---NKU’s Steven Wright throws down one of his 37 dunks this season. The 6-foot-3 senior guard led NKU in scoring (16.8 ppg) and rebounding (5.3 rpg) as the Norse posted a 24-9 record. He also added a team-leading 54 steals and dished out 106 assists.

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - Northern Kentucky University’s Steven Wright is taking his high-flying, crowd-pleasing basketball show to New England next week.

Wright has been selected to play in the NABC/NCAA Division II All-Star Game on March 23 at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Mass. The 6-foot-3 senior guard will play for the West squad and is one of 20 players selected for the game, which will begin at 7 p.m. in the MassMutual Center.

The All-Star Game will be a part of the NCAA Division II Elite Eight, which will be held March 21, 22 and 24 in Springfield, Mass.

A native of Dayton, Ohio, Wright earned Great Lakes Valley Conference Player of the Year honors this season. He averaged 16.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game this season as NKU posted a 24-9 record and advanced to the regional championship game.

Wright also finished with 37 dunks this season, the second-highest total in school history and the most ever by a guard. He also led the team in steals with 54 and dished out 106 assists.

Wright was 62-for-179 from 3-point range and made 46.1 percent of his shots from the field. The Dayton Colonel White High School product also made 77.6 percent of his free throws and led NKU in scoring 15 times.

"Steve is a great player, an outstanding teammate and an even better person, and he deserves this honor," NKU head coach Dave Bezold said. "I don't know if anyone at Northern Kentucky ever had a better season than Steve just put together, and he's one of the top players in the nation."

In addition, Wright was named to both the GLVC and NCAA Division II Great Lakes Region All-Tournament teams. He started the season by earning most outstanding player honors for NKU at the John L. Griffin/Lions Club Classic.

Wright played three years at Bowling Green State before transferring to NKU this season. He scored a combined 1,293 points during his college career.

"With some transfers, you keep waiting for the devil to come out and the trouble to begin because you are afraid they left the previous school for a reason, but Steve is a class act," Bezold said. "He came in here from a Division I school and could have balked at listening to me, but he is humble and allowed me to coach him. Steve is just a great person and I am very proud of what he has accomplished."

Wright is the first NKU basketball player to be selected for the All-Star Game, which features the nation’s top NCAA Division II performers. The All-Star Game will match an East All-Star Team (with 10 student-athletes from the NCAA East, Northeast, South and South Atlantic Regions) against a West All-Star Team (with 10 student-athletes from the NCAA Great Lakes, North Central, South Central and West Regions).

The student-athletes and coaches selected to participate are:

East All-Star Team
Tyrone Anderson, Concord University
Christian Burns, Philadelphia University
Matt Cooper, Le Moyne College
Andre Dabney, Bloomfield University of Pennsylvania
Antonio Fitzgerald, Saint Augustine's College
Gil Goodrich, Bowie State University
DeMario Grier, Pfeiffer University
Esmir Guzonjic, University of North Alabama
Magen McNeil, American International College
Jason Smith, University of Alabama, Huntsville
David McLaughlin (coach), Stonehill College

West All-Star Team
Luke Anderson, Minnesota State University, Mankato
Eric Babers, Southeastern Oklahoma State University
Dustin Bremerman, Seattle Pacific University
Kevin Johnson, Humboldt State University
Dusty Jura, University of Nebraska at Kearney
Damien Lolar, West Texas A&M University
Frank Phillips, University of Findlay
Ricky Volcy, Northern Michigan University
Zack Whiting, Chaminade University
Steven Wright, Northern Kentucky University
Bill Brown (coach), California University of Pennsylvania

In the inaugural Division II All-Star Game in 2006, the West All-Star Team defeated the East All-Stars, 134-122. Ryan Diggs of Western Washington finished with a game-high 25 points and Franz Steyn of Southwest Baptist had 18 points and 11 rebounds as the duo earned co-Most Outstanding Player for the West All-Stars. Tayron Thomas of Philadelphia had 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists to earn MOP honors for the East All-Star Team.

Admission to the second annual NCAA/NABC All-Star Game is free with paid admission into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. For information on admission to the Hall of Fame, call 1-877-4HOOPLA (446-6752) or visit the Hall of Fame web site at www.hoophall.com.