Shurna to compete in 3-point shootout

CHICAGO - Northwestern senior forward John Shurna (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) will participate in the State Farm College Slam Dunk & 3-Point Championships on Thursday, March 29 in New Orleans, Intersport announced on Tuesday.

The 24th-annual event will showcase the dunking and shooting talents of 24 of the nation's top college basketball players. Individual events in the State Farm College Slam Dunk & 3-Point Championships include: State Farm Women's 3-Point Contest, Hampton Hotels Men's 3-Point Contest, Pure Protein Battle of the Champions and Denny's Slam Dunk Contest.

Shurna will be competing in the Hampton Hotels Men's 3-Point Contest. He led the Big Ten in scoring and shot 44 percent from 3-point range this season. Shurna became the all-time scoring leader in school history this year and earned a first-team All-Big selection. He paced the Big Ten with an average of 2.9 3-point field goals per contest and his 274 career triples rank third in school history.

Shurna follows Craig Moore (2009) as Northwestern players to compete in the 3-Point Contest.

The final roster for the 2012 State Farm College Slam Dunk & 3-Point Championships will be available soon. Some of the other participants include: Miles Plumlee (Duke), DeQuan Jones (Miami), Marcus Denmon (Missouri) and Chace Stanback (UNLV).

Alumni of the event include Gary Payton (Oregon State), Steve Nash (UC-Santa Clara), Allan Houston (Tennessee), Bobby Hurley (Duke), Michael Finley (Wisconsin), Wes Matthews (Marquette) and Aaron Brooks (Oregon). Other alumni include six current members of the 2012 Harlem Globetrotters, including last year's Denny's Dunk Contest winner, Jacob Tucker.

The State Farm College Slam Dunk & 3-Point Championships will take place at Tulane University's Fogelman Arena in New Orleans on Thursday, March 29 at 9 p.m. ET. For fans who would like to attend the event, doors will open at 8 p.m. ET. General admission tickets are $15, a Family Four Pack is $40 and groups of 10 or more can purchase tickets for $8 per ticket. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit collegeslam.com.

The ESPN broadcast team includes Brad Nessler, Dan Dakich, Jimmy Dykes and Shannon Spake. The program will re-air numerous times on ESPN networks.

Shurna is also slated to participate in the Reese's College All-Star Game which is being held Friday, March 30 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans. The game is slated for 3:35 p.m. CT and is slated to air the following day on truTV.