Alma, Mich. - Sam Hargraves, the head coach of the Alma College men's basketball team, has been named the Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year, it was announced today (Monday, March 14) by D3Hoops.com as it released its All-Region teams.

In addition to the honor for Hargraves, senior Scott Nikodemski (Rockford, Mich./Rockford) was named to the D3Hoops.com All-Great Lakes Region First Team, becoming the first player in Alma College history to receive the honor.

Hargraves, who just completed his fifth season at the helm of the Alma men's basketball program, guided the Scots to a school-record 24 wins in 2015-16, including the school's first-ever Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Tournament title. In addition, the Scots qualified for the NCAA Division III Tournament for the first time in school history, advancing to the quarterfinal round. Hargraves also coached Alma to a second-place finish in the MIAA regular-season, the best since the 1977-78 campaign, as well as the second 20-win season in school history.

Nikodemski, the MIAA's Most Valuable Player, led the Scots in scoring, averaging 14.4 points per game, and spent most of the season as one of the top-shooting players in NCAA Division III with a field goal percentage of 63.9 percent, the best single-season percentage in Alma history. Nikodemski also set the school record for assists in a season with 156 helpers in 31 games and finished his career as one of 11 players in school history to score 1,000 career points. Over his 102-game career, Nikodemski scored 1,135 points to rank 11th all-time and shot 59.2 percent from the floor, the best career field goal percentage in Alma College history.

D3Hoops.com 2015 All-Great Lakes Region team

Players chosen to the D3Hoops.com All-Region team are eligible for All-American selection, which will be announced later this week in conjunction with the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship in Salem, Va. This is the 15th year D3Hoops.com has named an All-Region team and the 19th season the website has produced All-American selections. The D3Hoops.com All-Region and All-American teams are the only ones recognized by the NCAA.