WEST DES MOINES, Iowa - Drake University senior Gary Ricks, Jr. (Los Angeles, Calif.) was named the 2014-15 men's basketball team's Most Valuable Player as voted by his teammates during the team's annual postseason banquet on Sunday, April 19 at the Sheraton - West Des Moines.
In addition to Ricks' honor, Karl Madison (Springfield, Ill.) was named the team's Best Defender for the second-straight season while center Jacob Enevold Jensen (Lunderskov, Denmark) was honored as the team's top rebounder and C.J. Rivers (Cahokia, Ill.) was named the team's Most Improved Player.
Ricks was named team MVP after a senior season that saw him earn second team all-Missouri Valley Conference honors while finishing second on the team in scoring at 10.8 points per game thanks to 41.6 percent shooting from the three-point arc. However, it was what he did outside of the stat sheet in returning from a season-ending injury last season that earned him MVP-like respect from his teammates and coaches.
“He showed great commitment in returning from what is a career-ending injury for a lot of people speaks volumes,” head coach Ray Giaocletti said of Ricks. “Gary leads by example as a quiet leader, but he had a tremendous senior year and we're going to miss him.”
Madison's second Best Defender award was voted on by his teammates who faced him every day in practice and saw the effect Madison had on each game on the floor. In game action, he had 15 total steals and 73 assists with opponents scoring at a noticeably slower clip when he was on the floor.
“Karl started the last 11 games of the year during a pivotal stretch for us,” Giacoletti said. “He's someone I appreciate because he exemplifies mine and our program's core values of toughness and leadership.”
The Bulldogs were joined by more than 100 fans and supporters of the program at the banquet that featured season-ending remarks from Coach Giacoletti following his first season in Des Moines and comments from Drake director of athletics Sandy Hatfield Clubb.
Coach Giacoletti and the seniors in attendance also reflected upon the season and their experience at Drake.
“We had some tough times, but we got better and improved more than any team I've been around in my 30 years of coaching,” Giacoletti said. “That's a testament to our five seniors, their leadership and ability to set the tone. Them doing that every day was why we were able to get better and make consistent improvement.
“That improvement and the foundation that was laid was and important lesson for our five freshmen on how much can be accomplished in tough times. That will pay dividends moving forward and I hope our seniors remember that as they move onto the next chapter in their lives.”
