May 12, 2006
ORLANDO - UCF men's basketball signee Andre Thornton has been recognized by Ebony as one of the nation's "Top Black High School Seniors" in the magazine's June issue. Thornton, who attends Mitchell High School in Memphis, Tenn., was one of 35 seniors cited for their academic achievements, community service work and extracurricular activities.
Thornton will serve as Mitchell's valedictorian later this month. He is a member of the National Honor Society and is student government class president. The magazine highlighted Thornton's community service work, which included spearheading a Hurricane Katrina relief drive in his community.
"It is great that Andre is being recognized for not only his talents on the basketball court, but also his success academically and work in the community. He is involved in dozens of extracurricular activities and is a young man with a promising future," said UCF head coach Kirk Speraw. "Not only will he have an impact on our basketball team next season, but he will also make positive contributions to the university and the Orlando community."
The 6-foot-9 forward, who signed a National Letter of Intent with the Golden Knights in November, helped lead Mitchell to the Tennessee Class AA title game and a 31-7 record this past season. He averaged 11.4 points per game and was selected to play in the Memphis All-Star Classic following the regular season.
Thornton will join the UCF program this fall as it enters its second year in Conference USA.