OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – Awards and accolades continue to be bestowed upon Mercer’s Ross Cummings. On Friday, he was named a Senior CLASS Award First Team All-American.

Cummings was named of the 30 candidates on Feb. 8 and made the list of 10 finalists two weeks later. 

Iowa’s Luke Garza won the award, and Cummings was named to the first team joining Garza, Sienna’s Manny Camper, Kansas’ Marcus Garrett and Gonzaga’s Corey Kispert. He was the only player from the Southern Conference and the lone student-athlete to attend a university in the State of Georgia. Cummings also represented his home state of Tennessee as the lone selection from the Volunteer state. 

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: classroom, community, character, and competition.

“I couldn’t be prouder of Ross for earning Senior CLASS All-American honors,” remarked head coach Greg Gary. He left an incredible legacy at Mercer and was a true competitor. He left everything he had on the floor and was a leader on and off the court.”

Cummings completed his fifth season with the Orange & Black in 2021 and led the program on a furious run through the Southern Conference and an appearance in the nationally televised championship game. He finished his career with 246 3-pointers, only 11 fewer than Langston Hall’s program record of 257. In December, he became the 43rd player in team history to reach the 1,000-point mark, and he quickly advanced through the ranks, ending his career 16th with 1,244 points.

The sharpshooting guard was one of only seven SoCon players to hit at least 40 percent of his shots from downtown, connecting on 40.3 percent (73-of-181) of his tries. He holds two Mercer men’s basketball top-10 rankings for 3-pointers made in a single season, sitting second (101 in 2018-19) and 10th with his 73 treys in 2020-21.

Cummings played in 108 career contests with 73 starts and averaged 11.5 points per game. He made 401 shots from the floor and attempted 919 for a 43.6 percent mark from the field. He was lethal beyond the arc, knocking down 246-of-609 3-pointers (40.4 percent). He shot better than 40 percent from 3-point range in three of his five campaigns with the Orange & Black. Opposing teams feared him not only from the field but also at the charity stripe. The 6-foot-3-inch guard made nearly 80 percent of his free throws (196-of-247, 79.4 percent). In addition to contributing 11.5 points per game over his career, he also pulled down 2.4 rebounds and dished out 1.5 assists per game. 

Mercer fans can catch Cummings in the 2021 3X3U National Championship starting Friday at 5:50 p.m. ET. 

For the Senior CLASS Award's official release, click here.