Panther Reaches 1,000-Point Milestone
There has been no more team-oriented player at BFS over the past four years than senior Alex Basner—and that is not a knock on any of his fellow student-athletes. It is, however, a testament to the player and teammate that Alex has been, which is why celebrating his individual milestone was so enjoyable for his teammates, coaches, and the entire community.
Alex’s 10th 3-point shot of Monday’s ISAL Quarterfinals victory over Mary McDowell was the one he will remember forever, as it gave him 39 points for the game and 1,000 for his career.
“Alex has always been a terrific beacon of sportspersonship in his time at BFS,” said Director of Athletics David Gardella. “He exemplifies what it means to be a student-athlete and is what ‘Blue Pride’ is all about. It was so great to see him celebrate such a huge accomplishment with his teammates in what was a great team victory.”
Scoring 1,000 points in a high school basketball career is a milestone, to be sure. It is not something that happens every season and it is not something that happens at every school. In fact, only six boys basketball players and one girls basketball player in Brooklyn Friends School history had accomplished the feat heading into this season. None of those seven players, however, reached the 1,000-point mark in two seasons. Yes, TWO seasons.
After playing JV as a freshman, Alex scored 397 points as a sophomore—his first year at the varsity level. However, then COVID got in the way, canceling his entire junior season. That left him this season, needing 603 points. Heading into Monday’s game, Alex needed 39 points to reach 1,000. In Monday’s game, Alex scored 39 points.
Knowing the situation, Mary McDowell’s coaching staff and team members showed their class by allowing the game to be paused temporarily to allow for an on-court celebration. Alex’s teammates mobbed him after he made the shot, his mother came out of the crowd to give her son a big hug, and there were a bunch of celebratory photos snapped. Alex, all the while, hardly changed his expression. He was, no doubt excited—and relieved—but as always, he was a team player. “On to the next,” he commented on Instagram.
“I’m very happy that I was able to reach this milestone, but I couldn’t have done it without everyone involved,” Alex said. “As coach always says. ‘basketball is a team sport, when one person accomplishes something, the ENTIRE team accomplishes it.’ Scoring points is cool but winning games is what matters ”