Kentucky coach Billy Inmon watches Halle Collins, right, and her teammates play defense Saturday.
She finished her high school career with 1,852 rebounds, the most ever by a 13th Region player, and over 3,000 points — a combination very few Kentucky high school players ever reach.
Yet Knox Central senior Halle Collins does feel that her numbers were a bit overlooked because there were so many elite senior players in the state this season.
“I feel like I was underrated. I went through a lot of adversity, and before my adversity, I think I was getting to the point where people were looking at me, and then when I broke my leg, people stopped talking about me,” Collins said. “But I overcame the adversity. I think I was overshadowed, but that doesn’t phase me at all.”
She felt being a “small town girl in eastern Kentucky” made it harder for her to get statewide recognition.
“I grew up in Jackson County. It was a one red light town. Just being from the southeastern part of Kentucky and not getting as much recognition as the girls from the big cities makes a big difference but that’s just the way it is.”
She played in the Kentucky-Ohio All-Star Game at Thomas More University Saturday night and had eight points, six rebounds and three steals in 16 minutes in the loss. However, no one may have enjoyed the skills competitions and game more than her.
“It’s great playing with the girls out of Kentucky. Everybody here was very skilled, very talented,” she said. “I know it was only a couple of days, but getting to play with such skilled girls makes you better and makes you better as a person. It is about memories and just having fun out there is the main goal.”
She won’t be playing in the Kentucky-Indiana series in June because Brooke Nichelson of North Laurel was named the 13th Region player of the year. She did play for the Kentucky junior all-star team last year and said it was an “amazing” experience.
Collins averaged 20 points and 14 rebounds per game last season. She won the Donna Murphy Award that honors a female senior basketball player in Kentucky who exemplifies the meaning of being a great student-athlete. She has a 4.12 grade-point average, has her own ice cream business and mentors students at Knox Central. She plans to work in pediatric medicine.
Collins will play her college basketball at Pikeville University. Two of her future teammates, Sophie Adkins of Lawrence County and Kyra McAlarnis of , also played for Kentucky against Ohio.
“Just getting used to my future teammates was great. Sophie, she’s very physical. Kyra can really shoot the 3,” Collins said. “I think we fit together well and fit coach Clifton Williams’ playing style very well. If we stick together we are going to be tough to handle.”
Collins said she was not necessarily looking for a college close to home. Instead, it was more “family, home and a place I could contribute” that led to her picking Pikeville.
“The main thing for me is the people that were going to be around me and the coaches. After going through all the adversity I have in my life, I know it’s bigger than basketball,” she said. “When I stepped on campus and talked to coach Clifton and was around all the girls, I just knew Pikeville was the place.
“Being from a small town, it just fit that way, too. I could never see myself in a big city. I know a lot of kids today worry about money. That’s not me. I am just worried about playing the game I love and being happy.”
That’s why she’ll cherish the Kentucky-Ohio memories even if her team did not win the game.
“I’ll remember this forever,” she said after the game. “There is nothing that will overshadow this. This was something that was very, very fun to me. It was just two days, but it was a very fun two days.
“And these girls, you will remember this for the rest of your life. It was pretty amazing.”
