Emory University seniors Ben Pearce and Jair Knight were named to the Top 100 Watch List for the 2026 Bevo Francis Award as announced by Small College Basketball and the National Awards Committee Thursday afternoon.
The 2026 Bevo Francis Top 100 Watch List is comprised of the top players from across NCAA Division II and III, NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA. Pearce and Knight are among 20 players from Division III selected to the Watch List.
The Clarence "Bevo" Francis Award is presented annually to the player who has had the finest overall season within Small College Basketball. Considerations revolve around season statistics, individual achievements, awards, personal character and team achievements.
This season, Pearce and Knight have led the Eagles to a 11-1 record as of January 15th with the team riding a 10-game winning streak. Emory is currently ranked No. 3 nationally in the D3hoops.com poll.
Behind Pearce & Knight, the Eagles are sixth in the country at 94.9 points per game and fifth nationally with a 17.9 scoring margin. As of Thursday afternoon, Pearce leads all Division III players with his 7.3 assists per game average and is 12th in DIII with 24.2 points per game. For Knight, he ranks fourth inside the UAA at 18.7 PPG while ranking 111th nationally and checks in at fifth in the conference with 1.0 blocks per game and sixth in field goal percentage (51.3%).
This is the ninth year of existence for the Bevo Francis Award. This list will be paired down to 50 players next month. For more information regarding the award, please click here.
