Bantum closed out a brilliant four-year career in 1984-85, when he became the first Cornell men's basketball player named Ivy League Basketball Player of the Year and was the only unanimous selection on the All-Ivy first team. In addition, he was an Associated Press All-America honorable mention selection.

Averaging 20.0 points per game his senior year, he set Cornell's all-time career scoring record of 1,411 points and established school records for best field goal percentage in both a season and career, and career marks for most free throw attempts and most starts. A two-year captain and team MVP, he was a second-team All-Ivy selection as a junior and received honorable mention as a sophomore.

The first Cornell player drafted into the NBA since 1968, Bantum was a seventh-round selection of the New York Knicks in the 1985 draft.