ROCK HILL, S.C. --- Tusculum University's Trenton Gibson has been named the 2022 South Atlantic Conference Men's Basketball Scholar Athlete of the Year announced league officials Tuesday. Gibson earns this honor for a second straight year and becomes the ninth multi-winner of this accolade in league history.
The SAC Scholar Athlete of the Year award is presented annually to one student-athlete in each of the conference's championship sports and is selected by the league's Faculty Athletic Representatives committee. Winners are selected based on their achievements in academics and athletics.
This marks the fourth time in program history that a TU men's basketball has earned SAC Scholar Athlete of the Year honors including: Jeremy Fortner (2000), Chris Poore (2007) and Trenton Gibson (2021 & 2022).
Gibson graduated from Tusculum last spring with his undergraduate degree in sport management in just three years. He garnered summa cum laud honors as he finished with a 3.95 cumulative grade point average. He has a perfect 4.00 GPA in graduate school and is working on his master's in business administration.
Earlier this spring, Gibson was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America® first team for a second straight season. Last year, he was the recipient of the SAC President's Award, which is the league's top student-athlete honor. He was also named the Southeast Region Scholar Athlete of the Year as presented by the Division II Conference Commissioners Association.
On the court, he led the Pioneers in scoring and assists for a third straight season. His 17.2 points per game average is third-best in the conference while dishing out 5.3 assists per contest, which is the second-highest average in the SAC this season. The three-time All-Conference standout hauled in 5.9 rebounds per game and posted a team-best 1.5 steals per contest (7th in SAC). He also led the Pioneers at the free throw line where he shot 82.4 percent (7th in SAC).
Gibson, who was the 2021 SAC Men's Basketball Player of the Year and Scholar Athlete of the Year, has peppered his name throughout the Tusculum record book during his 106-game career. His 1,620 career points are the sixth most in program history and is the only player in the 111 seasons of TU basketball with over 1,500 points, 600 rebounds, 400 assists and 100 steals.
"My time coaching Trenton at Tusculum has been nothing but short of amazing," said Tusculum head men's basketball coach JT Burton. "Having the opportunity to coach a player that wins this award once is unbelievable but winning this prestigious award twice is something I will always cherish. I couldn't be more proud of Trenton."
The two-time NABC All-District first team choice led the Pioneers to a 19-8 overall record this past season, including a 19-5 conference mark which was good enough for third place in the SAC standings. TU's 19 conference wins are a new school record and are tied for the seventh-most SAC wins in league history. Tusculum ended its season in the conference tournament quarterfinal.
Gibson has shined in the classroom where he was the 2020 recipient of the SAC Elite 20 Award for men's basketball. He is a member of the SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll, Tusculum President's List, Dean's List and Charles Oliver Gray Honors List. He is a two-time Division II Athletic Directors Association Honor Roll selection and is a member of the Alpha Chi Honor Society.
In addition to his success on the basketball court and in the classroom, Gibson has been an active member of the community. He has volunteered at the Nettie Day of Service, is a member of the Pioneer Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, and is a Pioneer Peer serving as a mentor for incoming freshmen. He volunteers as a youth basketball coach with the Above the Rim program and has served as a sports management intern within the Tusculum Athletic department. He is also an Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America and served a summer internship with the NCAA national office.
