Seven from men’s basketball were named to the ACC’s Academic Honor Roll

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (seminoles.com) – Sixth ACC Man of the Year Matthew Cleveland, Anthony Polite, Justin Lindner and Harrison Prieto are among seven members of the Florida State men’s basketball team named to the 2021-22 ACC Academic Honor Roll became . Cleveland received the honor for the first time and Polite for the second time, while Linder (five) and Prieto (six) joined a rare group of ACC student-athletes to have received the honor five or more times. Also included in the Academic Honor Roll were freshman Michael Brown and sophomores Isaac Spainhour and Max Thorpe.

It is the sixth consecutive year that at least seven members of head coach Leonard Hamilton’s team have received academic honors from the ACC. In the past six seasons, the Seminole Men’s Basketball Team has received a total of 45 ACC Academic Honor Roll selections and named 11 players to the All-ACC Academic Men’s Basketball Team.

“I’m really proud of this group of guys for their dedication to their academic success,” said head coach Leonard Hamilton. “Our players learned while we were out there, when they were injured and some of them had surgery – because each of them knows how important success in the classroom is to them and their families. Their academic success is critical to their success on the pitch.”

Polite earned his bachelor’s degree in finance in 2021 and will pursue a master’s degree in athletic coaching from Florida State School of Education. Prieto earned his bachelor’s degree in meteorology in 2020 and will earn his master’s degree in meteorology on July 30, 2022.

Cleveland, who was second on the team with an average of 11.5 points per game as a freshman, was named to both the All-ACC Academic Men’s Basketball Team and the ACC Academic Honor Roll. He finished his freshman season as Florida State’s second-best scorer (11.5 ppg) and third-best rebounder (4.6 rpg). He played in 29 of 31 games, led the Seminoles in minutes played (26.2 mpg) and was first on the team with 133 field goals and 61 free throws.

Two Seminoles — Isaac Spainhour and Max Thorpe — were named ACC Academic Honors for the second consecutive year.

Spainhour played in his career-best six games in 2021-22 after wearing the redshirt in his first season as a Seminole.

“Academics have always been important to me and my family,” said Spainhour. “My parents always wanted me to work hard, do my best and graduate. Getting my degree in Sports Management from Florida State is one of my goals.

Spainhour received the Academic Dean’s Lost Honors in Spring 2021 and was included in the 2021 ACC Academic Honor Roll.

Thorpe made five appearances as a redshirt freshman in the 2021-22 season.

“My family has always pushed me to be successful in school, and academic success has always been a top priority in my household,” Thorpe said. “It’s very important to me to work hard and allow my parents to be proud of me.”

The ACC Academic Honor Roll consists of student-athletes who have competed in a varsity-level sport and registered a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better for the entire academic year. The conference recognized more than 5,000 student-athletes for their hard work in the classroom.

Seminoles on the ACC Academic Honor Roll
Michael Brown, Sports Management, (1)
Matthew Cleveland, Criminology, (1)
Justin Lindner, Master in Athletic Coaching, (5)
Anthony Polite, Finance, (2)
Harrison Prieto, Masters in Meteorology, (6)
Isaac Spainhour, Sports Management, (2)
Max Thorpe, Sports Management, (2)