NJCAA Men's Basketball Coaches Association inductees announced

Charlotte, NC - Five distinguished NJCAA men's basketball coaches and student-athletes have been honored for their contributions to the sport at the two-year college level as inductees into the NJCAA Men's Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Tim McGraw

Head Coach - North Lake (TX)

For more than 20 years, Tim McGraw has led the North Lake College Blazers and has more than 30 years of coaching experience ranging from junior high school through the professional level.  Under McGraw's direction, the Blazers have made six NJCAA DIII Men's Basketball Championship appearances including the most recent berth in 2017 and 2018.  McGraw has led North Lake to claim three national championship titles during his tenure in 2006, 2008, and 2017.  Each of McGraw's national title campaigns earned NJCAA DIII Men's Basketball Coach of the Year accolades for the veteran coach. 

McGraw led North Lake to its third national championship in 2017 after facing one of the toughest schedules in the DIII ranks. The Blazers played 11 games against NJCAA DI and DII opponents – the most of any team that advanced to the national tournament. Awarded the No. 5 seed, the Blazers to upset the No. 4, No. 1, and No. 2 seeds in Rochester (MN) to take home the national title with a 22-11 overall record.

Prior to North Lake, McGraw was the head coach at Southern Baptist (AR) from 1985-89.  McGraw played collegiately at John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. He also played on four Christian missionary tours which took him to the Philippines, Germany, Austria, Ukraine, and the Czech Republic.  

Pete Norman

Head Coach - Highland (IL)

Pete Norman was the head coach at high-caliber college Highland for 15 years, where he played and graduated in 1981. Norman stepped down from the head coach position in 2009 and today is the athletic director and golf coach. 

A standout recruiter and coach, Norman cares about his student-athletes on and off the court, keeping academics and graduation rates a priority.  Norman put Highland on the map of NJCAA basketball, revitalizing the program to appear on the national scene. Norman compiled a 395-110 record in his Highland career, highlighted by a 3rd place finish in the NJCAA DI Men's Basketball Championship in 2006.  Norman led the Cougars to five trips to the NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship from 2004-2009 finishing 3rd, 6th, and 7th, had fourteen 20 plus win seasons, three 30 plus win seasons, eleven consecutive Arrowhead Conference Championships, and six consecutive Region IV Championships (seven total).  Over 90% of Norman's players graduated and transfered on to colleges and universities throughout the country. 

Since retiring from coaching Norman has worked diligently to keep the Cougar basketball program in the national spotlight.  In July 2020, Norman's son, Luke, was appointed the head men's basketball coach of the Cougars where he played for a single season in 2013-14.

Mike Marquis

Head Coach - Tyler (TX)

Apache head coach Mike Marquis is in his 20th season at the helm of the Tyler men's basketball program. A graduate of Newton High School, Marquis played college basketball at Marshalltown (IA) and at Grand View College (IA) where he obtained a degree in English. 

Prior to joining Tyler in the fall of 2001, Marquis was head coach at NJCAA school Indian Hills (IA) where he possessed a 60-10 overall record from 1999-2001. Marquis served one year as an associate head coach for the Warriors before becoming head coach. Before his stint at Indian Hills, Marquis was the head basketball coach at Marshalltown (IA) where he has an overall record of 235-106.

The Apache team most recently earned an NJCAA DI Men's Basketball Tournament berth under Marquis after winning the NJCAA Region 14 in the 2017-18 season, going 26-7. In the 2019-20 season, Tyler guard Shahada Wells was named an NJCAA First Team All-American.

Jerry Stone

Head Coach - Midland (TX)

Former Midland head coach Jerry Stone graduated high school in 1959 and was offered a full scholarship to play basketball at McMurry College (TX) where he was an honor student. Stone worked for his basketball coach as a graduate assistant and continued his education, earning a master's degree from crosstown Hardin-Simmons University (TX).

Stone holds the school record for the most wins in Chaparrals basketball history, leading the program to an overall 279-80 record and a 138-38 mark in conference. Spending 10 of his 42 years coaching at Midland, Stone took the program to its first NJCAA DI Men's Basketball Championship in 1982. Stone coached and developed several of the program's most successful players that continued to the NBA, including Anthony "Spud" Webb, Daron "Mookie" Blaylock, Ricky Grace, and Herman "Skeeter" Henry, as well as many major college basketball stars.

After retiring from coaching, Stone wrote a book which was published in 2019, "Save Them All: One Coach's Quest." The title refers to something a coach once told him about trying to save all the players, even the ones that are sent home because of disciplinary issues. Stone coached for 42 years and had a remarkable career with more than 800 wins.

Donta Smith 

Student-Athlete - Southeastern Illinois

Born in Louisville, KY, Donta Smith played at Southeastern Illinois from 2002-04, where he made noise in junior college basketball. As one of the top NJCAA prospects, Smith committed to play basketball for Rick Pitino at the University of Louisville, but decided to enter the 2004 NBA Draft. Taken in the second round by the Atlanta Hawks, Smith played for two seasons before playing with the Arkansas RimRockers and continued pursuing a successful basketball career abroad.

As a member of the Falcons basketball program, Smith was named an NJCAA DI First Team All-American and helped the Falcons to two back-to-back NJCAA DI Men's Basketball Tournament appearances in 2003 and 2004. The Falcons finished seventh overall in 2003 and fourth overall in the 2004 tournament.

Smith still plays basketball today for a team in Venezuela, in the Venezuelan Super League. His dedication to the NJCAA set the pace for student-athletes today that strive to play at the next level. Prior to the 2020 NBA Draft where Jay Scrubb was taken from John A. Logan (IL), Smith was the last NJCAA basketball member to be selected in the draft.