BALDWIN CITY, Kan. – Thursday morning, the inaugural Hall of Fame class of inductees into the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame was announced. Included among the elite players in the prestigious class was Kenyon College's all-time leading scorer John Rinka '70.

Rinka, a member of the Kenyon Athletic Association Hall of Fame and the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame, will be inducted into the Small College Basketball (SCB) Hall of Fame during a ceremony held on Thursday, November 17 at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana.

"Through the years, there have been so many great players, coaches and contributors that have been involved in our game at the small college level," said SCB founder John McCarthy. "Through the creation of the SCB Hall of Fame, we will pay tribute to them, and recognize their accomplishments on a national scale."

Joining Rinka in the inaugural SCB Hall of Fame class are Dr. Dick Barnett, Bevo Francis, John Ebeling, Travis Grant, Bob Hopkins, Lucious Jackson, Phil Jackson, Earl Monroe, Willis Reed and Jerry Sloan. Coaches being inducted are Clarence Gaines, Arad McCutchan, John McLendon and, of course, Dr. James Naismith.

While at Kenyon, Rinka was a three-time Associated Press Little College All-American, a three-time United Press International Small College All-American and three-time National Association of Basketball Coaches All-American. The 5-foot-9-inch guard was the first non–NCAA Division I recipient of the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award, given to the top men's college basketball player shorter than six feet tall. He scored 3,251 career points and posted a career scoring average of 32.8 points per game. Those outputs still rank ninth and sixth, respectively, in the history of the NCAA and all of its divisions.

A native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Rinka finished his Kenyon career with a bang, averaging 41.1 points through 23 games. That average was topped only by NCAA Division I and National Basketball Association legend Pete Maravich, who poured in 44.5 points per game for Louisiana State University. That same year, Rinka made 234-of-263 free throws and led the nation with a .890 shooting percentage. Additionally, he was selected as a 1970 Academic All-American and won Kenyon's Falkenstine Award for leadership and integrity.

Rinka was also a four-year first-team all-conference honoree in the 13-team Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) and was named the OAC's Most Valuable Player in each of his last three seasons.

For more information on the SBC Hall of Fame visit www.smallcollegebasketball.com.

Fans may purchase tickets/tables to the Hall of Fame Induction ceremony through the following link, www.HoFClassic.com, or by calling 812-421-2212.