Lester Abram

Background

Born in Pontiac, Michigan, Abram played for Pontiac Northern High School under coach Robert Rogers. He led the school to back-to-back Class A state titles and finished his prep career with an 81–21 record. As a senior, he averaged 22.7 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 4.7 assists, earning co-Most Valuable Player honors in the state title game. He was a McDonald's All-American Top 100 selection and made the Detroit News Dream Team.

At the University of Michigan, Abram played in 120 career games (tied for No. 18 all-time) and started 106 (tied for 10th). He scored 1,274 points (No. 26) and shot 82.93 percent on free throws (No. 2). As a freshman, he set the program's freshman record for free throw percentage (85.6 percent) and as a sophomore tied Cazzie Russell's sophomore record (84.3 percent). He won Michigan's Iron Man Award and Outstanding Free Throw Shooting Award in both his freshman and sophomore seasons.

Abram missed most of his junior season after left shoulder surgery, but was granted a medical hardship and returned for a fifth year. In his senior season, he helped Michigan to its first AP top-25 ranking in eight years and back-to-back wins over top-25 teams for the first time since 1994. He also played for the Big Ten Foreign Touring Team in Australia in 2006, leading the team in scoring in two games.