KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Tamaje Izuagbe of Oklahoma Wesleyan University was named to the NAIA Men's Basketball All-America First Team, the national office announced Monday.
In February, Izuagbe was named the KCAC Men's Basketball Player of the Year, with his all-around game making an impression on the coaches of the conference. During the regular season, he averaged 17.0 points per game (first on his team) on 52.7% shooting, while adding 5.9 rebounds per game (led the Eagles) and dishing out 1.5 assists per game. On the defensive end, he averaged 1.2 steals per game and 0.9 blocks per game. On the conference level, he ranked sixth in points per game, tied for 11th in rebounds per game, and was tied for sixth in blocks per game.
He was the lone KCAC honoree on the NAIA's three Men's Basketball All-America teams.
Northwestern's sophomore Jesse Van Kalsbeek was tabbed as the 2026 NAIA Men's Basketball Player of the Year along with his first-team All-American honors. The Sheldon, Iowa, native led the nation in points per game, averaging 27.8 over 34 games; he also led in defensive rebounds (363) and total rebounds (421) this season, while averaging 34.1 minutes per game. He also ranked in the top three nationally in boards per game (12.4) and points per 40 minutes (32.6). Van Kalsbeek raised the bar this season, setting five new career highs in points (34), assists (7), steals (4), blocks (2), and field goals made (15).
Two-time national champion head coach Drew Stutts of Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) was selected as the 2026 NAIA Men's Basketball Coach of the Year. Stutts led the Lions through a perfect Mid-South Conference schedule, going undefeated at 12-0. This season marked the first time FHU has done so in conference action. Furthermore, Stutts and Co. finished the 2026 season at 35-1, rattling off 32 consecutive wins that began back on November 8. Coach Stutts led FHU to wins over one team ranked inside the top five and top 10 of the national poll, two top 25 wins, and two wins against teams receiving votes in the national polls this season.
| First Team |
| Bradley Bunch |
 |
Pikeville (Ky.) |
Big Stone Gap, Va. |
| Jesse Van Kalsbeek |
 |
Northwestern (Iowa) |
Sheldon, Iowa |
| Tamaje Izuagbe |
 |
Oklahoma Wesleyan |
Burleson, Texas |
| Cole Bowen |
 |
Graceland (Iowa) |
Colorado Springs, Colo. |
| Jalen Langsy |
|
Northwestern (Iowa) |
Shakopee, Minn. |
| Caedmon Bontrager |
 |
Indiana Wesleyan |
Fort Wayne, Ind. |
| Ian Raasch |
 |
Grace (Ind.) |
Nappanee, Ind. |
| Micah Clark |
 |
Nelson (Texas) |
Dallas, Texas |
| Hayden Brittingham |
 |
LSU Shreveport (La.) |
Fort Worth, Texas |
| Omari Nesbit |
 |
Rocky Mountain (Mont.) |
Sacramento, Calif. |
| Nick Hopkins |
 |
Hope International (Calif.) |
Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Ese Onakpoma |
 |
Arizona Christian |
Nuagatuck, Conn. |
| Second Team |
| Camerin James |
 |
Keiser (Fla.) |
Apopka, Fla. |
| Devontre Chaney |
 |
Georgia Gwinnett |
Lake Wales, Fla. |
| EJ McQuillan |
 |
LSU Alexandria (La.) |
Port Allen, La. |
| Foday Sheriff |
 |
William Penn (Iowa) |
Upper Darby, Pa. |
| Isaiah Crane |
 |
Carroll (Mont.) |
Portland, Ore. |
| Jackson Cooper |
 |
Oregon Tech |
Portland, Ore. |
| Jaxson Fugate |
 |
Indiana Tech |
Fort Wayne, Ind. |
| Kameron Johnson |
 |
Loyola (La.) |
New Orleans, La. |
| Kenyata Carbon |
 |
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) |
Owensboro, Ky. |
| Kyle Duke |
 |
Cumberlands (Ky.) |
Toronto, Ontario |
| Michael Klekas |
 |
Ave Maria (Fla.) |
Elko, Nev. |
| Orlando Thomas |
 |
Langston (Okla.) |
Chicago, Ill. |
| Third Team |
| Avery Jackson |
 |
The Master's (Calif.) |
Dallas, Texas |
| Derek Fairley |
 |
Lourdes (Ohio) |
Cleveland, Ohio |
| Hayden Diekhans |
 |
Montana Tech |
Geraldine, Mont. |
| Delon McCloud |
 |
Rio Grande (Ohio) |
Grand Rapids, MI |
| Isaiah Howard |
 |
Benedictine Mesa (Ariz.) |
Seattle, Wash. |
| Jonas Carlisle |
 |
Oklahoma City |
San Antonio, Texas |
| Kaden Johnson |
 |
Huntington (Ind.) |
Hartford, Mich. |
| Eli Edwards |
 |
Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) |
Kokomo, Ind. |
| Khi Wallace |
|
LSU Shreveport (La.) |
Nashville, Tenn. |
| Makeem Roberts |
 |
William Carey (Miss.) |
Meridian, Miss. |
| Mason Lockhart |
 |
Johnson (Tenn.) |
Atlanta, Ga. |
| Phil Horton |
 |
Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) |
Memphis, Tenn. |
| Qualen Pettus |
 |
Dalton State (Ga.) |
Fort Wayne, Ind. |
| Deion Wesson |
 |
Williams Baptist (Ark.) |
Jonesboro, Ark. |
| Raymond Reece |
 |
Philander Smith (Ark.) |
Oakland, Calif. |
| Rico Sain |
|
Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) |
Jackson, Tenn. |
| Timothy Parker |
 |
Simpson (Calif.) |
Riverside, Calif. |
—KCAC—