How attention to detail led basketball star Christian Locher into Mars High Hall of Fame
Focusing on the little things helps players improve at any level of sport.
For Christian Locher, it led to a record-breaking career on the basketball court.
When he graduated from Mars Area High School in 2011, Locher was at the top of the Planets’ all-time rankings in points (1,288), 3-pointers (168) and free throws made (286).
The 2011 graduate will be inducted into the Mars Athletic Hall of Fame in September.
“Honestly, I did not think about where I would end up in any of those categories,” Locher said. “It’s nice to look back now and see how much I was able to contribute to the team, but at the time, I stayed within the moment. My goal was to work hard every day and those stats are a byproduct of that.”
Having already established himself as a star for the Planets over the previous two years, Locher turned in a superb senior campaign. During that season, the 6-feet-3 guard tied Mars’ school record for points in a game with 48, tallied 25 or more points in eight games and averaged nearly a double-double in points and rebounds per game with 21.5 and 9.5, respectively.
The performance earned Locher the Butler Eagle Boys Basketball Player of the Year honor. It also helped the Planets finish with a record of 18-5, the most victories in a season for Mars’ boys in more than two decades.
The Planets qualified for the WPIAL playoffs each of Locher’s four years on the team. Rob Carmody, who Tuesday announced he was stepping down as Planets head coach after 26 years, was then in his second decade of leading the Planets.
“I remember the commitment he made to the team,” Locher said. “Sometimes I’d stay after practice to get more work in and he’d be there. He encouraged me and motivated me to become the best player I could be.
“We were a close-knit team and had a lot of chemistry,” Locher said. “We left it all out there and built a good foundation for future teams.”
Long before he approached any school records, Locher was a freshman hoping to see varsity minutes on the court. During the 2007-08 season, he saw action in 21 games and scored 57 points.
“It was a really good experience to get my feet wet at the varsity level,” Locher said.
As a sophomore, he drained a Butler County best 74 treys, but Locher knew he had more to offer.
“I wanted to develop my game,” Locher said. “Ultimately, I knew if I wanted to continue to be successful, I needed to be more than just a 3-point shooter because teams could take that away. I needed to keep defenses on their toes.”
Playing for Basketball Stars of America, an AAU team, in the offseason, Locher added drives to the basket and a mid-range jumper to his game. The result was a 19.5 points-per-game junior season. The next year, he took another step in his progression as his rebounds increased by six per game.
“My ability to get to the rim, working on the moves it took to get there, that’s what I’m most proud of from my high school career,” Locher said.
He went on to play basketball at Grove City College, but his career was cut short by an ankle injury suffered during his sophomore year. He did continue to play golf, a sport he had also played in high school.
Locher lives in Phoenix with his wife, Emily, and children Kaya and Azro.
“I’m now focused on being the best provider I can be for my family,” he said. “Making the Hall of Fame is not something I set out to do. It’s a cool byproduct of the work I put in.”
