July 1, 2009
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – It was another impressive showing for the Notre Dame men’s basketball team in the classroom as the Irish earned a 3.168 during the 2009 spring semester and finished with a 3.00 grade index or higher for the ninth time in 11 semesters.
Members of the 2008-09 Irish squad earned a 3.151 following the 2008 fall semester, and, for the academic year, produced a 3.165 GPA. With the completion of the ’09 spring semester, Notre Dame players have a cumulative 3.105 grade point average, the highest ever. It also marks the 10th consecutive semester that the team has earned a cumulative GPA of above a 3.00.
In 2007-08, Notre Dame finished with a 3.097 for the school year and earned the BIG EAST Academic Excellence Award for men’s basketball last July.
Ten of the 14 players on this year’s team finished with a grade point average of 3.00 or better in the spring semester. Earning better than a 3.50 grade index were seniors Luke Zeller (4.000) and Zach Hillesland (3.667); juniors Ben Hansbrough (3.533) and Tim Andree (3.500); and sophomores Tim Abromaitis (3.800) and Tom Kopko (3.800).
Since the spring of 2001, all 23 scholarship players who have played under head coach Mike Brey and have exhausted their eligibility while enrolled at Notre Dame, have earned their degree from the University.