ST. LOUIS – A pair of Bradley men's basketball players were recognized for their combined athletic and academic success as members of the 2013 Missouri Valley Conference Men's Basketball Scholar-Athlete Team as selected by the league's 10 sports information contacts and announced by the MVC office Monday.
For the second year in a row, junior guard Walt Lemon, Jr. (Chicago, Ill./Julian H.S.) was voted to the six-player MVC Scholar-Athlete first team, while senior swingman Jake Eastman (Richmond, Va./Douglas Freeman H.S.) landed on the second team.
A second-team All-MVC pick for his play on the court, Lemon is in position to become just the fourth player in program history to lead the Braves in both scoring (15.4 ppg) and assists (3.6 apg). The 6-foot-3 point guard needs just seven points to join Hersey Hawkins (1987-88) as the only players in school and MVC history to achieve 500 points, 100 rebounds, 100 assists and 70 steals in the same season.
Boasting a 3.28 cumulative grade point average as a psychology major, Lemon also was a first-team MVC Scholar-Athlete selection in 2012. He has twice been named The Valley's male scholar-athlete of the week this season (Dec. 13 and Feb. 15) and he has twice earned a spot on the Bradley Athletic Director's Academic Honor Roll.
Eastman has been a starter in 31 of Bradley's 32 games this season, averaging 6.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.2 steals per game. The 6-foot-5 guard/forward is second on the team with 32 3-point field goals made this year.
Academically, Eastman sports a 3.38 cumulative grade point average as a sports communication major. An honorable mention pick for the 2012 MVC Scholar-Athlete Team, he also was a member of the 2012 NABC Honors Court and has earned a spot on the Bradley Athletic Director's Honor Roll in each of the last six semesters.
Both players were nominated for the I-AAA Athletic Director's Association Men's Basketball Scholar-Athlete Team Monday.
