Kieler (pronounced KY-ler) Young, the sophomore shooting guard for the Broken Bow Savages, has a lifelong love for the game of basketball. “It’s the only sport I play. I’ve always loved it, since I was a little kid. My whole family played – all my dad’s side and all my mom’s side.”
Young thinks Broken Bow is a contender that can surprise a lot of larger, more well-known programs in the state of Oklahoma. “We work really hard. I feel we’re underrated down here (in rural McCurtain County, far from the metro media centers). Watch out for us.”
Broken Bow head basketball coach Ryan Woolsey has watched his sophomore sensation develop. “The success that Kieler is having his sophomore year is not a surprise to me. I fully anticipated that happening. He has always been able to shoot the ball (from the outside), but he has worked hard on being able to score by taking the ball to the rim and I think that will continue to get better as he gets older and becomes more physically mature his junior and senior seasons. “
The cancellation of last year’s state basketball tournament, which Broken Bow qualified for, was the biggest challenge of Young’s athletic experience. “We were at the hotel getting ready to get on the bus. They called and said the tournament was canceled. We were pretty upset.”
Young says the cancellation gives his team extra motivation to return to the state tournament. “We all want to get back and have an opportunity to show what we can do.”
Kieler is working toward both team and individual goals. “Team-wise, we want to get back to the state tournament and then win it. Individually, I want to score 2,000 career points.”
Young started as a freshman for a Savage team that qualified for the tournament and is well on his way toward both goals. The Savages recently defeated McAlester and Ada by large margins.
Young wants his legacy at Broken Bow High School to be more about his personal traits than about his statistics. “I want to be remembered as a hard worker, friendly and well-liked.”
His future plans are pretty succinct: “I want to go to college and play Division 1 basketball.”
With two and a half seasons left to develop his already-powerful skills, Kieler Young is well on his way toward making his goals a reality.
