Kansas State's Clent Stewart had heard the rumors and seen the reports. He knew about Cincinnati's infamous zero percent graduation rate and understood the perception surrounding Bob Huggins.

Then Stewart learned something about academics and his new coach.

"A lot of people thought when coach Huggins came here that he wasn't big on academics," Stewart said. "But we looked back, and at West Virginia he was an honor-roll student.

"(School work) means a lot to him, and he cracks down on us and lets us know that work in the classroom definitely transfers onto the floor."

On the floor, K-State is enjoying its finest season in nearly two decades. The Wildcats are 23-11 and will play DePaul (19-13) at 8 p.m. Monday in the second round of the NIT.

But that's old news. What some may not know is the Wildcats are excelling in the classroom, too.

Six members of Huggins' team