Utah Pump N Run Basketball

CHICAGO (March 18, 2010) — In its 25th year of honoring the nation’s best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with ESPN RISE, today announced Kyle Collinsworth of Provo High School as its 2009-10 Gatorade Utah Boys Basketball Player of the Year. Collinsworth is the second Gatorade Utah Boys Basketball Player of the Year to be chosen from Provo High School.

The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the court, distinguishes Collinsworth as Utah’s best high school boys basketball player. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year award to be announced in March, Collinsworth joins an elite alumni association of past state boys basketball award winners, including Chris Paul (2002-03, West Forsyth HS, N.C.), Kevin Garnett (1992-93, Maudlin HS, S.C.), Chauncey Billups (1993-94 & 1994-95, George Washington HS, Colo.), Jason Kidd (1991-92, St. Joseph Notre Dame HS, Calif.), Paul Pierce (1994-95, Inglewood HS, Calif.) and Chris Bosh (2001-02, Lincoln HS, Texas). The 6-foot-6 senior guard led the Bulldogs (19-4) to the Class 4A state semifinals this past season, averaging 23.7 points, 10.4 rebounds and 8.0 assists per game. A three-time First Team All-State selection, Collinsworth recorded six triple- doubles this year and was chosen Class 4A MVP for the second year in a row.

Collinsworth has maintained a 3.78 GPA in the classroom. An Eagle Scout with the Boy Scouts of America, he is an active member of his church community and has volunteered locally on behalf of youth basketball camps. “Collinsworth has the full package,” said Craig Gladwell, head coach of rival Lehi High. “He can run the offense, he can post you up, he can hit the outside shot. What he does best is really attack the basket, and he can do it with either hand.”

Collinsworth has signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball on scholarship at Brigham Young University this fall.

The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by ESPN RISE and the Gatorade high school sports leadership team, which work with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.

Collinsworth joins recent Gatorade Utah Boys Basketball Players of the Year Tyler Haws (2008-09 & 2007-08, Lone Peak) and Chris Collinsworth (2006-07, Provo) among the state’s list of former award winners.

To celebrate the award’s 25th anniversary, Gatorade wants you to vote for the All-Time Greatest Players of the Year at gatorade.com/POY25. To keep up to date on the latest happenings, become a fan of Gatorade Player of the Year on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. For more on the Gatorade Player of the Year program, including nomination information, a complete list of past winners, and the announcement of the Gatorade National Player of the Year, visit playeroftheyear.gatorade.com.