COLLEGE BASKETBALL: DEXTER STAR HALE SIGNS WITH SOUTHEAST

As far as combining athletic accomplishments with academic excellence, it would be hard to match the resume of Dexter High School senior Brett Hale.

On the basketball court last season, the guard averaged 25.5 points per game and earned first-team Class 3A all-state honors. In the classroom, he scored an impressive 32 on the ACT.

And Hale will be bringing his considerable skills to Cape Girardeau next year because Monday afternoon he signed a letter of intent with Southeast Missouri State University, becoming the first player to commit to the Indians for the 2001-2002 season.

"I'm excited," said Hale, who chose Southeast over Southwest Missouri State, which also recruited him heavily. "It was a pretty tough decision, but it's close to home, my friends and family can come watch me play, they've got a really good program, I like all the coaches and it's a good college academically."

It also didn't hurt, said Hale, that both his parents graduated from Southeast and two of his grandparents live in Cape Girardeau. Hale's father Paul, who is also his coach at Dexter, played for the Indians in the early 1970s.

"I kind of left the decision up to Brett, but I know he is excited about going to Southeast," said Paul Hale.

Said Southeast coach Gary Garner, "We are extremely happy to sign a very complete basketball player like Brett Hale. He is an excellent shooter who shoots the three with range. Being a coach's son, he is a very intelligent player who really understands the game of basketball."

A 6-foot-2, 175-pounder, Hale was one of the state's deadliest shooters last season, hitting 62 percent of his field-goal attempts, 88 percent of his free throws and 42 percent from 3-point range. He also averaged 4.7 assists per game to go with his scoring average of nearly 26 points a contest.

About the only thing that went wrong with Hale's junior season was the fact the Bearcats, who were ranked No. 1 in the state at the end of the regular season, lost to Charleston in the semifinals of the district tournament to finish the campaign with a 24-2 record.

Hale, who considers shooting to be his No. 1 asset, said he'll need to get stronger to play on the Division I college level.

"I definitely have to work on my strength," he said. "I have to get a lot stronger."

As for signing early, Hale said he's relieved to have his decision out of the way.

"I didn't really want to worry about it any longer," he said. "Now I can just concentrate on the season."