CHICAGO (March 22, 2012) — In its 27th year of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with ESPNHS, today announced Tim Derksen of Amphitheater (Tucson, Ariz.) as its 2011-12 Gatorade Arizona Boys Basketball Player of the Year. Derksen is the first Gatorade Arizona Boys Basketball Player of the Year to be chosen from Amphitheater High School.

The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the court, distinguishes Derksen as Arizona's best high school boys basketball player. Now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year award to be announced in March, Derksen joins an elite alumni association of past state boys basketball award winners, including Dwight Howard (2003-04, SW Atlanta Christian Academy, Ga.), Chauncey Billups (1993-94 & 1994-95, George Washington HS, Colo.), Jason Kidd (1991-92, St. Joseph Notre Dame HS, Calif.), Paul Pierce (1994-95, Inglewood HS, Calif.) and Chris Bosh (2001-02, Lincoln HS, Texas).

The 6-foot-4, 185-pound senior point guard averaged 22.6 points, 11.3 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 3.5 steals per game this past season, leading the Panthers (30-4) to the Division II state final. The 2011-12 Division II Arizona Basketball Coaches Association Co-Player of the Year, Derksen helped Amphitheater to a 114-16 record as a four-year varsity starter.

Derksen has maintained a 3.81 GPA in the classroom. A member of the National Honor Society, he has volunteered locally as a youth mentor and basketball coach.

"Tim Derksen is as complete a player as I've seen in Tucson in a long time," said Mike Parillo, head coach at Mountain View High. "His abilities to handle the ball, rebound, defend, shoot and make his teammates better around him are a lost art with today's high school players. He is a very unselfish player who has helped his team win a lot of basketball games throughout his four years at the varsity level."

Derksen has signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball on an athletic scholarship at the University of San Francisco this fall.

The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by ESPNHS and the Gatorade high school sports leadership team, which work with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.

Derksen joins recent Gatorade Arizona Boys Basketball Players of the Year Jordan Baker (2010-11, Tempe High School), Corey Hawkins (2008-09 & 2009-10, Estrella Foothills), Taylor Rohde (2007-08, Pinnacle High School), and Jerryd Bayless (2006–07, St. Mary's) among the state's list of former award winners.

To keep up to date on the latest happenings, become a fan of Gatorade Player of the Year on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. For more on the Gatorade Player of the Year program, including nomination information, a complete list of past winners, and the announcement of the Gatorade National Player of the Year, visit playeroftheyear.gatorade.com.