Pregame Bible Reading Important Part of Zander Carter’s Story

Zander Carter has read his Bible like he did at the state tournament before games and even at halftime the last three seasons. (D&D Sports Network Photo)

Zander Carter had an amazing high school basketball career as he became one of only 30 players in state history to score 3,000 points — he finished with 3,135 — and was that rare player who played in five straight state tournaments for Ashland.

The 6-6 Liberty signee averaged 23.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game and shot 42.8 percent  from 3-point range last season while leading the Tomcats to a 24-8 record. He was part of 118 wins in the last five seasons and averaged over 20 points per game each of his last three seasons.

Carter certainly had a memorable moment at the state tournament in Rupp Arena when a photo of him sitting on the bench reading his Bible before a game garnered a lot of interest.

“That’s my pregame ritual. I’ve done it every game since my sophomore year.  I read it just before the game, but before my senior year, I really feel like the Lord put it on my heart to go out and read it on the bench and just bring it with me throughout the game and let others see what I was doing,” said Carter. “I’ll read it during halftime and just kind of go through different parts of the game. But that’s kind of been something that throughout high school I’ve just gravitated more towards.”

Carter was in Crestview Hills last weekend for the Kentucky-Ohio All-Star Game but did not get to play because of a lingering foot injury he did not want to risk making worse.

He doesn’t have a particular Bible passage or verse he reads before every game.

“It just kind of depends on everything that’s going on in my life. I usually flip to Jude. It has a part about giving praise to God, and then throughout the season, I look for a lot of wisdom and proverbs and just kind of really whatever the Lord lays on my heart,” Carter said.

“I have an amazing family, an amazing support cast. I grew up in church, but then there for a little while, I got away from it, and the Lord really reeled me back in.  The best decision I ever made in my life was to follow him.”

Not every athlete at any level is as willing to show his faith as Carter has been. For him, it was an easy decision to do so.

“I always had the mindset that I wouldn’t be anywhere close to where I am today without the presence of the Lord. He has a wall of protection around me, and I acknowledge that,” Carter said. “I’m just super blessed and grateful in everything I do. Any bit of praise and glory that comes my way, I just want to send it to him because he’s truly the one that matters and put me in the situation in the first place.”

His belief did play a major role in his decision to attend Liberty, a school he says is “very faith driven” like him.

“I have a really good relationship with the players and the coaches. A lot of people thought I may have committed a little bit too early, but in reality, I got validation from the Lord, so I didn’t really need to hear anybody else’s opinion on it,” Carter said. “One night, I was sitting there and praying on it, and I really felt like that was where I was called to go. I told my parents, and they supported me. Told my brother, and he supported me. So we just made it public and it’s just been an amazing relationship.”

Carter turned down an offer to play in Overtime Elite — the play-for-pay league former Kentucky star Rob Dillingham played in two years ago and UK signee Jasper Johnson played in this season — to remain at Ashland for his senior season.

“I went down there for a visit. I loved all the people there, but at the end of the day, I just didn’t really get validation from the Lord on it,” Carter said. “I make all my decisions based on that. I knew I had to stay home and really fight with my brothers and try to get a (state) championship.

“Eventually money will come with basketball if the Lord wants that for me. I didn’t want to make a decision based on money or emotions or the fame aspect of ir. There’s a lot of perks that would have come with that but at the end of the day it wasn’t for me.”

Winning five straight regional titles was not easy, either. He said there was a lot of “blood, sweat and tears” involved along with plenty of adversity each year to overcome.

“We went out there on the practice floor and battled every single day, so I feel like we rightfully earned it. I just feel like the Lord put us in that position because that’s who he wanted there,” the Ashland senior said.

Carter was disappointed he didn’t get to play in the Kentucky-Ohio All-Star game won by Ohio on a last-second shot.

“I love basketball. I want to play any chance I get,” he said.

Carter planned to play when he arrived at Thomas More University but even though he couldn’t he was glad to experience all-star weekend and “form lifetime relationships” with some teammates.

“It’s just a little bit of soreness in my right foot, and I dealt with a little bit of an injury on it at the end of the season. I just kind of want to rest up and not risk anything going into college. So it’s nothing serious,” Carter said. “I did a bunch of extra things to make sure I was able to play at the end of the season, and I’ve been able to rest and recover after the season.

“Getting back 100 percent is the main goal. I know I’m getting there. I just want to make sure I go into summer ball 100 percent with my guys at Liberty in June.”