Ever since senior forward Bill Luther became a Pitt-Johnstown student-athlete, he has been part of the Mountain Cats’ basketball team success.

Part of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette’s high school basketball Fab 5 of 2010, Luther was immediately placed in the starting lineup during his freshman year.

Luther finished his first season as a Mountain Cat average 10.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game.

He was then named to the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference’s All-Freshman team, scoring double digits in 16 games during the 2010-11 season.

The 6 foot, 7 inch, 200-pounder then played in all 29 games and started 27 games during his sophomore year.

His three-point field goal percentage of 49 and 48 three-pointers havehelped fuel a dangerous perimeter attack the Mountain Cats have been known for in recent seasons.

Luther said the trial-by-fire-like beginning to his career has made him the player he is.

“The main thing it has helped me with was that it gave me experience,” Luther said.

Luther has started 71 straight games dating back to the third game of the 2011-12 season.

“Bill has been someone that came to practice and worked to make himself and the entire team better (for the past four years),” junior center Ian Vescovi said.

“(Luther) has been responsible for helping our team win a number of games and persevere through tough losses.”

Vescovi said that Luther serves as a benchmark for student-athletes who come after him.

“He is someone younger players can try to model their college careers after.”

With experience comes steady improvement, and that is what Luther’s statistics have shown every year.  His junior year was no exception.

He was also second on the team in three-point field goals and three-point field goal percentage, trailing only the school’s all-time three-point record holder, Jordan Miller.

He has also accomplished what many collegiate athletes wish they could do; score over 1,000 points in both college and high school.

Luther reached that milestone against Mansfield University Dec. 21, the same night head coach Bob Rukavina captured his 400th career victory.

“It definitely is something cool to achieve but that is not the overall goal,” Luther said.

Luther said that there was one goal he had in my mind to put him at peace with his collegiate career.

“I want to make the National Championship tournament,” he said.