INDIANAPOLIS – Three teams officially realized their playoff destiny as new Great Midwest Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Athlete of the Week honors were announced on Monday afternoon. 
 
With eight bids up for grabs, there are five remaining from the most recent week of the competitive regular season around the league. 
 
No. 9 Findlay was the first to clinch on Saturday and the subsequent results in the Great Midwest standings helped Hillsdale and Walsh secure postseason slots. 
 
The Oilers separated themselves from the Chargers in a critical matchup to take sole possession of first place at the top of the league as they look to bring the conference tournament semifinals/final back to Croy Gymnasium. 
 
This year, the Great Midwest Championship quarterfinals will be conducted on different campus sites on Tuesday, March 5, before the final four gather at the top highest remaining seed. 
 
Men’s Basketball Athlete of the Week 
JT Shumate
Walsh
Forward
Freshman
Newark, OH (Newark HS)
 
Shumate is in the conversation as not only the top freshman around the league, but ultimately, the best player, following his third athlete of the week award of the 2018-19 campaign. 
 
The Cavaliers have been riding the wave of a six-game win streak with their most recent work done on the road in West Virginia with wins at Davis & Elkins and Alderson Broaddus.
 
The superlatives continue to rack up for the first-year forward as he contributed a double-double and the highest single-game scoring output among all Great Midwest players this year.
 
Shumate averaged 26 points per game in both Walsh wins and added eight rebounds with 1.5 assists on 71.4 percent shooting from the field (20-of-28). 
 
He also converted 4-of-7 tries from behind the three-point line. 
 
Against D&E on Thursday evening, Shumate provided 15 points and 10 boards in 29 minutes on the floor. 
 
Shumate also shined on Saturday at Alderson Broaddus with a career-high 37 points on 13-of-18 shooting. The 37 points was tops in the Great Midwest this year, topping a 35-point effort from two-time conference athlete of the week Alex White (Findlay) about a month ago, also against AB. 
 
Shumate is now the second-leading scorer in the conference this year (18.8 ppg). He is fifth in field goal percentage (.524) and is top 15 in rebounding (6.3 rpg). 
 
Shumate was previously named Great Midwest Athlete of the Week on Jan. 7 and Dec. 13.