Buckhorn University's Caleb Holt became the state's first winner of the Alabama Sports Writers Association's 42nd Mr. Basketball award. He also won the Class 6A Player of the Year award for the second consecutive year at the high school basketball banquet in Montgomery on Tuesday.
He was named MVP of the Class 6A state tournament after averaging 20.2 points, 9.5 rebounds, three steals and 2.4 assists for the Bucs (23-5) this season, leading the team to its second straight state title. Not to mention, he was named Alabama Player of the Year by Gatorade and Max Preps.
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“It feels great to be able to repeat as Player of the Year. Not many people do this,” Holt said. “It's hard to accomplish something like this when you're constantly being strangled by people. This is certainly a huge accomplishment.”
The 6-foot-5, 200-pound Holt is the No. 3 player in the nation according to 247Sports and the top player in the state in the 2026 class. He was also the No. 1 small forward, scoring 1,798 points over the remaining two years of his high school career.
Despite this early success, Holt still has big goals and ambitions for his final year of high school.
“I focus on my laurels, but not too much,” Holt said. “My dad does a great job of keeping me humble and pushes me to be the best. He's the one who shows me that I still have a lot to improve on. ”
“My goals are to build a U17 USA Basketball team, win more state championships at Buckhorn, and hopefully build the program toward a national championship.”
Recruiting Battle Update
Holt is a five-star prospect with offers from Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Houston and Cincinnati. He has visited both Auburn and Alabama and has great things to say about both programs.
“Alabama was cool. Coach Nate Oats calls me a lot,” Holt said. I'll have him come see me this week. … I’ve also talked to Bruce Pearl and a few coaches at Auburn. They have the best audience. ”
“Just knowing that we're both really interested is great.”
Only time will tell about potential decisions, Holt said.
Jerry Humphrey III is a sports writer for the Montgomery Advertiser, covering area high school sports, Auburn recruiting and Alabama State athletics. Follow him on Twitter @jerryhump3.