BULLDOG SENIOR GUARD NAMED TO NABC ALL-DISTRICT SQUAD

Carlton Epps Honored As First-Team Great Lakes Region Selection

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Senior guard Carlton Epps (Benton Harbor) of the 2004-05 Ferris State University men's basketball team has been honored as a National Association of Basketball Coaches Division II Great Lakes Region All-District First Team selection in an announcement made by the NABC Wednesday (March 23).

Epps, a two-time (2003-04) All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) North Division First Team honoree, was one of four players from GLIAC-member institutions named to the first-team squad joining Geoff Husted of Gannon, Michigan Tech's Josh Buettner and Dustin Pfeifer of Findlay. The other first-team selections included David Logan (Indianapolis) and Randy Holbrook (Southern Indiana).

Ricky Volcy of Northern Michigan, Grand Valley State's Callistus Eziukwu and Morris Hall of Wayne State garnered second-team all-district recognition along with Tim Bauersachs (Southern Illinois-Edwardsville) and Sullivan Sykes (Saint Joseph's). The NABC All-District Teams recognize the country's best men's collegiate basketball student-athletes, which are selected and voted on by NABC-member coaches.

Epps concluded his collegiate career ranked among the school's all-time leaders in scoring (1,544), rebounds (454), steals (270), assists (250), free throw percentage (.820), three-point field goal percentage (.426), made three-pointers (240) and blocked shots (53). In addition to posting school career records for three-pointers and steals, he also notched single-season marks with 102 treys, 95 steals and a .883 free throw percentage this season. He also became only the sixth player in Bulldog history to score over 600 points in a campaign as he finished the year with 602 total points.

The two-time (2003-04) GLIAC North Division All-Defensive Team pick also attained Daktronics All-Great Lakes Region First Team kudos this campaign in addition to being named to the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Regional All-Tournament Team.

Ferris State capped off a banner 2004-05 season with a runner-up finish in the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Regional Tournament (March 12-15) held in Findlay, Ohio. FSU reached the regional championship game for only the third time in school history this season. The Bulldogs, who concluded the year with a 24-7 overall record, fell one game shy of advancing to the NCAA-II Elite Eight for the second time ever. FSU's 24 victories this campaign represent the third-most wins in school history.

FSU won its second-straight GLIAC North Division Championship with a 13-5 league mark this season and compiled a school-best 15-1 overall home record at Jim Wink Arena in Big Rapids, Mich. The Bulldogs, who were ranked 23rd in the final (March 8) NABC/Division II Bulletin Regular-Season National Poll, also advanced to the GLIAC Tournament for the second year in a row while earning their seventh all-time NCAA-II Tournament appearance during the 2004-05 season. FSU had not reached a regional championship game in 17 seasons prior to this year.

The NABC was founded in 1927 by Phog Allen, the legendary University of Kansas basketball coach. Allen, a student of James Naismith, the inventor of basketball, organized coaches into this collective group to serve as Guardians of the Game. The NABC currently claims nearly 5,000 members consisting primarily of university and college men's basketball coaches. Associate memberships also are afforded to athletic directors, conference commissioners, faculty members, officials, and high school coaches.