Former Florida basketball great Teddy Dupay talks FHSAA HOF induction, scoring record

Former Florida basketball standout Teddy Dupay was inducted into the FHSAA Hall of Fame on May 6 with a prep scoring record that has stood the test of time.

The 5-foot-10 Dupay played with an industrial-sized chip on his shoulder throughout his four-year high school career at Mariner High in Cape Coral, scoring 3,744 career points under coaches Timmy Maloney and Frank Morris.

As a senior in 1998, Dupay averaged 41.5 points per game, which included a 70-point performance in a state playoff game, and a 56-point game in City of Palms Tournament, which remains a record for the elite Fort Myers-based event.

Little guy. Big heart.

"I believed I could do it," Dupay said in an interview with the Sun. "I just knew it was going to happen and then got to play as a freshman, got to have the ball in my hands a lot, it was a perfect team for me to come right in with coaches that wanted to play ultra, ultra fast, obnoxiously fast, with Coach Maloney my first couple of years and then with Coach Morris, we played even faster.

"The amount of possessions, the amount of shots I was able to get up, play and shoot freely, it was such a unique situation that I was in, you know, to be able to thrive like that."

The record has stood for 28 years and counting. Asked if it could ever be broken, Dupay responded: "If there was someone who had the goods to do it, you'd know right away. I'd like to go watch them play because it's hard to remember certain plays and games, but when you are player that put on a good show, you can't explain it, it just makes you feel good. That's what we had, no doubt about."

Teddy Dupay's path from HS to Florida basketball

Former Florida Gators coach Billy Donovan saw a bit of himself when he offered Dupay a scholarship to UF in 1996, when Dupay was just in 10th grade. Like Dupay, Donovan was a shorter scoring point guard who helped lead Providence to the Final Four in 1987.

"Coach Donovan had to have seen something," Dupay said. "He offered me a scholarship and be a building block, go out there and build the team we really wanted when I was in 10th grade."