College Sports Information Directors of America

TOWSON, Md. – Led by Cole Aldrich of number one-ranked Kansas (pictured, left) and Maya Moore (right) of undefeated Connecticut, a contingent of 14 members of the 2009-10 CoSIDA ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® Men’s and Women’s Basketball University Division teams will lead their respective teams into the NCAA Division I championship tournaments that start this week. These Academic All-America teams are selected annually by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) national organization.

Six members of the Academic All-America® men’s basketball team will be competing in the NCAA Men’s Championship while eight members of the Academic All-America® women’s basketball teams will play in the NCAA Women’s Championship.

Aldrich, a 6-11 junior center who was chosen as the Men’s Basketball Academic All-America® of the Year in the University Division, has guided Kansas to a 32-2 record and the Big 12 Conference championship. Seeded first in the Midwest Region, the Jayhawks open NCAA Tournament play on Thursday, March 18 against Lehigh University.

A communication studies major with a 3.32 grade point average (GPA), Aldrich is a two-year starter for the Jayhawks. A two-time selection as a first team All-Big 12 Conference honoree, he has been named as the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year twice.

A native of Bloomington, Minn., Aldrich is averaging 11.2 points and 9.9 rebounds per game. He has already broken the school record with 118 blocked shots and ranks sixth in the nation with 3.5 blocks per game. A member of the all-tournament team at the Big 12 Tournament, he helped the Jayhawks win the title. An honorable mention All-American selection as a sophomore, he became the first player in the storied history of Kansas basketball to record a “triple double” when he scored 13 points with 20 rebounds and 10 blocked shots in a win over Dayton.

Moore, Connecticut's junior forward who was chosen as the Women’s Basketball Academic All-America® of the Year in the University Division, has helped number one-ranked UConn post a perfect 33-0 record and win the BIG EAST Conference title. The Huskies, who will take an NCAA record 72-game winning streak into the NCAA Tournament, are the number one seed in the East Region and the tourney's top seed overall. UConn opens NCAA Tournament play against Southern University in Dayton, Ohio.

A native of Lawrenceville, Ga., Moore is a two-time member of the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® University Division Women’s Basketball first team. A two-time selection as first team All-BIG EAST, she was only the second sophomore to be honored as the winner of the Wade Trophy as the National Player of the Year when she earned the award in 2008-09. As a sophomore, she set a school record by scoring 754 points while leading UConn to a 39-0 record and the NCAA Division I championship.

An individualized major with a 3.70 GPA, Moore is averaging 17.9 points per game with an 8.3 rebounding mark. She leads the BIG EAST in assist/turnover ratio and her .833 free throw percentage is second in the BIG EAST. Moore ranks among the BIG EAST leaders in seven different statistical categories.

March Madness: Men's Basketball Academic All-America® honorees who are competing

Butler University is the only school with two Academic All-America® selections that will compete for the men’s national championship. Junior Matt Howard, a finance major with a 3.77 GPA, and sophomore Gordon Hayward, a computer engineering major with a 3.31 GPA, have led the 12th-ranked Bulldogs to a 28-4 record and the Horizon League championship.

Howard, who was named to the Academic All-America® first team, was honored as the Horizon League Player of the Year as a sophomore. A native of Connersville, Ind., Howard was named first team All-Horizon League for the second year in a row. Named to the Academic All-America® second team in 2008-09, he was the Most Valuable Player at the Horizon League Tournament as he led the Bulldogs to their second title in three years. The team leader with a .500 field goal percentage, the 6-8 forward is averaging 12.3 points and 5.4 rebounds per game.

Honored as a third team member of the Academic All-America® team, Hayward was named as the Horizon League Player of the Year this season. A first team All-League selection for the second year in a row, the Brownsburg, Ind. native is the Bulldogs’ leading scorer with a 15.4 average. Hayward also leads Butler with an 8.5 rebounding average.

Howard and Hayward led Coach Brad Stevens’ team to a perfect 18-0 record in Horizon League regular season play as Butler became the first team in league history to post a perfect regular season record. The Bulldogs won their fourth consecutive Horizon League regular season title and will be making their fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Seeded fifth in the West Region, the Bulldogs will be trying to extend the nation’s longest winning streak when they face Texas-El Paso in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, March 18. Butler has won 20 games in a row.

Junior Tim Abromaitis of Notre Dame, senior Roman Martinez of New Mexico and junior E’Twaun Moore of Purdue join Aldrich, Howard and Hayward as Academic All-America® team members who will also be playing in the NCAA Tournament.

A finance major with a 3.72 GPA, Abromaitis is Notre Dame’s second-leading scorer this season. While averaging 16.3 points per game, he has led the Fighting Irish to a 23-11 record and a berth in the semi-finals of the BIG EAST Tournament. An honorable mention All-BIG EAST selection, he was also selected as the BIG EAST Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men’s basketball.

One of the top three-point shooters in NCAA Division I, he has connected on 81 of 184 attempts for a .440 percentage. A native of Unionville, Conn., Abromaitis, who will graduate one full year ahead of his class, has already been accepted into Notre Dame’s one-year intensified MBA program. Abromaitis and Notre Dame are seeded sixth in the South region and will face Old Dominion University in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in New Orleans on Thursday, March 18.

A second team member of the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® University Division team, Martinez has a double major of business administration and marketing and carries a 3.48 GPA. A second team All-Mountain West Conference selection, the El Paso, Texas native was the Lobos’ second-leading scorer with a 13.8 average. The Lobos’ top three-point shooter, he has made 42.2 per cent of his three-point attempts. While averaging 6.0 rebounds per game, Martinez has helped New Mexico compile an impressive 29-4 record. The Lobos are seeded third in the East region and they will face Montana in a first round game in the NCAA Tournament in San Jose, Cal. on Thursday, March 18.

A junior guard who earned first team All-Big Ten Conference honors, Moore has led Purdue to a 27-5 record and the fourth seed in the South region of the NCAA Tournament. A second team selection to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® University Division team, Moore is the Boilermakers’ top scorer with a 16.6 average. Named as a third team All-American by CBS College Sports, he has been a team leader for a Purdue team that has been ranked in the top ten for most of the year. An organizational leadership & supervision major with a 3.30 GPA, Moore is averaging 2.7 assists per game. Purdue will face Siena in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Spokane, Wash. on Friday.

2009-10 ESPN THE MAGAZINE Academic All-America® Women’s Basketball Team (University Division) as selected by CoSIDA

Note: NCAA Tournament participants listed in bold

Basketball Academic All-America of the Year (University Division): Maya Moore, Connecticut

FIRST TEAM

[Name, School, District, Class, Hometown/GPA and Major]

Erin Anthony: U.S. Military Academy, I, Jr., Allentown, Pa./ 3.78 GPA, Civil Engineering

Angie Bjorklund: Tennessee, IV, Jr., Spokane Valley, Wash./ 3.80 GPA, Psychology

Kelsey Luna: Indiana State, V, Sr., St. Louis, Mo./ 4.00 Psychology

Maya Moore: Connecticut, I, Jr., Lawrenceville, Ga./ 3.70 GPA, Individualized Major

Liz Repella: West Virginia, II, Jr., Steubenville, Ohio/ 3.95 GPA, Exercise Physiology

SECOND TEAM

Lori Bjork: Maryland, II, Gr., Johnston, Iowa/ 3.93 GPA, Political Science

Brandi Brown: Middle Tennessee State, IV, Gr., Jamestown, Tenn./ 3.90 GPA, Accounting

Amanda Johnson: Oregon VIII So. Santa Rosa, Cal./ 4.00 GPA, Psychology

May Kotsopoulos: Vermont I Sr. Waterloo, Ontario, Canada/ 3.66 GPA, Business Administration

Lauren Sims: Long Beach State, VIII, Sr., Fullerton, Cal./ 4.00 GPA, Biology & Physiology

THIRD TEAM

Alysha Clark: Middle Tennessee State, IV, Sr., Mt. Juliet, Tenn./ 3.30 GPA, Electronic Media Journalism

Rachele Fitz: Marist, I, Sr., Seven Hills, Ohio/ 3.35 GPA, Fashion Design

Amanda Stull: Coastal Carolina, III, Sr., Rushville, Ind./ 3.94 GPA, Biology

Ashley Sweat: Kansas State, VII, Sr., McPherson, Kan./ 3.51 GPA, Kinesiology

Jasmine Thomas: Duke, III, Jr., Fairfax, Va./ 3.37 GPA, Sociology

Calendar

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