Omar Calhoun Named Gatorade New York Boys Basketball Player of the Year

CHICAGO (March 22, 2012) — In its 27th year of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with ESPNHS, today announced Omar Calhoun of Christ the King (Middle Village, N.Y.) as its 2011-12 Gatorade New York Boys Basketball Player of the Year. Calhoun is the first Gatorade New York Boys Basketball Player of the Year to be chosen from Christ the King Regional 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 Calhoun as New York'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, Calhoun joins an elite alumni association of past state boys basketball award winners, including Dwight Howard (2003-04, SW Atlanta Christian Academy, Ga.), 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-5 senior guard averaged 25.7 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.2 steals this past season, leading the Royals to a 19-8 record. A First Team All-State selection, Calhoun is the Catholic High School Athletic Association Player of the Year and finished his prep career as the school record-holder for points scored, with 1,770.

Calhoun has maintained a B-plus average in the classroom. A peer tutor in his school, he has volunteered locally feeding the homeless.

"Omar Calhoun is a hard-working kid who is very driven and very focused," said Paul Biancardi, National Director, ESPN Basketball Recruiting. "He's a pure scorer who can beat you in a lot of different ways, but he lets the flow of the game come to him."

Calhoun has signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball on scholarship at the University of Connecticut 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 ESPNHS 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.

Calhoun joins recent Gatorade New York Boys Basketball Players of the Year Achraf Yacoubou (2010-11, Long Island Lutheran High School), Tobias Harris (2009-10, Half Hollow Hills West), Brandon Triche (2008-09, Jamesville-DeWitt High School), Sylven Landesberg (2007-08, Holy Cross High School), and Jonny Flynn (2006–07, Niagara Falls) among the state's list of former award winners.

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.