University of Vermont Athletic Hall of Fame
Michael J. Evelti 1982 - Basketball
Graduating as UVM's all-time leading scorer with 1,697 points, Mike Evelti was a slender forward who had the uncanny ability to create instant offense. But his 15.9 points a game over four years doesn't tell the entire story. Evelti, a 1992 UVM Hall of Fame inductee, not only produced offensively, he finished as one of UVM's all-time top rebounders averaging seven rebounds a game (735 career boards, fourth best on UVM's all-time list). He also graduated first at UVM with 574 career field goals and 549 career free throws.
Evelti was named to the NABC All-New England Second-Team in 1980 as well as 1981. In 1981 after helping Vermont to the semifinals of the ECAC North Tournament for the first time, he was selected to the Associated Press All-American Team as a honorable mention, the first Catamount to be honored by the national wire service. That year he was named to the all-conference first team. He and classmate and fellow UVM Hall of Famer Jeff Brown served as co-captains in 1981-82 and Evelti repeated on the all-conference first-team.
An outstanding student, he was a member of UVM's Dean's List and the Boulder Society, an academic honorary for seniors. A local product - a native of Burlington who played at Rice Memorial - Evelti spent a post-graduate year at Worcester (Mass.) Academy in 1977-78 before entering as a freshman in 1978. He was named to the Barre Times-Argus "Dream Dozen" as one of the all-time greats in Vermont's High School boy's basketball history.
Sports Illustrated selected Evelti as one of its Top 50 Vermont athletes of the 20th Century. The magazine's editors composed a list of the "Top 50 Athletes" in each state in its December 27, 1999 issue to commemorate the millennium. Evelti ranked 38th among the Top 50 Vermonters.
