Sophomore Noah Cleveland was named the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) District 8 Player of the Year on March 17, leading the Illinois Wesleyan University men’s basketball team in this year’s Division III All-District selections.
Cleveland’s recognition marks the first time since Matthew Leritz in 2022 that a Titan has received this honor. The award highlights his standout season, where he also earned First Team All-District status and became a unanimous First Team All-College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) selection. Cleveland made history as the league’s first student-athlete to win both Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year in one season.
“Cleveland, the first Titan to be named the district player of the year since Matthew Leritz (2022), was one of four College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin student-athletes named to the District 8 teams. Carthage’s Ryan Johnson, Wheaton’s Soren Richardson, and Elmhurst’s Dominic Trelenberg were second team selections,” according to a statement from the National Association of Basketball Coaches.
Throughout his first collegiate season, Cleveland averaged 18.8 points and 11.4 rebounds per game, with additional contributions including 52 assists, 49 blocks, and 43 steals. He recorded sixteen double-doubles—sixth most in Division III—and posted eleven games with at least twenty points, topping thirty points three times.
The Titans are set to play Emory University in Fort Wayne, Indiana on Thursday, March 19 for an Elite Eight matchup at Allen War Memorial Coliseum. The Illinois Wesleyan Titans Men’s Basketball team participates in intercollegiate athletics according to their official website. The program belongs to the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin according to their official website, plays home games on campus in Bloomington according to their official website, uses green and white colors with “Titans” as its nickname according to their official website, and has captured NCAA Division III national championships in both 1997 and 2001 according to their official website.
The broader impact of Cleveland’s achievement underscores continued excellence within Illinois Wesleyan’s basketball program as it advances further into postseason play.
