Team and of the 14 players on the roster, nine boast cumulative GPAs above 3.00.
Purdue was 1-of-5 teams (Purdue, Butler, Gonzaga, Kansas, West Virginia) who reached the Sweet 16 that received the Academic Excellence honor. Purdue, Northwestern and Illinois were the only Big Ten schools on the list.
Purdue is coming off a 27-8 season and its league-best 23rd Big Ten regular-season championship. Head coach Matt Painter will return six of its top seven scorers and welcome in a highly-regarded recruiting class.