OSWEGO, NY - The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) has announced its 2023-2024 Div. III All-America Teams selections. Among the 30 Div. III players selected to be a part of either the All-America first team, second team or third team, was Oswego State's very own, Jeremiah Sparks.
Sparks was named to the All-America Second Team after an impressive senior season with the Lakers. This season, Sparks scored a career-high 19.4 points per game, with 6.1 rebounds per game and 3.2 assists per game. He also collected 14 blocks and a career-high of 45 steals.
"He's a special player and a special guy. He comes to practice everyday with enthusiasm and spirit," Bill Farden, an assistant coach for the Lakers said in an interview with The Oswegonian. "He's a fun guy to be around."
Sparks has been a leader for the Lakers on and off the court, being the centerpiece for the Lakers' three NCAA tournament runs during his time with the team. He has also been a key figure in building the team's locker room identity. He has started every single game from the start of his collegiate career with Oswego State except for one during his sophomore season in 2021-22.
"The plan is going forward, he's going to have an enhanced role," Head Coach Jason Leone said in November 2020. "We expect him to play more of a role, where he is going to have the ball in his hands."
Leone has consistently relied on Sparks, giving him more and more minutes, averaging 31.4 minutes per game in his final season with the Lakers.
The Jordan, N.Y. native has helped Oswego State basketball gain national recognition from their recent deep runs in the Div. III NCAA tournament.
"There's nobody on our team who puts more time into this than he does," Leone said before the team's Elite 8 run in the NCAA tournament in 2023. "The thing with Jeremiah [Sparks], he's a two-way player. He's dominant on both ends of the court and that's what I think makes him special."
He was named to the All-SUNYAC First team three times as a member of the Lakers, the SUNYAC championship MVP in 2022 and named to the First Team All-Region for the 2022-23 season. He was also recently named the SUNYAC Player of the Year for the 2023-24 season and to the 2024 NABC Reese's Div. III College All-Star Game.
"You have to stay hungry," Sparks said ahead of the 2022-2023 season. "You've got to work a little bit harder if you want to reach your goals."
The Lakers' senior guard has left his mark with the program, ushering in a new era of basketball in Oswego.
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