George Washington University Athletics
Photo by: Greg Fiume
Castro Garners NABC First Team All-District Honor
3/17/2026 11:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -Â GW men's basketball redshirt senior Rafael Castro was named to the NABC First Team All-Mid Atlantic District, the organization announced on Tuesday. He's the first such honoree since James Bishop IV in 2023.
Castro adds the accolade after previously being named to the All-Atlantic 10 Second Team and All-Defensive Team as well as a finalist for the Lefty Driesell Award given to the nation's top defender.
Castro enters the NIT averaging 15.4 ppg and 8.8 rpg in 26.9 mpg, one of just three players nationally with those marks. He's also one of just three players in the country with at least 45 assists, steals and blocks despite missing six games in February due to injury.
The 10-person team from the region, which includes schools from Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Washington, D.C., featured just two mid-major selections: Castro and Yale's Nick Townsend. The full selections are below:
First Team
Solo Ball, Connecticut
Duke Brennan, Villanova
Rafael Castro, George Washington
Adam Clark, Seton Hall
Silas Demary Jr., Connecticut
Alex Karaban, Connecticut
Acaden Lewis, Villanova
Tyler Perkins, Villanova
Tarris Reed Jr., Connecticut
Nick Townsend, Yale
Second Team
Tyler Cochran, Rhode Island
Derrian Ford, Temple
Tariq Francis, Rutgers
Tarence Guinyard, Duquesne
KJ Lewis, Georgetown
Braylon Mullins, Connecticut
Jaylin Sellers, Providence
Derek Simpson, Saint Joseph's
Darin Smith Jr., Central Conn. State
Nasir Whitlock, Lehigh
Castro adds the accolade after previously being named to the All-Atlantic 10 Second Team and All-Defensive Team as well as a finalist for the Lefty Driesell Award given to the nation's top defender.
Castro enters the NIT averaging 15.4 ppg and 8.8 rpg in 26.9 mpg, one of just three players nationally with those marks. He's also one of just three players in the country with at least 45 assists, steals and blocks despite missing six games in February due to injury.
The 10-person team from the region, which includes schools from Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Washington, D.C., featured just two mid-major selections: Castro and Yale's Nick Townsend. The full selections are below:
First Team
Solo Ball, Connecticut
Duke Brennan, Villanova
Rafael Castro, George Washington
Adam Clark, Seton Hall
Silas Demary Jr., Connecticut
Alex Karaban, Connecticut
Acaden Lewis, Villanova
Tyler Perkins, Villanova
Tarris Reed Jr., Connecticut
Nick Townsend, Yale
Second Team
Tyler Cochran, Rhode Island
Derrian Ford, Temple
Tariq Francis, Rutgers
Tarence Guinyard, Duquesne
KJ Lewis, Georgetown
Braylon Mullins, Connecticut
Jaylin Sellers, Providence
Derek Simpson, Saint Joseph's
Darin Smith Jr., Central Conn. State
Nasir Whitlock, Lehigh
Players Mentioned
C
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