Hall of Fame
Karen (O’Connor) Self is among the top girls basketball players the state has ever seen and also had a highly successful career as a shot putter in track. A graduate of Franklin Delano Roosevelt High School (Section I), Self tallied 2,662 career points (8th in NYS) in high school, which included 985 points in one season (2nd in NYS), and according to opposing coaches, single handedly led the team to its first and only NYSPHSAA Girls Basketball State Championship in her senior season of 1987. During a dazzling high school career, she broke many state records, including the scoring record at the time, and was named New York State Player of the Year, USA Today High School Athlete of the Year, Converse All-American and earned numerous All-State and All-Section honors. She’s the only girls basketball player to have her jersey retired at FDR. Karen was also a high school All-American in track winning a Section Championship in shot put and discus. At the NYSPHSAA State Meet, she finished as Runner Up in shot put and 5th in discus, won the Eastern State Championship shot put and discus, won the Penn Relays shot put, and placed 5th in the shot put in TAC Nationals. Her numbers still stand as records at FDR in shot put (43’8”), discus (139’1”), and javelin (124’11”). Self’s success in basketball and track in high school allowed her to continue her athletic career in both sports at Arizona State University where she received a full scholarship in the sport of basketball. As a basketball player at ASU, she was selected to the PAC 10 All-Star Germany Tour, a member of the ASU/PAC 10 All-Decade Team, and was a three-time PAC 10 Player of the Week. In 1989, Self led the PAC 10 in steals and was third in scoring while also leading her team in steals, scoring, assists and field goal percentage that year. After an outstanding collegiate career, she began coaching high school girls basketball at Seton Catholic Prep in Chandler, AZ accumulating 734 wins and 11 state championships—a state record—in 28 years of coaching. Karen has earned numerous Coach of the Year honors including NFHS National Coach of the Year and Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) Coach of the Year. She has been named the West coach for the McDonald's All-American game and has instructed at USA Basketball camps.