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College notebook: Another Mr. Basketball for Norse? Thomas More, NKU enjoy spring academic success


By Don Owen
NKyTribune news editor

Carson Williams in 2016. Trevon Faulkner in 2018. Marques Warrick in 2020?

In about eight days, this could indeed become a two-year trend at Northern Kentucky University. Williams and Faulkner both arrived in Highland Heights as winners of the Kentucky Mr. Basketball award after enjoying spectacular prep careers. And they might soon have company in the Norse history book.

Warrick will find out June 28 if he joins that exclusive club. The Lexington Henry Clay star is a finalist for the Kentucky Mr. Basketball award, which will be announced during a virtual ceremony a week from Sunday.

Lexington Henry Clay standout Marques Warrick, an incoming NKU recruit, is a finalist for Kentucky Mr. Basketball.

Warrick, a 6-foot-3 guard, averaged 23.2 points per game and was named the 11th Region Player of the Year. The sharp-shooting lefty was 69-for-159 (43.4 percent) from 3-point range this season and converted 81.8 percent of his free throws.

In his final game at Henry Clay, Warrick poured in 48 points — including eight 3-pointers — during a 108-104 double-overtime loss against Frederick Douglass. Henry Clay finished the season with a 24-6 record. The Blue Devils were unbeaten (9-0) in January and ran off 18 consecutive wins to cap the regular season.

The Kentucky Lions Eye Foundation will present both the Mr. and Miss Kentucky Basketball awards. The ceremony is being conducted virtually due to the pandemic.

Williams, a 2016 graduate of Owen County, played two seasons at NKU before transferring to Western Kentucky. He became the first NKU recruit to ever win the prestigious Mr. Kentucky Basketball honor.

Faulkner, a 2018 graduate of Mercer County, earned the Mr. Kentucky Basketball award in 2018. The Harrodsburg native has helped NKU win back-to-back Horizon League Tournament championships and averaged 11.9 points per game this past season as the Norse posted a 23-9 record.

THOMAS MORE EXCELS IN CLASSROOM: Thomas More student-athletes recorded a collective grade point average of 3.32 during the spring and improved the cumulative program-wide GPA to a 3.13.

A total of 368 Saints made the Athletic Director Honor Roll in the spring semester by earning at least a 3.0 GPA, with 24 out of 28 teams at least posting a 3.0. In addition, 22 of the 28 teams at Thomas More posted a 3.0 or higher cumulative GPA, with the women’s tennis team earning the highest cumulative GPA at 3.59.

NKU ACADEMIC SUCCESS: NKU student-athletes compiled a 3.61 GPA this spring. It marked the sixth consecutive semester in which NKU student-athletes posted a 3.37 GPA or higher.

Six NKU programs led the way by posting GPAs of 3.74 or higher: women’s tennis (3.87), women’s cross country (3.85), women’s soccer (3.85), men’s golf (3.82), volleyball (3.75) and men’s tennis (3.74).

Contact Don Owen at don@nkytrib.com and follow him on Twitter at @dontribunesport


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