North Point graduate Bonds named to all-conference team
Saint Michael’s College (Vt.) men’s basketball senior Matt Bonds, a North Point High School graduate from Ac- cokeek, earned his second career Northeast-10 Conference All-Confer- ence selection, the league announced Feb. 23, landing on the six-player first team.
After claiming a spot on the third team as a junior, Bonds was among 21 student-athletes from around the league this winter to nab an all-confer- ence laurel.
Bonds becomes the seventh Purple Knight to ever land on an Northeast-10 All-Conference first team, and the first since Mike Holton Jr. in 2011-12. George Daway, Mark Mulvey, Geoff Card, Todd Roberts and Brendan Mul- lins are the others.
Bonds is the 11th player to earn mul- tiple Northeast-10 All-Conference ac- colades since the program began com- peting in the league in 1986-87. The Purple Knights have now been lauded as all-league six times in the last four years.
As of Feb. 23, Bonds leads the Northeast-10 in rebounding (12.4), offensive rebounding (4.7), double-doubles (19) and field goals made per game (8.5) while tying for third in scoring (21.7), fourth in steals (1.5) and free throws (4.7), seventh in shooting (55.6), 12th in minutes (34.7), 15th in blocks (0.8) and tying for 24th in assists (2.6).
During Northeast-10 play alone, as of Feb. 23, Bonds (22.4) trailed the league’s leading scorer by 0.3 points.
Among all Division II players as of Feb. 23, Bonds is second in double-doubles, fourth in both rebounding and offensive rebounding, and tied for 27th in scoring.
He is second in the East Region, as of Feb. 23, in overall rebounding, offen- sive rebounding and double-doubles and tied for fifth in scoring. Bonds is the only player in Division II, as of Feb. 23, to average at least 20.0 points without making multiple three-pointers, hitting one.
Bonds’ 564 points this season place him 10th in program history, with the second-highest figure since the late 1980s and the fifth-best total since the late 1960s.
His 21.7 points per game left him 11th, just 0.3 points outside the top 10, with the highest average since Tom Hoey had 24.1 in 1978-79.
With 322 rebounds, Bonds replaced himself in 10th place, having grabbed 320 last season. Bonds joins 1965 Boston Celtics draft pick Rich Tarrant as the only Purple Knights to have point and rebound totals in the same season currently among the program’s top 10, with Tarrant turning the feat in 1964-65. Bonds’ board figure is the best at the College since Johnson in 1975-76.
Bonds is also seventh in field goals (220) and 15th in free throws (123), with the third most since the late 1970s.
The 19 double-doubles he collected this year tie his mark from last year for the most by a Purple Knight since figures became available in 1981-82, and Bonds’ 121 offensive rebounds were the most since that category began being tracked in 1992-93.
Bonds is the only player at the College with 100 in any season in that time, reaching the barrier each of the past three seasons. Bonds’ 12.4 rebounds per game this season are good for 16th in program history, edging his 17th-place average of 12.3 from his junior campaign.
During his final two seasons alone, Bonds recorded 985 points and 642 rebounds, averaging 18.9 and 12.3, respectively, in those 52 games.
After notching six 20-point performances over 81 contests in his first three seasons, Bonds went for 20 points 19 times in 26 outings as a senior.
While collecting 19 double-doubles, Bonds narrowly fell shy of five more by notching nine rebounds in four separate contests and missing another by a single basket.
Bonds is the second player in program history with 1,500 career points and 1,100 rebounds, joining Ken Johnson in that exclusive club.
Bonds finishes his career 13th at the college in scoring (1,523), second in rebounds (1,102), sixth in rebounding (10.3), 10th in field goals (596), 12th in free throws (329), 23rd in blocks (44) and tied for 26th in games (107).
Among players who competed for four years, Bonds has the second-highest rebound average and he is fifth in the history of the Northeast-10 in career rebounds as of Feb. 23.
His 46 double-doubles are the most by a Purple Knight since complete rebound totals became available in 1981-82 — Michel Bonebo is next with 27 — and Bonds’ 408 offensive boards are the most since that category began being tracked in 1992-93.