San Diego, Calif. – After setting 14 on-court, team records during the 2019-20 season, the San Diego State men's basketball team kept that record-setting pace going in the classroom this spring by posting its highest team grade point average (GPA) since semester GPAs were first tracked in 1999.
"We are immensely proud of our student athletes for their hard work and commitment in and out of the classroom this semester," assistant coach, and academic lead on the coaching staff, Dave Velasquez said, "Many hours are spent with tutors, academic advisors, mentors and professors to achieve high-level success in the classroom. We had an unforgettable season with 30 wins, which has been matched off the court. We thank the team, the academic support staff, and everyone involved with Aztec basketball for representing the program and the University in outstanding fashion."
Despite the season being halted in mid-March due to a coronavirus pandemic, campus being closed, and students' classes being conducted on-line, the team posted a 2.95 GPA in the spring semester. That number tops the previous best of a 2.77 GPA, which was achieved in the fall semester of 2014.
Men's basketball is one of 15 Aztec teams that set a record semester GPA in the spring and the combined GPAs of all 19 San Diego State Division I sponsored sports are 3.36, a record as well.
"The record-breaking (3.36) cumulative GPA is a testament to the hard work and resilience of our student-athletes who were faced with an unprecedented shift to a virtual classroom mid-stream," Bobby Smitheran, SDSU's Senior Associate Athletic Director of Student-Athlete Academic Support Services, said. "Our student-athletes were faced with numerous challenges and their academic performance speaks volumes to their character and work ethic. I'm especially proud of the coaching staff and the Student-Athlete Academic Support Services team who rallied around our student-athletes and adjusted our academic resources to a virtual platform to maintain the quality of academic support our student-athletes are accustomed to."
San Diego State heads into the new year coming off the 2019-20 regular-season crown, its league-leading 12th Mountain West Conference men's basketball championship. Head coach Brian Dutcher, 73-26 in three seasons guiding the program, saw his team finish last season's coronavirus pandemic shortened schedule with a 30-2 record and ranked No. 6 in the nation. The Aztecs were the only team in the nation to finish the regular season with just one loss and was one of three teams with two losses when the season was halted.
-SDSU-