It was a moment years in the making. On Jan. 20 senior boys’ basketball captain Ethan Carter reached the 1,000-point career milestone in a home game against Edison. The achievement came in the first half of the game when Carter got a rebound and made a quick putback layup.
The point guard has been starting for the varsity team since his sophomore year, but his love for basketball began before high school.
“I used to always be holding onto a basketball I was younger,” Carter said.
His dad introduced him to the sport, which they would watch together. Enrolling in basketball camps once he reached kindergarten, it was impossible to know whether Carter would reach this milestone. But he has always loved the game.
“Since [ I first began ], my relationship with basketball has become much more competitive, that has made it more fun for me. But I will always have the same love for basketball” he said.
Since starting on the varsity team, Carter’s primary goal has been 1,000 career points. It stuck with him to his senior year when he honed in on reaching it.
“Since this was really my only big personal goal, I really focused on it, and I was lucky enough to hit it pretty early in the season,” he said.
“I was very excited to get the opportunity to score my 1,000 points at a home game, but I was also very nervous because I invited friends and family to watch … and even though I only had to score five points, there was still the thought of ‘What if I don’t hit it?’.”
Since [ I first began ], my relationship with basketball has become much more competitive, that has made it more fun for me. But I will always have the same love for basketball.
— Ethan Carter
Upon making the thousandth point, Carter recalls a feeling of relief. “I was embraced by my team and I was extremely happy and grateful to be in that position. It feels great to be recognized because it’s just great to see years of work pay off,” he said.
Carter has a few words about pushing one’s scoring record into four digits. “If you are looking to score 1,000 points, I would recommend working on free throw shooting. I spent my whole freshman year and a lot of my sophomore year working on free throws,” he said.
But he didn’t get there alone. “The person that helped me the most [was] Coach Hoidal,” Carter said. “The people that help me the most with being the best version of myself on the court are Coach Keto and my co-captains Mikkel and Tysen.”
Looking forward to what’s next, Carter has hopes for his team and their potential and hopes the most for a showing at the state tournament.
“I think with the way the season is going we have a good chance of that happening,” he said.
As of Feb 7. Carter has 16 games played with 18.2 average points per game and 291 points this season.
