Dallas Graziani Named South Region Player of the Year, Leads 2026 All-South Region Men’s Basketball Team
SSC leads all south region conferences with six total selections.
A.J. Vazquez, Communications Contractor
ORLANDO, Fla. - Nova Southeastern University’s Dallas Graziani was named Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) Men’s Basketball South Region Player of the Year. He leads a group of five other Sunshine State Conference student-athletes who earned all-region distinction.
Graziani led the No. 1 nationally ranked Sharks to a 27-1 (19-1 SSC) record and their fifth consecutive SSC title. He ranked in the top 10 in the conference and the South Region in four categories: assists (176), assists per game (6.2), points per game (20.0) and steals per game (2.3). Graziani was also named the SSC Men’s Basketball Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, awards announced prior to the conference’s Men’s Basketball Championship.
Heading into the NCAA Division II South Region Men’s Basketball Tournament, hosted by Nova Southeastern this weekend, the league leads all South Region conferences with six selections overall, including four first-team honorees and two second-team selections.
Nova Southeastern has the most selections among SSC schools and the most first-team honorees in the region with two. 2025 All-South Region selection Graziani returns to the squad, while teammate Ross Reaves joins him on the first team. Palm Beach Atlantic University’s Preston Le Gassick and the University of Tampa’s Ryan Blount round out the SSC representatives on the first team. Florida Southern College’s Amare Miller and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Jared Berry were named to the region’s second team.
South Region tournament action tips off Saturday, March 14, as Nova Southeastern hosts. The No. 1-seeded Sharks face No. 8 Morehouse College, while No. 2 Palm Beach Atlantic plays No. 7 the University of Alabama in Huntsville and No. 4 Florida Southern takes on No. 5 the University of Montevallo. More information and the full bracket are available here.