by our College Data Analytics Team
For student athletes, the right college balances academics with athletics. This list ranks 5 colleges for Men’s Basketball by academic-athletic quality, using our 2026 methodology.
So you can compare your options, College Factual evaluates each program using a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and aid per athlete from the EADA survey), and overall school quality, drawing on NCAA, U.S. Department of Education EADA, and IPEDS data. Learn more about our ranking methodology.
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Learn more about these schools below:
Leading the list is South Dakota State University, our #1 college for Men's Basketball. Based in Brookings, SD, South Dakota State University is a public institution. South Dakota State University records an NCAA APR of 978, with a Graduation Success Rate of 89%. About 36% of athletes graduate under the federal rate. The program generates about $174,840 in revenue per athlete, against $174,840 in expenses. The school awards about $6,424 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of Sioux Falls earned the #2 place for student athletes. Located in Sioux Falls, SD, University of Sioux Falls is a private not-for-profit institution. The program generates about $33,561 in revenue per athlete, compared with $32,379 spent per athlete. The school awards about $5,811 in athletic aid per athlete.
University of South Dakota came in at #3 on this year's ranking for Men's Basketball. University of South Dakota is a public school based in Vermillion, SD. Athletes here earn an NCAA Academic Progress Rate of 952, alongside a GSR of 80%. Its federal graduation rate is 64%. Team revenue averages $120,366 per participant, compared with $120,366 spent per athlete. The school awards about $9,323 in athletic aid per athlete.
Northern State University earned the #4 place for student athletes. Located in Aberdeen, SD, Northern State University is a public institution. The program generates about $42,230 in revenue per athlete, compared with $42,345 spent per athlete. The school awards about $3,884 in athletic aid per athlete.
Black Hills State University earned the #5 place for student athletes. Based in Spearfish, SD, Black Hills State University is a public institution. The program generates about $45,865 in revenue per athlete, compared with $45,185 spent per athlete. Athletic aid averages $3,363 per athlete.
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
The ranking above is published by College Factual, 2026 edition. Rankings consider a blend of academic-athletic outcomes (NCAA Academic Progress Rate and Graduation Success Rate), athletic financial resources (team revenue, expenses, and athletic aid from the federal EADA survey), and overall school quality. The current methodology measures academic-athletic quality and does not include team win/loss performance.
References
Read more about our data sources and methodologies.