Javontae Campbell Named To Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Late-Season Team

ROSWELL, Ga. – The Atlanta Tipoff Club announced the 2026 Naismith Men's College Defensive Player of the Year Presented by MOLECULE Late-Season Team Friday (Feb. 27) afternoon. Of the 15 players named across the nation, Bowling Green senior guard Javontae Campbell was a recipient. Not only is Campbell one of 15 players nationally named, he is the only of the 15 honorees to be from a Mid-Major conference with the rest of the list consisting of players from the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC.

This season, Campbell has established himself as one of the best defensive players in the nation. He currently leads the country in both total steals (91) and steals per game (3.1). Campbell has already broken the program's single-season steals record, a mark he set last season as well, and is now closing in on the MAC's record. His 91 steals this season are 13 more than the next player on the nation rankings.

In addition to his defensive prowess, Campbell is one of five players to currently rank inside the top 50 in the nation for both total points and total assists this year with 540 and 148, respectively. If Campbell can tally 60 more points and three more assists this season, he would become the second Falcon in the program's history to have a top 10 season for both points and assists, joining Antonio Daniels' 1996-97 campaign that produced 767 points and 216 assists.

2026 Naismith Men's College Defensive Player of the Year Presented by MOLECULE Late-Season Team
Flory Bidunga, Kansas
Cameron Boozer, Duke
Jaden Bradley, Arizona
Maliq Brown, Duke
Javontae Campbell, Bowling Green
Rueben Chinyelu, Florida
Somto Cyril, Georgia
Silas Demary Jr., UConn
Zuby Ejiofor, St. John's
Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan
Tamin Lipsey, Iowa State
Aday Mara, Michigan
Tyler Tanner, Vanderbilt
Joseph Tugler, Houston
Ernest Udeh Jr., Miami (FL)

Up Next
The Falcons will conclude their home schedule for the regular season on Saturday (Feb. 28) with a 2 p.m. tip against the UMass Minutemen. The game will be Senior Night in the Stroh Center with BGSU recognizing the team's seniors pregame.

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