AMES, Iowa – Iowa State senior Melvin Ejim earned Capital One First-Team Academic All-America honors, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

Ejim, a Toronto, Ontario native, joins his head coach Fred Hoiberg as the only Iowa State men’s basketball players to earn first-team academic All-America accolades.  Hoiberg was a first-teamer in 1995 and earned second-team honors in 1994. Julius Michalik (3rd-1994), Paul Shirley (2nd- 2001) and Jake Sullivan (3rd- 2003) round out Iowa State’s list of CoSIDA Academic All-Americans.

Ejim has been a star for Iowa State in the classroom and on the court. The history major boasts a 3.70 GPA, while also working toward earning a business minor. Ejim is a member of the prestigious Phi Kappa Phi Academic Honors Society and in 2013 was named the inaugural Big 12 Scholar Athlete of the Year.

On the basketball court, Ejim has helped guide No. 17 Iowa State to a 20-5 record. He is leading the Big 12 in scoring with 19.1 points per game and ranks second with 8.6 rebounds per game. A two-time All-Big 12 Conference selection, Ejim has 30 career double-doubles. Ejim, a four-year starter, has scored 1,478 points and grabbed 963 rebounds in his career.