March 4, 2014
NORMAL, Ill. - For the second-consecutive year, Illinois State’s Red Alert was named the Missouri Valley Conference 2014 Naismith Student Section of the Year, according to The Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC) and Atlanta Tipoff Club, as announced Monday afternoon.
In the overall national standings, Red Alert finished in third place, after the final round. This achievement is Illinois State’s highest position reached in this annual competition. For the third-place finish, Red Alert was awarded $250 which will be donated to the Weisbecker Scholarship Fund.
In ISU’s student section pursuit to achieving its highest ranking in the Naismith Student Section on the Year competition, Red Alert competed against Arizona State, Colorado, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, VCU and Virginia for the national title. Ultimately, Virginia was named the winner of the 2014 competition.
“We are incredibly excited for Red Alert to be recognized as one of the top-student sections in the country and the best in the Missouri Valley Conference,” said Director of Fan Experience Drew Claassen. “They provide an outstanding home court advantage to Redbird Arena. The atmosphere at the Wichita State game with 2,700 students in attendance was among the very best in all of college basketball.”
The Naismith Student Section of the Year Award, which is presented through a partnership of The Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), an affiliate of IMG College, and the Atlanta Tipoff Club, administrators of the Naismith Awards, is dedicated to celebrating fans that love college hoops and provide support to their college basketball team with devotion and passion.
The Naismith Student Section of the Year Award will be determined through two rounds of public votes, combined with a scoring of finalists by the Naismith Awards Board of Selectors, which will review criteria such as the student section’s name and attendance, as well as photos, video, and a write-up submitted by the nominating school. Complete details on the selection process can be found at www.facebook.com/collegecolors. This was the third year of the competition.
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