BOSTON -
IUPUI head basketball coach
Jason Gardner has been chosen among the 25 finalists for the 2019 Ben Jobe Award, as announced by CollegeInsider.com on Thursday (Mar. 14). The Ben Jobe Award is presented annually to the top minority coach in Division I men's basketball. An icon in the history of basketball at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Jobe is best known as the head coach of the Southern University, a position he held for 12 seasons.
Jobe's record at Southern was 209-141 and included four NCAA Tournament appearances, an NIT appearance, five SIAC championships, 11 SWAC titles and two NAIA Tournament Championships.
Perhaps his most memorable moment as a coach was Southern's 93-78 win over Georgia Tech in the first round of the 1993 NCAA Tournament. It stands as one of the great upsets in the history of the event.
Gardner guided IUPUI to a 16-16 mark this season with impressive wins over Boston College, Bradley and Horizon League champion Northern Kentucky. The Jaguars' 16 wins are the program's most since winning 19 in 2011. Gardner's Jaguars remain in play for the program's first postseason berth since 2010 as they await an invitation from either the CBI or CIT.
The recipient of the 2019 Ben Jobe award will be announced on April 5 at the College Insider Awards Event in Minneapolis, site of the 2019 NCAA division I basketball championship.
2019 BEN JOBE AWARD FINALISTS
Tommy Amaker, Harvard
Jeremy Ballard, FIU
Johnny Dawkins, UCF
Travis DeCuire, Montana
Patrick Ewing, Georgetown
Jason Gardner, IUPUI
Earl Grant, Charleston
Leonard Hamilton, Florida State
Penny Hardaway, Memphis
Lew Hill, UT Rio Grande Valley
Michael Huger, Bowling Green
Ron Hunter, Georgia State
Justin Hutson, Fresno State
Donte' Jackson, Grambling
James Jones, Yale
Johnny Jones, Texas Southern
Mike Jones, Radford
Robert Jones, Norfolk State
Jay Joyner, North Carolina A&T
Dave Leitao, DePaul
Ritchie McKay, Liberty
Robert McCullum, Florida A&M
Richie Riley, South Alabama
Kelvin Sampson, Houston
Byron Smith, Prairie View A&M
