LOGAN, Utah – Utah State’s men’s basketball student section has been nominated for the 2012 Naismith StudentSection of the Year. USU is one of 79 schools up for the honor, which includes in-state rival Utah and Western Athletic Conference foes Fresno State and Nevada. The event is part of “I Love College Hoops,” a nationwide effort to celebrate 100 years of college basketball. Open only to Division I basketball programs, the Naismith Student Section of the Year award winner will receive a $5,000 contribution to the school’s athletic department. By visiting www.facebook.com/ILoveCollegeHoops, fans can vote for one of the nearly 80 Division I basketball schools that submitted a nomination. The Naismith Student Section of the Year Award, which is presented through a partnership of The Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), a division of IMG College, and the Atlanta Tipoff Club, administrators of the Naismith Awards, is dedicated to celebrating fans that love college hoops and provide support to their college basketball team with devotion and passion. Several rounds of voting will determine the student section of the year. Round one will include a public vote on the “I Love College Hoops” Facebook page until Feb. 12. The top 16 colleges in the public vote will enter a second round of competition with another public vote on Facebook from Feb. 13-24. The top eight recipients will then be forwarded to the Naismith Awards Board ofSelectors for the final vote, which is based on student section attire, average attendance for the student section compared to overall seating capacity, video and photo submissions of the student section and other criteria. The winning student section will be announced in March. -USU-