ST. CHARLES, Mo. - Lindenwood Men's Basketball Head Coach Kyle Gerdeman was named a nominee for the Hugh Durham Award on Friday afternoon, which is presented annually to the top head coach in mid-major college basketball. Gerdeman, who has been the Head Coach of the Lions for the last seven seasons, has already tied last season's win total (16) in the 2025-26 season with five regular season games to go after last night's victory over the OVC leading UT Martin Skyhawks. 

The Lions have had their best season in the Division I Era dating back to the 2022-2023 season and are averaging 79.7 points per game this season. Lindenwood also ranks tied for first in the OVC this season in road victories with five after winning six total OVC road games over the previous three seasons combined. Defensively, the Lions are top 20 in the country in steals per game (9.3), and Sophomore Guard Dontrez Williams is seventh in the nation in steals per game at 2.73. Among the OVC teams, Lindenwood is the only team in the OVC to have three of the top 10 scorers in the conference this season in Anias Futrell, Jadis Jones, and Williams. The Lions lead the OVC overall in field goal percentage (46.7%) and assists (400) while ranking second in points per game. Another area that LU has excelled in this season has been on the fast break in which Lindenwood ranks 10th overall in the country. The Lions average 17.42 points per game on the break and has scored a total of 453 fast break points in 2025-26. 

The finalists for the Hugh Durham Award will be announced in March and the recipient will be announced in April in Indianapolis, IN at the site of the men's Division I NCAA Basketball Championship.