KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Two members of the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team, Nate Ament and Ja’Kobi Gillespie, received National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) First Team All-Central Region plaudits, as released Tuesday morning.
For the second time, the NABC named two 10-man teams across eight districts, as determined by geography. It previously produced two five-man teams across 23 districts, as determined by conference alignment.
The awards are voted on by coaches from within their respective districts. The Volunteers’ regional area includes the 36 Division I schools across six states: Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska and Tennessee.
This is the fourth year in a row multiple Volunteers have garnered NABC All-District accolades. It is also the second straight season two Tennessee players have collected first-team nods, as Chaz Lanier and Zakai Zeigler both did so in 2024-25.
Tennessee and Iowa State (three) are the only schools with multiple NABC First Team All-Central District designees this year. Just three others—Kansas (three), Louisville and Nebraska—even have multiple selections across the two teams.
Ament is averaging 17.5 points, a team-best 6.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.0 steal per game on the year. The freshman forward’s 183 made free throws tie for No. 19 nationally and place fourth on the Volunteers’ single-season leaderboard. He has posted five outings with 27-plus points this season, one of just 10 SEC freshmen in the last 20 years (2006-26) to do so.
A native of Manassas, Va., Ament earned Second Team All-SEC distinction from both the league’s coaches and the Associated Press. The six-time SEC Freshman of the Week is one of five finalists for the Julius Erving Award, as well as a finalist for the Kyle Macy Award.
Gillespie leads the Volunteers in points (18.0), assists (5.5), steals (2.1) and minutes (34.5) per game, plus averages 2.8 rebounds per contest and sports a 2.43 assist-to-turnover ratio. His 68 steals are fifth-most on Tennessee’s single-season list, while his 180 assists place eighth. The senior guard has scored 20-plus points 13 times this year.
Hailing from nearby Greeneville, Tenn., Gillespie was named a First Team All-SEC honoree by the league’s coaches and the SEC Newcomer of the Year by the AP. He is a finalist for the Lute Olson Award and for the Riley Wallace Award, plus joined Ament on the Naismith Trophy Late Season Team.
Ament, Gillespie and No. 23/25 Tennessee (22-11, 11-7 SEC) open NCAA Tournament competition Friday at 4:25 p.m. The sixth-seeded Volunteers will square off with either No. 11-seeded Miami (OH) or No. 11-seeded SMU, live on TBS from Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia.
To keep up with the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team on social media, follow @Vol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /tennesseebasketball on Facebook.
2025-26 NABC ALL-CENTRAL DISTRICT
FIRST TEAM
Nate Ament, Tennessee
Robbie Avila, Saint Louis
Ja’Kobi Gillespie, Tennessee
Joshua Jefferson, Iowa State
Tamin Lipsey, Iowa State
Milan Momcilovic, Iowa State
Darryn Peterson, Kansas
Pryce Sandfort, Nebraska
Bennett Stirtz, Iowa
Tyler Tanner, Vanderbilt
SECOND TEAM
Flory Bidunga, Kansas
Mikel Brown Jr., Louisville
Ryan Conwell, Louisville
Melvin Council Jr., Kansas
Fred King, Murray State
Tyler Lundblade, Belmont
Rienk Mast, Nebraska
Mark Mitchell, Missouri
Teagan Moore, Western Kentucky
Otega Oweh, Kentucky
Coach of the Year: Fred Hoiberg, Nebraska
