We hear it endlessly, that nearly constant banter between the supporters of this region’s two universities as they compete, not only on the athletic courts and fields but also in the field of public opinion.

It’s old, venerable Northwest Missouri State vs. the young (although nearly 40-year-old) upstart Missouri Western. Some even consider this a battle of the preppies vs. the thugs, although my dealings with the athletes of both schools have led me to believe that most of the young people in both athletic programs lie somewhere in the middle of those two extremes.

So it was with some interest that I studied the MIAA’s newly released Academic Honor Roll of men’s and women’s basketball as if it were a fresh batch of cumulative season statistics.

To be sure, this isn’t a Harvard vs. Yale debate, so those who would like to look down their noses academically at those of the opposite school might need reading glasses, because they aren’t looking too far away.

For starters, the most glaring difference came in the honor rolls of the men vs. women. Let’s just say when I hit the “print” button, the job didn’t take nearly as long for the men’s honor roll as it did the women’s.

Only 19 men’s basketball players across the conference qualified for the honor, compared to 36 on the women’s side.

C’mon, guys, you aren’t doing anything to help the reputation of my gender.

Good, old Truman State lived up to its brainiac reputation on the men’s side, with a league-leading four recipients, including a couple of finance and accounting majors who likely won’t be struggling with their taxes the way I have this season.

Closer to home, seniors Matt Withers and Andy Peterson, along with junior Hunter Henry, carried the Bearcat banner, while senior Keion Kindred was the lone standard bearer for Western.

But before “Gang Green” gets too haughty, its members need to consider some other factors. The rules for eligibility to this honor roll not only require a 3.00 or better grade-point average at the qualifying institution but also two terms of attendance at the member school and a standing as a sophomore, junior or senior in athletic eligibility.

Northwest had 10 players who could have potentially made the honor roll with proper grades. Western, meanwhile, had only five who qualified on both numbers of semesters and year of academic eligibility. In other words, Northwest “shot” 3 for 10 from the academic field (30 percent), compared to 1 for 5 (20 percent) for the Griffons.

Individually, congratulations are in order for those four male student-athletes, but the boosters and alumni of their respective institutions should neither jump for joy nor boast over the overall accomplishment of those student-athletes.

On the women’s side, my hat goes off to the four Northwest women who earned a spot on the conference’s academic honor roll, including senior April Miller with her straight-A career and Lindsay Bayer, who ends her basketball career a year early to enter medical school. Jessica Burton and Micaela Uriell aren’t classroom slouches, either.

Griffon seniors Jill Johnson and Chemia Woods deserve their recognition. Although they are the only two Western women to make the honor roll, people must remember that this was a team largely comprised of freshmen, who are not even eligible for this list because of their first-year academic status.

Hundreds of hours of practice on the hardwood produced plenty of good basketball and cheers.

But cheers should go to those who put in the hard work in the classroom, too.