Marietta College’s Jason Ellis named first team All-American
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KANSAS CITY, Missouri -- Marietta College men's basketball is enjoying a record-setting season and with the on-court success comes an abundance of awards and honors. The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) announced several of its awards Wednesday afternoon and three Pioneers earned recognition.
Senior Jason Ellis was named to the 2022 NABC Division III Al-America first team.
He becomes just the second Pioneer to be named a first team All-American, joining A.J. Edwards. In addition, he was named first team NABC All-District 7 and was also tabbed as the Player of the Year in District 7.
"Jason is so deserving of these awards. He is one of the hardest working players that I have coached at Marietta, and he has made himself one of the top players in the country," Marietta head coach Jon VanderWal said. "Jason came back for a fifth year with the goal of leading us to a National Championship and he is one of the main reasons we are in a position to achieve that goal."
Only five other Pioneers have earned All-American honors in the history of the men's basketball program. Quinny Carter '80 was a third team NABC pick in 1980, Jesse DuPerow '02 earned fourth team honors from D3hoops.com in 2002, Trevor Halter '12 took home NABC second team and D3hoops.com fourth team accolades in 2011, Garrett Stephenson '15 earned fourth team honors from D3News in 2014-15, and Edwards who earned four All-American honors in his career including a pair of first team accolades.
Ellis is leading the Pioneers in scoring averaging 17.4 points per game this season. He is currently fourth on Marietta's all-time scoring list with 1,560 career points. Ellis also leads the Pioneers in three-pointers (79), free throw percentage (93.5%), defensive rebounds (99), assists (104) and steals (48).
The list of honors Ellis has earned this season is impressive. He has been named honorable mention D3hoops.com Preseason All-America; first team All-Region 7 by D3hoops.com with their All-America teams yet to be announced; Ohio Athletic Conference Player of the Year; first team All-OAC; OAC Tournament All-Tournament Team; Roanoke Tip-Off Tournament All-Tournament Team; and was twice named OAC Player of the Week.
Senior Lukas Isaly earned second team NABC All-District 7 honors. Isaly is second on the Pioneer squad in scoring averaging 16.1 points per game. He is 23rd on Marietta's all-time scoring list with 1,165 career points. Isaly leads the team in three-point shooting (43.8%) and is second in three-pointers (78) and assists (91).
"Lukas is a big-time player. Anyone who witnessed what he did in the BanJo the last three weeks understands just how special he is," VanderWal said. "Lukas is the engine that drives our team. Everything starts with him."
Isaly's list of honors this season includes first team All-Region 7 by D3hoops.com with their All-America teams still to be announced; first team All-Ohio Athletic Conference; OAC Tournament Most Valuable Player; OAC Tournament All-Tournament Team; Roanoke Tip-Off Tournament All-Tournament Team; Great Lakes Invitational All-Tournament Team; and was named OAC Player of the Week once.
VanderWal was named the NABC District 7 Coach of the Year. This is the fourth district coach of the year award in VanderWal's career. He led the Pioneers to the OAC Regular Season and Tournament Championships.