Bradley Central basketball standout Halle Hughes will continue her hoop career at Lee University next season. She returned the scholarship papers to Lady Flames head coach Marty Rowe, and then enjoyed an official signing party in the BCH library.
"I've always been a Lee (University) person,"?said the senior "I didn't entertain very many other offers. I knew where I wanted to go."
Halle' family has long-time connections to Lee. Her farther (Richie) and (grandfather (Dale Hughes) played basketball for Lee, with Dale serving as head coach of the Vikings (prior to being the Flames) for 11 years.
Richie played for former Lee coach Earl Rowan.
"We're excited to welcome Halle to our Lady Flames family," said Coach Rowe. "She has worked very hard to become an excellent player and we're looking forward to watching her continue to develop this season at BCHS.
"Halle is long, athletic and is her best in transition which fits in well to our style of play. We think she will be a very good defender at this level as well."
"She comes from a very strong Christian basketball family," noted Bradley head coach Jason Reuter "She is a wonderful young lady of character. She's a tenacious player with great skills. Lee is getting a steal in Halle," Reuter added. "She had offers to go play (NCAA) Division I, but she had her heart set on playing at Lee and I understand that."
A?4.0 student, Hughes heads into her final high school season having helped Bradley to a pair of TSSAA?State Tournament berths since joining the Bradley lineup as a freshman.
She was an All-District 5-AAA (regular season and tournament) and All-Region 3-AAA tournament selections both her sophomore and junior seasons. With 1,252 career points, Hughes ranks 16th on the Bearette all-time scoring list.
Last season, she averaged 16 points a contest, and made 38 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. She handed out 97 assists and came up with 57 steals in helping the Bearettes to a Final Four finish at the state tournament in Murfreesboro.
She will be joining the NCAA?D-II?Lee squad that has been under the direction of Coach Rowe for the last dozen seasons. He has directed his Lady Flames to 11 straight 20 or more winning seasons