Kinney notches 1,000th point during senior night

Lake Holcombe’s senior night for basketball was Feb. 13, and while it was a special night for the student athletes, it was perhaps the most special for senior Kaden Kinney. During the match-up with E.C. Immanuel, Kinney scored his 1,000th point. “It’s not really something that was in my mind, I didn’t think I was even close,” said Kinney.

That is, until halfway through the season, when coach Joy Webster told him he had about 100 points to go before the millennial mark. Still, Kinney says he continued to just focus on each game at hand.

“I felt it a little more when it was down to 20, then I was like, I can do it, you know?” he said.

While the crowd waited with anticipation on senior night, Kinney played his own style of ball, which means passing to whoever is on a hot shooting streak. Kinney says that’s what he likes about his team – that they play as a team.

“I’ve had hot games and low scoring games, but so has everybody else,” said Kinney.

Kinney came into the game with 10 points to go toward the milestone and finally sank a lay-up with 1:25 left on the game clock, to hit 1,000. Webster called a timeout and the stands erupted, as Lake Holcombe teammates, coaches, fans, referees and the opposing team rose to their feet, cheering for Kinney’s accomplishment.

He was given the game ball, which he hurriedly delivered to his parents for safekeeping in the stands, before heading to the free throw line to attempt an old-fashioned three-point play.

“Then my free throw swirled out, 1,001 didn’t want to go in,” said Kinney. “It was kind of funny.”

Kinney says he is grateful to not only Webster for the opportunity to play, but to his teammates, fans and his parents.

“Because they’ve (parents) worked hard, too, helped throughout everything,” he said.

With the 1,000 mark behind him, Kinney is back to focusing on the sport he loves and where his Chieftains will end up in the playoffs. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t excited for the 1,000 points and that it happened on his home court on senior night.

“I never really thought I was going to be able to do it,” said Kinney. “I worked hard at it a lot and put a lot of sweat into it. It was really just a dream come true, to be honest.”

Senior Kaden Kinney scored his 1,000th point in a Lake Holcombe Chieftains uniform, as his basketball team played E.C. Immanuel on senior night. After a brief recognition of the accomplishment, Kinney was given the game ball, which will be engraved.