Following one of the most prolific seasons by an individual Skyhawk in program history, Fort Lewis College men's basketball's Akuel Kot has been recognized by Division II coaches across the nation, notching First Team All-American honors from the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
The NABC All-American awards are voted on by NCAA Division II coaches from across the country. The NABC selects just one All-American team each season.
Kot, a junior from Amarillo, Texas, was also recently tabbed with Second Team All-American honors by the Division II Conference Commissioners Association, giving him two All-American honors in the same season.
Kot joins Joshua Blaylock (2015-17) as the only two All-Americans in FLC program history. Additionally, Kot is the only player from FLC to score two All-American honors.
“Akuel Kot is absolutely deserving of being named NABC All-American,” Fort Lewis College Head Coach Bob Pietrack said. “He was simply sensational all season long. Akuel represents everything that is right with collegiate basketball. He's an All-American person, All-American teammate, and without question an All-American player.”
Kot was one of the best offensive players in the country during his junior season this year. Averaging 24.3 points per game, Kot finished fourth in Division II points per game. Kot scored 20 or more points in 23 games and 30 or more points on eight occasions. No team held Kot below 11 points in a game this season.
In the Skyhawks’ game against The University of Texas Permian Basin on Nov. 19, Kot put on an offensive display and set the program's single-game scoring record with 45 points.
Kot also broke both the program's single-season program scoring record with 801 points, the single-season made free throw record with 226 and tied Riley Farris' (2019-20) single-season record with 249 field goals made.
Kot finished the season with shooting outputs of 51.7% from the field, 39.3% from beyond the arc and 84.6% at the free throw line. Additionally, Kot averaged 3.2 rebounds per game while providing 42 assists, 39 steals and 12 blocks on the year.
Kot now sits fifth in all-time career scoring with 1,712 points, 10th in all-time field goals made (544), sixth in all-time three-point field goals (188), third in all-time free throws made (436) and 23rd in all-time career steals (96).
Named the RMAC Tournament Most Valuable Player and a member of the RMAC All-Tournament Team, Kot continued his dominance into the postseason to earn a spot on the South-Central Regional All-Tournament Team. Kot also picked up an NABC First Team All-Region honor, his second regional honor of the season. Recently named to the Bevo Francis Award Top-25 Watch List, Kot has now tallied a pair of First Team All-Region honors to complement his First Team All-RMAC nod.
The team that beat FLC in the round-of-32, Black Hills State, returned to the Final Four for the second year in a row. After beating FLC in the South Central Region’s semifinals, for the first time in four tries this season, Black Hills beat the regional hosts, West Texas A&M, 68-67. On Tuesday in the Elite Eight, BHSU blew by Minnesota Duluth, 86-68. The Yellow Jackets were scheduled to take on West Liberty University on Thursday in the national semifinals.
Kaden Anderson – Point Loma
Tyler Arbuckle – Saint Anselm
Diego Bernard – Northwest Missouri State
Jesse Bingham – Indianapolis
Jadin Booth – Florida Southern
Bryce Butler – West Liberty
Rich Byhre – Rockhurst
Tyshaun Crawford – Augusta
Shawndale Jones – Indiana University of Pennsylvania
KJ Jones II – Emmanuel
Brandon Knapper – Cal State San Bernardino
Akuel Kot – Fort Lewis College
Zach Laput – Bentley
Sam Masten – Northern State
Joel Scott – Black Hills State
RJ Sunahara – Nova Southeastern
