The Winningest Coach
East’s Rudy Carey Notches 877th Career Win On Dec. 13
Story and photos by Reid Neureiter
For the GPHN
Before an enthusiastic Dec. 13 home-court crowd that included Denver Mayor Michael Hancock, the Denver East boys basketball team made history for Angels Coach Rudy Carey.
Led by flashy senior point guard D’Aundre Samuals, who weaved through the Terrors’ defense seemingly at will, the Angels dominated an overmatched Palmer High School squad for a 96-61 win. It was never close. The impressive Samuals had 37 points, 5 rebounds and two assists, all while sitting for most of the third quarter due to foul trouble.
The victory took the Angels’ early season record to 6-2 — and more significantly, marked a historic milestone for East coaching legend Rudy Carey.
It was Carey’s 877th win as a Colorado high school basketball coach, taking him past Denver Christian’s Dick Katte to become the winningest coach in Colorado high school history. With three state titles as a coach at Manual High and another six at East, Carey’s nine state titles also tie him for the most Colorado state championships all-time.
With Samuals leading the way, the Angels look good for another deep playoff run after last years’ heart-breaking one point loss in the state semi-finals. East home games in January include a Jan. 14 match against Douglas County, Jan. 21 against Denver South, and Jan. 28 against Hinkley. The regular season concludes on Feb. 11 with an away match against DPS rival George Washington.
