Nova Southeastern's Sunahara Named SSC Male Athlete of the Year
NABC National Player of the Year, Bevo Francis Award Winner, NCAA Division II National Champion
Phil Wood | Sunshine State Conference
MELBOURNE, Fla. - Nova Southeastern University basketball athlete RJ Sunahara has been named the 2022-23 Sunshine State Conference Male Athlete of the Year. Sunahara was named the NABC National Player of the Year after leading the Sharks to a perfect 36-0 record and their first men's basketball national championship in program history.
Voting for the award is conducted among Athletic Directors, Senior Woman Administrators, Athletic Communication Directors, and Faculty Athletic Representatives from each of the 11 SSC member institutions.
Sunahara, a forward from Bay Village, Ohio, scored 20 or more points in 16 games this season, including a career-best 41 points against Bluefield State. In the NCAA Division II National Championship game, Sunahara scored 28 points on 12-17 shooting, and he grabbed nine rebounds.
In addition to being named the NABC National Player of the Year, Sunahara won the Bevo Francis Award, was named the D2CCA South Region Player of the Year and the Sunshine State Conference Player of the Year. He was a First Team All-American, First Team All-South Region, and First Team All-SSC selection.
Sunahara is the first basketball athlete to win SSC Male Athlete of the Year since Florida Southern's Kevin Capers was honored in 2014-15. He is the seventh basketball player to win the award joining Jerry Johnson (Florida Southern), Kris Kearney (Florida Southern), Derek Flowers (Florida Southern), Derek Thurston (Rollins), Jeremy Black (Tampa), and the aforementioned Capers. He is the second Nova Southeastern athlete to win the award, joining swimmer Anton Lobanov who won the award in 2016-17.
Complete Listing: SSC Athletes of the Year