Senior walk-on guard Pierson McAtee was rewarded for his persistence and hard work on Monday afternoon (August 26) when he was elevated to scholarship status by head coach Bruce Weber.

“The staff and I are very excited to extend this scholarship offer to Pierson,” said Weber. “He has been a true representative of our championship culture both on and off the court with his tremendous intelligence and leadership. An excellent example for his teammates in the classroom, he has been a valuable member of our team these past four years and I look forward to him having an outstanding senior season.”

A 6-foot-6, 200-pound fifth-year senior from Manhattan, Kansas, McAtee earns the Wildcats’ 13th scholarship for the 2019-20 season after starting as a true freshman walk-on in 2015-16. He has played a key role in the development of a program that has gone from 17 wins four years ago to 25 in each of the past two seasons and three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances.

McAtee has played in 40 games in his K-State career, including 15 as a junior in the Wildcats’ run to the Big 12 regular-season title and a trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2018-19. He has scored 20 points in his career, including a career-best 4 against Eastern Kentucky last season.

“I’m so stoked and ready to get after it with these guys this year,” said McAtee. “This is something that I have been working towards these last four years. Being from Manhattan, I love K-State, this team, this community, this coaching staff and couldn’t be more appreciative of this opportunity in my last year and just ready to do something special with this team.”

An outstanding student off the court who earned his bachelor’s degree in May, McAtee has twice been named Academic All-Big 12 First Team and is a two-time Honors Court recipient from the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). He received the Big 12’s highest academic honor – the Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award – earlier this summer. The winner of the team’s Keith Amerson Academic Award each of the past two seasons, he has been named to each of the last seven Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Rolls.

McAtee earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration with an emphasis in accounting and finance from K-State in May and is currently working on a Master’s in accounting.