Small College Basketball released its Top 16 watchlist for the Bevo Francis Award for the 2019 season. The original list featured 100 players from DII, DIII, NAIA, USCAA, and NCCAA men's basketball, but the list now been shortened to just 16.
The award was created in 2015 and is named after Clarence "Bevo" Francis. Francis played two seasons at what is now the University of Rio Grande. In his first season, he led the team to a 39-0 record averaging 50.1 points per game, highlighted by a 116-point performance against Ashland College in Kentucky.
HISTORY: The complete list of DII men's basketball champions
Lincoln Memorial's Emanuel Terry was the winner of the 2018 award. Aside from averaging a double-double (16.9 points, 10.3 rebounds per game) for the school that finished atop the DII men's basketball regular season rankings, Terry was known for highlight-reel dunks that garnered the nation's attention.
Finalists will be announced on April 6. The winner will be announced on April 8.
The complete watchlist is below in alphabetical order.
| NAME | HEIGHT | YEAR | SCHOOL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tommy Bolte | 6’1” | Sr. | Concord |
| Elisha Boone | 6’4” | Sr. | WV Tech |
| Gage Davis | 6’5” | Sr. | St. Cloud |
| Jacobo Diaz | 6’9” | Sr. | Indiana (Pa) |
| Marcos Echevarria | 5’10” | Sr. | Nichols |
| Aston Francis | 6’1” | Sr. | Wheaton |
| Jeff Garrett | 6’7” | Sr. | LSU-Shreveport |
| Ryan Garver | 6’3” | Sr. | Nebraska Wesleyan |
| Tim Guers | 6’3” | Sr. | St. Anselm |
| Tonzell Handy | 6’5” | Sr. | Tougaloo |
| Juvaris Hayes | 6’0” | Jr. | Merrimack |
| Amir Hinton | 6’5” | Jr. | Shaw |
| Daulton Hommes | 6’8” | Jr. | Point Loma |
| Trevor Hudgins | 6’1” | Fr. | Northwest Missouri State |
| Cameron Hunt | 6’4” | Sr. | Southwestern (KS) |
| Jonathan Lawton | 6’2” | Sr. | Florida Southern |
| Anthony Lee | 6’2” | Sr. | Kutztown |
| Kyle Mangas | 6’3” | So. | Indiana Wesleyan |
| Cam Martin | 6’9” | So. | Missouri Southern |
| Kendale McCullum | 6’1” | Sr. | Lewis |
| Andrew Sischo | 6’9” | So. | Daemen |
| Sam Vander Sluis | 6’8” | Sr. | Cornerstone |
| Will Vorhees | 6’8” | Sr. | Notre Dame (OH) |
| Shaun Willett | 6’4” | Sr. | Queens (NC) |
| Joey Witthus | 6’7” | Sr. | NW MO State |