CHICAGO (March 21, 2024) — In its 39th year of honoring the nation’s most elite high school athletes, Gatorade today announced Cole Scherer of Valor Christian High School is the 2023-24 Gatorade Colorado Boys Basketball Player of the Year. Scherer is the first Gatorade Colorado Boys Basketball Player of the Year to be chosen from Valor Christian High School. 
 
The award, which celebrates the nation’s top high school athletes for excellence on the court, in the classroom and in the community, distinguishes Scherer as Colorado’s best high school boys basketball player. From CEOs and coaches to star athletes, Gatorade Player of the Year winners showcase the power of sport, touting an all-star group of alumni that includes LeBron James (2002-03 & 2001-02, St. Vincent – St. Mary High School, Ohio), Karl-Anthony Towns (2013-14 & 2012-13, St. Joseph High School, N.J.) and Jayson Tatum (2015-16, 2014-15 & 2013-14, Chaminade College Preparatory School, Mo.).
 
The 6-foot-2, 185-pound junior guard averaged 22 points and 5.4 rebounds per game this past season, leading the Eagles (26-2) to a 6A state championship. Scherer also averaged 3.6 assists and 2.1 steals per game and compiled an eFG% (effective field goal percentage) of 60.4. Ranked as the state’s No. 4 recruit in the Class of 2025 by PrepHoops, he scored 28 points in Valor Christian’s 52-40 win over ThunderRidge in the state final and averaged 26 points and 7.2 rebounds throughout his team’s postseason run.
 
A National Honor Society member, Scherer has volunteered locally with the Musana Community Development Organization, a non-profit that aims to create economic and social change in Uganda. He has also donated his time to mission ministries, which builds homes for need-based Christian families in Mexico. “Cole is an all-around great player,” said Sam Stump, head coach at Pueblo West High School. “He made really smart decisions offensively, and was patient. Cole was tough defensively as well with really good footwork and smart reads. He did a great job of keeping his teammates involved and letting the game come to him.”
 
Scherer has maintained a weighted 3.87 GPA in the classroom. He will begin his senior year of high school 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 the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and determine the state winners in each sport.
 
Scherer joins recent Gatorade Colorado Boys Basketball Players of the Year D'Aundre Samuels (2022-23, Denver East High School), Jordan Reed (2021-22, Manual High School), Julian Hammond III (2020-21, Cherry Creek High School) and Dominique Clifford (2019-20, The Vanguard School), among the state’s list of former award winners.
 
As part of Gatorade’s commitment to breaking down barriers in sport, every Player of the Year also receives a grant to donate to a social impact partner. To date, Gatorade Player of the Year winners’ grants have totaled more than $4.9 million across more than 1,600 organizations.
 
To learn more about the Gatorade Player of the Year program, check out past winners or to nominate student-athletes, visit playeroftheyear.gatorade.com or follow us on social media on Facebook at facebook.com/GatoradePOY, Instagram at instagram.com/Gatorade and Twitter at twitter.com/Gatorade.

A complete history of Gatorade Player of the Year winners in Colorado is available in our POTY database.