Ike Sophomore Smashes 40-Year-old Basketball Record Set by Teacher

With the buzzer sounding on the 2012 Eisenhower basketball season ending in a 10-11 record, a new school record was set.

basketball player Alek Frascone smashed a 40-year-old record, set by current political science teacher Terry Copacia when he was a student at Ike, for most points scored by a sophomore on the varsity basketball team.

“I can’t believe that record actually stood for 40 years. I guess I’m proud of it, but I am glad it was broken,” Copacia told Patch laughing.

Frascone set the record when he scored his 267th point of the season in the fourth quarter of Thursday’s game against Harper Woods High School.

“I didn’t know I broke it until after the game when my parents told me. I was really excited because all my hard work finally paid off,” said Frascone.

He finished off the season with 291 points after scoring 24 points at Monday’s district quarterfinals. Ike lost 62-50 to Stevenson High School, ending the team’s season.

However, it’s just the beginning for the six-foot-one, 15-year-old basketball star, who has already drawn interest from college basketball programs at Central Michigan University and Providence College in Rhode Island.

“I would like to take it as far as I can and get a scholarship. I would love to play my year in college and then to the NBA or somewhere in Europe,” said Frascone.

Eisenhower basketball coach Brandon Lemley, who also has Frascone in his history class, said he’s impressed with the tenth-grader on and off the court.

“He’s a very good basketball player and a better kid above all that. He’s a great kid and very hard working,” he said.

With only four Ike basketball players graduating this year, Lemley said he’s excited about the team’s future with such young and talented players.

“He is 15—he’s a young kid. To do what he did this year and be the marksman defense everyone is trying to stop and still put up the big numbers that he did was pretty remarkable,” said Lemley, who added that his teammates deserve a lot of credit.

Lemley, who works with Copacia in the social studies wing of Eisenhower said he has been having fun with Copacia, who is an assistant coach for the football team.

“I’ve teased him about it. Terry is very modest. He didn’t make a big deal about it. It’s a big record, its been around 40 years,” said Lemley.

But Copacia just can’t believe that much time has passed since he started in three varsity sports at Eisenhower, when the school first opened.

“I must have been 15 and it was in 1972—that’s 40 years! That’s a long time,” he said in disbelief.

Copacia said since then, he went on to play football at Wayne State University, returned to his alma matter to teach, and even watched his own three children graduate from Eisenhower High School.

Copacia told Patch the tides have turned and it’s time for him to watch the younger athletes flourish, but he still wouldn’t mind a chance to shoot some hoops with 15-year-old who finally beat his record.

“Him and I can go shoot sometime to see who has the best looking shot. I at least want to shoot with him. I don’t want to play one-on-one because I’m too old,” he said, laughing.