April 29, 2009

INDIANAPOLIS, IND. - - Belmont University men's basketball senior Andy Wicke (Hendersonville, Tenn.) has been awarded a coveted educational grant through the NCAA postgraduate scholarship program. The 6-2 shooting guard was one of 58 student-athletes who participated in NCAA winter sports - men's and women's basketball, men's and women's gymnastics, women's ice hockey, women's rifle, men's skiing, men's and women's swimming, men's and women's indoor track and field and wrestling - selected as a 2008-09 Postgraduate Scholarship Award winner.

Wicke was one of only two NCAA Division-I men's basketball players chosen to receive a postgraduate scholarship, joining Brett Winkelman of North Dakota State University. 29 male and 29 female student-athletes from Divisions I, II and III were selected from a deep and distinguished candidate pool. Each will receive a one-time, nonrenewable grant of $7,500.

Wicke concluded his decorated college basketball career with 1,236 points - good for sixth all-time on Belmont's NCAA-era scoring list.

Wicke also finished his career second in Atlantic Sun Conference history in made three-point field goals with 303. He holds the Curb Event Center single-game record for made three-point field goals with 10, against Gardner-Webb Feb. 15, 2007.

In 2008-09, Wicke established single-season Belmont records for minutes played (1,056) and steals (70).

He was also part of 88 Belmont victories and four postseason appearances - including three NCAA Tournaments - over his stellar four-year career.

Moreover, the sharpshooter was honored at the 2009 Final Four in Detroit as one of 10 finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award for men's basketball.

In addition, Wicke was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District and All-America teams and the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) Scholar-Athlete Team. He is a five-time Atlantic Sun All-Academic selection.

Wicke sports a 3.74 GPA in his major of environmental studies and minor of business administration. He will earn his undergraduate degree in May before pursuing dental school at the University of Louisville.

He becomes the fourth Belmont student-athlete to receive an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, joining former men's basketball players Justin Hare and Adam Mark, and former men's tennis and soccer player Marcos Cabrera.

In addition to the winter sport honorees, the NCAA also awards 116 postgraduate scholarships to student-athletes participating in fall and spring sports in which the NCAA conducts championships or participates in as an emerging sport, for a total of 174 postgraduate scholarships annually.

To qualify for an NCAA postgraduate scholarship, a student-athlete must have an overall grade-point average of 3.200 (on a 4.000 scale) or its equivalent, and must have performed with distinction as a member of the varsity team in the sport in which the student-athlete was nominated. The student-athlete must have behaved, both on and off the field, in a manner that has brought credit to the student-athlete, the institution and intercollegiate athletics. The student-athlete also must intend to continue academic work beyond the baccalaureate degree as a full-time or part-time graduate student. The award recipients are selected by the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Committee.

For a complete list of NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship recipients, log onto www.ncaa.org.