Clarksville, Ark. — The University of the Ozarks men’s basketball team had three players receive American Southwest Conference honors, announced by the league office on Monday.
Junior forward Habeeb Kareem was named to the ASC All-East Division Second Team. Junior forward Chris Clark was named Honorable Mention All-East Division and freshman guard Blake Belford earned a spot on the ASC All-East Division Freshman Team. It is the third straight season the 6-foot-5, 250-pound Kareem has earned post-season honors from the ASC. A native of Houston, Texas, Kareem was again one of the most productive players in the ASC, finishing fourteenth in scoring (14.7), tenth in rebounding (6.1) and eighth in blocks (.68). Kareem led the team in scoring in 13 games and rebounding in eight games. He finished the year with four double-doubles and had 20 or more points on seven different occasions. Kareem’s best performance of the season came against Hendrix College when he scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. He went a perfect 9-of-9 from the free throw line. Kareem earned ASC All-East Division First Team honors last season and Honorable Mention All-East Division as a freshman. He has accumulated 1,193 career points, eighth-best at Ozarks. He is a graduate of Bush High School. Clark, a 6-foot-6, 190-pound forward from Dallas, was the top sixth man in the league, averaging 8.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in 25 contests. The athletic Clark finished third on the team in scoring and second in rebounding. He averaged 1.1 steals per game and recorded several highlight reel dunks. Clark’s top game of the season came against Austin College when he scored 13 points, recorded 10 rebounds and had three steals. He scored in double figures on nine different occasions. He is a graduate of W.H. Adamson High School. Belford, a 5-foot-10, 150-pound native of Blytheville, played in 24 games, and was among the top three-point shooters in the league. He averaged 4.2 points per game and hit 23-of-52 three-pointers (44%), second-most on the team. His best game of the season came against Louisiana College when he scored 18 points, including hitting 4-of-8 behind the arc. He is a graduate of Armorel High School. All-Conference awards are selected by vote of the 15 league head coaches.
Topics: Athletics