HOLTON, Kan. (WIBW) – Former Topeka West basketball star Tre Alexander is stepping into a new role — as an assistant coach for the Holton High School boys basketball team.
Alexander reunites with his former high school assistant coach Marco Hunter, who helped guide Topeka West for over a decade. Together, they led the Chargers to a 5A state runner-up finish in 2021.
Now, they’re looking to bring that same winning mindset to Holton.
“I just took a lot of notes from him,” Alexander said. “Trying to grow as a player and as a leader, because he’s a great leader, not only to me but to a big group of us.”
At just 22-years-old, Alexander is one of the youngest assistant coaches in Northeast Kansas. But his recent college playing experience at Cowley Community College and the University of St. Mary gives him a fresh perspective that’s already connecting with players.
“Having the experience that he recently has coming from college and being able to teach us like he learned,” Holton senior Kayden Gale explains.
Bringing Alexander on board was about more than basketball IQ — it was about trust and connection.
“I could get someone that has a veteran experience, but I also want someone who is going to be compatible and relatable,” Hunter said.
Coach Hunter says there’s one quote from Alexander’s high school days that still sticks with him:
“‘Coach, I want to go to state — but I want to take the next seven guys with me,’” Alexander told Hunter prior to his senior year at Topeka West.
“That’s when I knew how important team leadership was,” Hunter said.
Though his coaching role is still developing, Alexander is already making an impact with one-on-one instruction and off-the-court leadership.
“There be some little things that I see, that they don’t see, and then they see what I’m talking about and then they go out there and do it,” Alexander said of seeing the lightbulb turn on for his players. “And then they’ll come up to me and go ‘Alright, I get it.‘”
Alexander told 13 Sports that he first thought about becoming a coach during his sophomore year of high school and is happy it all worked out.
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