Dave Colescott
#20
Only the second individual to win a state title, the Trester Award and Indiana Mr. Basketball, Colescott is one of the most honored players in Marion boys’ basketball history. Yet, Marion fans remember the 6-foot-1 point guard for his floppy hair and the incredible energy he brought to the court.
Colescott’s father Jack had coached the Giants to back-to-back state finals in 1968 and ’69, and he grew up with high expectations. In 1975, he delivered by leading the Giants to their second state title, ending 49 years of frustration, with help from his talented senior teammates. The Giants finished a memorable season 28-1 and also won the school’s fourth North Central Conference title.
The next year, Colescott led an entirely new supporting cast to a repeat and unexpected state title. Following the final game victory over Rushville, Colescott received the Trester Award for mental attitude and scholastic performance, and he was later voted Mr. Basketball to gain a clean sweep of the state’s top individual honors.
Colescott graduated as Marion’s all-time leading scorer with 1,529 points, and also set records for points scored in a game (42) and season (694). He was named to the1976 Indiana All-Star team.
Legendary coach Dean Smith recruited Colescott to the University of North Carolina, and he was part of the Tar Heels’ 1977 NCAA tournament runner-up team and became a two-year starter and team captain.
The NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers drafted Colescott, and he also played minor league baseball one year in the Atlanta Braves organization. In 2002, he joined his father in the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame. Colescott resided in North Carolina, where he was a sales executive with the Hanes Corp.