MANHATTAN, Kan. – A school-record five players were selected to Academic All-Big 12 Teams on Thursday, including four on the First Team, as the league office announced its 26-member all-academic teams.
Seniors Austin Budke, Wesley Iwundu and Zach Winter and junior Mason Schoen were named to the league’s 17-member first team, which consists of those student-athletes who have maintained a 3.20 or better GPA. Senior D.J. Johnson was selected to the 9-member second team, which honors student-athletes with a GPA of 3.0 to 3.19.
The five Academic All-Big 12 selections surpass the previous high of four honorees in 1999, while four first team picks are the most since having three in 1998. All five received the honor for the first time in their careers.
In head coach Bruce Weber’s tenure at K-State, he has now seen 10 student-athletes earn Academic All-Big 12 honors a total of 12 times. The individual honors continue another solid academic year for the Wildcats, as all five selections were among 11 players named to the Fall 2016 Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll.
Iwundu, a starter in all 28 games this season, leads the Wildcats in both scoring (12.9 rpg.) and rebounding (6.3 rpg.), while Johnson paces the Big 12 in field goal percentage (61.1) to go with averages of 11.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. Budke, a former walk-on who earned a scholarship in January, has seen time in 20 games off the bench this season, while walk-ons Winter and Schoen has seen action in 12 and 11 games, respectively.
Budke was recently one of six players named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District 7 Men’s Basketball First Team. He is now eligible for CoSIDA’s Academic All-America team ballot, where first-, second- and third-team All-America honorees will be selected later this month.
Nominated by each institution’s director of student-athlete support services and the media relations offices, the academic all-league men’s basketball team consisted of 19 first team members combined with 13 on the second team. First team members consist of those who have maintained a 3.20 or better GPA, and the second team are those who have a 3.00 to 3.19 GPA.
To qualify student-athletes must maintain a 3.00 GPA or higher either cumulative or the two previous semesters and must have participated in 60 percent of his team’s scheduled contests. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year of academic residence. Senior student-athletes who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all the criteria except percent of participation are also eligible.
TOM GILBERT
Associate Director for Athletics Communications | K-State Athletics