Owensboro’s very own Randy Embry has a storied basketball career which has included playing at the University of Kentucky and even scouting in the NBA, but his time as a player and coach at Owensboro and Daviess County high schools helped him recently become a part of the Kentucky High School Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2022.
Embry first took the floor for the Red Devils as a player in 1957, competing through his senior season in 1961. During that time frame he put up a 50-point game, as a mere blimp of his impressive 1,610 career points.
Embry’s efforts helped him to be chosen to the All-State teams his junior and senior season, before ultimately earning the coveted honor of Kentucky Mr. Basketball. With his name well-known across the Commonwealth, the ever famous Head Coach Adolph Rupp recruited Embry, who then joined the Wildcats in 1962.
The Owensboro native proceeded to log 1,174 minutes with Kentucky, shooting 42.8% from the field while compiling a total of 393 career points, 115 rebounds and 66 assists. Following his collegiate play Embry returned to his hometown, this time participating in a different sport.
Embry became the Daviess County High School head coach of baseball in 1967, leading the Panthers to a state championship in 1971 and staying in charge of the program until 1980. That’s when Embry made a triumphant return to the hardwood, taking over as Owensboro High School boys basketball head coach from 1980 through 1999.
During that time, he won over 445 games and played in the Final Four of the Kentucky State Basketball Tournament three times. Across all baseball and basketball teams he coached, Embry was able to amass 558 wins and eight regional titles, placing him amongst the elite in the Commonwealth in high school athletics.
After hanging it up as a coach, Embry joined the NBA’s Miami Heat in 1999 as a scout alongside former Wildcats teammate Pat Riley. Embry is still a scout to this day and has been instrumental in picking up key Heat players in Kentucky alumni Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro, all while working from his home in Owensboro.
Embry was inducted into the Kentucky High School Basketball Hall of Fame on Aug. 13, joining a class of 14. For more information on the Kentucky High School Basketball Hall of Fame and its latest inductees, click here.
