Free State forward Madison Piper (14) shoots the ball against Derby defenders Friday night at Free State.

Free State High junior Madison Piper doesn’t particularly enjoy talking about her individual success on the basketball court.

Piper, last year’s Sunflower League Player of the Year, would much rather turn the attention to her teammates and her team’s attempt to advance to the Class 6A state tournament for the first time in her career.

But by the end of the season, on the wall outside of the school’s main gymnasium, Piper’s name will fill a few prominent spots in the school’s record book.

Piper surpassed 1,000 points in her varsity career during Free State’s victory against Shawnee Mission North on Tuesday. The 5-foot-10 wing is only 37 points away from becoming the school’s all-time leading scorer, set by Kennedy Kirkpatrick (1,046 points) from 2009-13.

“It’s actually pretty exciting because you always think, like, ‘Wow, 1,000 points is so many,'” Piper said. “You finally reach that point and it’s a really great feeling.”

Piper, the daughter of former Kansas University basketball player Chris Piper, had no idea she was even approaching 1,000 points until her grandfather mentioned it to her.

One of the most prolific scorers in the league, Piper has reached double-digit point totals in 51 of the 59 games in her three-year career.

“Madison is extremely humble,” Free State coach Bryan Duncan said. “She’s a lot more interested in doing things for the team. If anything, she’s probably embarrassed by it. That’s just who she is. But certainly she should be very proud of it, her family and I know we are as a basketball program. It’s really, really cool.”

It’s no surprise to her teammates or coaches that she will likely break the school’s scoring record in the next few games.

This season, Piper is averaging 18.7 points per game despite regularly being face-guarded by the opposing team’s best defender. She’s one of the top shooters in the state from anywhere on the court — “There’s no doubt that she has the best shot I’ve ever seen from a high school kid,” Duncan said. When she gets a step past a defender, she has the strength to score inside the paint.

Kirkpatrick, who is averaging 4.2 points per game as a red-shirt sophomore at Bowling Green, knew years ago that Piper might be the player to break her record.

“She used to joke around, ‘You better not beat my record,’ or something like that,” Piper recalled from when they played together during the summer before her freshman year. “So it’s kind of funny now that I have the potential to break it. That’s pretty cool.”

But to say Piper is only a scorer would be saying Michael Jackson was only a dancer. Leading the Firebirds to an 11-4 record and No. 6 ranking in the state, Piper is the team’s top shot blocker. When she draws multiple defenders on offense, she finds her teammates for open looks.

“Madison is probably the best scorer we ever had, but Madison is also going to break the assist record,” Duncan said. “I think she’s an even better passer than scorer and that’s really hard to say.”

Piper, who is at 1,010 points, never expected to have a chance to break Kirkpatrick’s record in her junior year. She’s not a player who pays much attention to stats.

Even with the potential to break the record within the next week, Piper would rather focus on wins and losses.

“Of course, it’s a great feeling,” Piper said of the record. “But I think it would be an even better feeling if we make it to state. That’s the end goal.”

Madison Piper’s scoring totals

Freshman year: 15.6 points per game, 343 total

Sophomore year: 17.5 points per game, 386 total

Junior year (through 15 games): 18.7 points per game, 281 total