Once a year, multiple high school basketball players in each state are nominated as the best high school basketball player by Gatorade. This year, senior Clayton Custer from BVNW won for the state of Kansas. Custer’s team recently took claimed their second consecutive state title to end his high school career. Next year, Custer is planning on attending Iowa State University for basketball.

Custer said he knew before the season started, should the Huskies pull off another state championship win, he would most likely win the award.

“Before the year, it was one of my goals to win,” Custer said. “I owe a lot of that to my teammates for helping me earn this award.”

Head coach Edwin Fritz said he was really happy when Custer won because it is a great honor and a very prestigious award.

Custer is not the only member of the team headed off to play ball in college, but the other four starters intend too as well. Fritz said his team was full of really good players so their opposing team couldn’t put all their focus on Custer; If they did, they had other players that would score.

“It shows that working together and being a team pays off. I’m really proud of that,” Fritz said.

Custer said one of his goals is to always work harder than the next man, and believes that this hard work and dedication is paying off.

“I wasn’t gifted with a lot of height or super athleticism or anything so in basketball I have to work really really hard at it,” Custer said. “I’ve done that for the last four or five years … I think that God blessed me with the abilities that he has given me. I think thats the only explanation to, whatever God gave me, I can go out there and play. I think that has a lot to do with me even becoming an nominee and lucky enough to win it.”

Gatorade players of year must portray exemplary character on and off the court. On the court, Custer tries to stay calm and always keeping his teammates involved. Off the court, Custer said he makes an effort to preform well in school and be nice to everyone he talks to.

“I just try to be a leader,” Custer said.” “Whatever that consists of that’s what I try to do. I do those same things off the court.”

The good decisions that Custer makes are the reason that Fritz thinks that Custer shows the ideal character that is needed for a Gatorade Player of the Year.

“He is a good representative of our school. I think they chose the best player in the state of Kansas,” Fritz said. “We went 94-6 in his four years here. We made it to the state finals every year and won two state titles. Clay was a big part of that. Clay also had some good teammates that helped him too.”

Along with strong character and basketball talent, the winner must also have high standards of academic achievement. Custer has managed to play varsity basketball, volunteer, have a social life, all while maintaining a 3.82 GPA. Custer said that sometimes his social life gets cut a little bit short with having so many other activities to do.

“I mean you’ve just got to balance it,” Custer said. “Its practice, extra practice, go home, do homework, then on the weekends, try to have some time with your friends. Basically, before the day starts, I just plan out what I think the day looks like and how its going to go. Hopefully that’s how it goes.”

While this is Custer’s first time winning the award, he said he has always known about it and even known some of the players who have won it in the last few years. Perry Ellis, now a basketball player for Kansas University, won this award in 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012. Along with Ellis, Semi Ojeleye won Gatorade Player of the Year award in 2013, who Custer knows really well and had the opportunity to play with over the past summer.

“If you think back throughout all the Gatorade players of Kansas, there is a lot of really really good ones, a lot that I don’t know them but they turned out to have unbelievable careers and went on to play in the NBA,” Custer said. “Its an honor to be on the list.”

Now that Custer has won Gatorade Kansas Boy Basketball Player of the Year, he is now a nominee for Gatorade National Player of the Year. Fritz said that if Custer were to win the National Player of the Year, it would be great for our school because there are a lot of great players in the nation; Fritz agrees Custer is one of them.

“If I won the National Boys Basketball Player of the Year that would be unbelievable. I got lucky enough to win [Gatorade Kansas Player of the Year],” Custer said. “That would be ridiculous. That would be awesome.”

Fritz, without a doubt believes that Custer is the best player in Kansas because of, not only his strong character and leadership skills but his skills on the court. In a coach’s eye, Custer is very determined and always prepared to play because he works hard on his skills on and off the season.

“I don’t think there was much doubt who the award should go to this year,” Fritz said. “He is a good teammate. He was our leader. He helped us win and that’s all he cared about.”

Custer said he has many people he wants to thank for giving him the opportunities he has had throughout his career thus far. According to Custer, first on the list are his parent, whom Custer claims have always been there for him and supported him. He also acknowledges he wouldn’t be where he is today without the help of Fritz, who made him feel welcome at the school as a freshman and always helped him out. Lastly, Custer said his teachers, friends and teammates have also played key roles toward him becoming the player and person he is today.

“They have always stuck with me. We have stuck together. We have won a lot of games. Winning a lot of games goes towards winning awards like this,” Custer said. “If our team wasn’t very good this year and we didn’t make it to state, I probably wouldn’t have won Gatorade Player of the Year. I think winning has the most to do with it. That’s all Coach Fritz and my teammates do.”