Former Dallas County basketball star Andre Nelson spent last week taking his last finals of his collegiate career at Tuskegee University.

Last Saturday, after the tests were done and preparations for graduation were underway, Nelson traveled to Columbus, Ga., for the eighth annual Historical Black College All-Star Classic basketball game.

“It was a great experience,” said Nelson. “They chose the top 24 athletes from all of the HBC. I got to play with all of these great players. I just tried to give great effort during the game and I know I did. I got to play in front of scouts and was told I did pretty good.”

Nelson, who will graduate in May with a degree in Computer Science with a grade point average of 3.08, said the all-star experience was a rewarding end for his four years in school.

“That (college) was the toughest thing I have done in my life,” Nelson said. “Being a student athlete and working a major as difficult as computer science, it was rough. I always try to give as much as I can in both and was able to do that.
As always, though, Nelson needed influential people to continue encouraging and pushing him towards finishing his goals.

“My mom, dad and even people on the street who come up and give a word of encouragement or even have some criticism,” Nelson said. “It all goes into your game to make you a better player. You have to be thankful for the encouragement and use the criticism to drive you and give you that edge.”

This season the 6-6 center/ power forward averaged 12.9 points per game while finishing in the top five of the SIAC with 7.5 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game. Nelson is a two-time All-SIAC selection.

“It’s been a wonderful experience,” Nelson said. “I can’t ask for anything better from school. To play in the game just capped it off perfectly.”