COLORADO SPRINGS -- BYU's Eric Nielsen, Trent Whiting and Nathan Cooper were three of 15 student-athletes recognized today for academic excellence as members of the 2001 Men's Basketball Academic All-Mountain West Conference Team. Cooper was one of four repeat selections to the team, having also earned the award in 2000.
To be eligible for selection to the academic team, a student-athlete must have completed at least one academic term at the member institution, maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better and be a starter or significant contributor to the team. In addition to the three Cougars earning the honor, four players from Utah, two each from Colorado State, New Mexico and San Diego State and one student-athlete from UNLV and Wyoming comprised the 2001 squad.
The 2001 Men's Basketball Academic All-Mountain West Conference Team is listed below (*notes repeat selection).
Name School Class GPA Major
*Nathan Cooper BYU Senior 3.09 Portuguese
Eric Nielsen BYU Junior 3.34 Civil Engineering
Trent Whiting BYU Senior 3.20 Business Management
*David Fisher CSU Senior 3.37 Fishery Biology
*Brian Greene CSU Sophomore 3.31 Business Administration
Brian Smith UNM Graduate 3.72 Sports Administration
Alvin Broussard UNM Freshman 3.20 Undeclared
Karlo Kovacic SDSU Junior 3.93 International Business
Christopher Walton SDSU Freshman 3.08 Business
Danny Brotherson UNLV Senior 3.19 Communications
Lance Allred Utah Freshman 3.35 History
Chris Burgess Utah Junior 3.00 Communication
Trace Caton Utah Sophomore 3.80 Spanish
*Michael Puzey Utah Sophomore 3.57 Pre-Physical Therapy
David Rottinghaus Wyoming Freshman 3.15 Business
(*notes repeat selection)