BOSTON, Mass. — Eastern Kentucky head basketball coach A.W. Hamilton and Morehead State's Preston Spradlin are two of 25 coaches up for the Hugh Durham Award which is given annually to the top mid-major coach in college basketball.
Spradlin led the Eagles to the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Championship after being picked to finish 8th in the preseason. They'll find out Sunday March 14 who they will play in the NCAA Tournament. The Eagles won a school record 17 games in the OVC and have won 19 of their last 20 games.
Hamilton led EKU to a program best 15 wins in the OVC this season and a 22-7 record overall. EKU ranked in the top-25 nationally in 10 categories this season, including scoring (13th), steals-per-game (1st), three-pointers-per-game (21st), total assists (5th / 461), turnover margin (2nd), and turnovers forced (2nd).
Bellarmine head coach Scott Davenport is also up for the award.
The Hugh Durham Award is named for the head coach who led three different universities (Florida St. and Georgia) and became the only coach in NCAA history to be winningest coach at three different schools.
The recipient of the 2021 award will be announced on April 1.
