214@100: Former Hersey coach recalls 1995 championship

John Hersey High School has had unprecedented success in boys basketball, making it to the IHSA state finals in 1974, 1985 and 1995.

Along the way, there have been many division championships, conference championships, regional titles and sectional titles. The 1995 season, however, was especially memorable, former head coach Don Rowley recalls.

More than 2,000 loyal Hersey fans made the trip downstate to see the team win the state title in Champaign, and the team finished that championship with a 26-5 record.

"The exposure of the school in local, Chicago and downstate media was amazing," Rowley remembers. "The excitement that was created for the students and the communities of Arlington Heights, Mount Prospect and Prospect Heights was especially fulfilling."

The teams, he said, consistently practiced great teamwork - a winning trait.

Rowley retired from Hersey after 39 years teaching math and 36 years coaching basketball. He spent a combined 18 years as the boys team head coach.

Among his players was Dave Corzine, a leading Huskies scorer who spent more than a decade in the NBA, including with the Chicago Bulls; and Brian Gregory, who earned MVP honors at Hersey and now coaches at Georgia Tech.