Joe Hurlburt nearing the end of a prolific high school career

Joe Hurlburt and his Enderlin Eagles still have some work to do before the 2021-22 season concludes, with a North Dakota Class B Region I (and possible state) playoff run looming.

Hurlburt, a 2022 center signee with the Buffaloes, will join the team this upcoming summer. By that time, he will have ended his preps career as one of the most statistically accomplished players to come out of North Dakota.

In the last eight days, Hurlburt has etched his name into the Peace Garden State basketball history books.

On Feb. 3, in an 89-61 victory over Oak Grove, Hurlburt recorded his 1,340th rebound, surpassing Dean Streyle's record of 1,339 boards that had stood since 1972.

While his rebounding efforts were clearly the main storyline of Enderlin's win, Hurlburt also chipped in 37 points.

Five days later, the 6-foot-10 big man eclipsed 2,000 career points behind a 19-point, 18-rebound performance.

As a junior last year, Hurlburt won 2021 Gatorade Player of the Year honors in North Dakota, averaging 22.6 points and 14.3 boards per game.

Granted, some basketball remains before the conclusion of this season, but heading into the weekend, Hurlburt is leading all North Dakota players in points (25.0) and rebounds (14.4) per game.

As far as his rebounding achievement is concerned, Hurlburt takes pride in shattering a half-a-century old record.

“It’s actually very special to me just to be part of the state's history and have my name tied to a 50-year record," he said. "It’s special to me, for sure.”

Looking at his scoring accomplishment, Hurlburt feels he stayed true to a goal he set for himself long ago.

“I would just say, as a kid, I always dreamed of scoring 2,000 points," Hurlburt said. "I always set out to accomplish these goals. Achieving them, I’m kind of doing it for a younger me. I just feel proud of myself for achieving what I set out to achieve as a kid.”

Hurlburt is one of two players Tad Boyle and the Buffaloes plan on welcoming this summer, along with California shooting guard R.J. Smith.

Throughout his recruitment, Hurlburt was sold on coming to Boulder and partnering with fellow big man Lawson Lovering, who will be a sophomore in 2022-23.

With Evan Battey playing his last year in a Colorado uniform, Boyle is eager to get some front court reinforcements.

Needless to say, the way Hurlburt is putting a bow on his high school career has been encouraging.

“Joe’s a guy that’s got tremendous upside," Boyle said. "He’s very skilled and can shoot the ball…His skill level, his ability to rebound the ball, his ability to shoot the ball from the perimeter — his skill set is going to be really, really valuable to us.”

When he signed with CU last November, Hurlburt picked the Buffs over other scholarship options from programs such as Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio State, Wisconsin and Oregon.

A few months out from joining the Buffaloes, Hurlburt remains confident in his decision.

“It’s really exciting, especially having such a great future home to be in," he said of getting out to Boulder. "I feel like Colorado is an amazing decision that I made to go to. Obviously, I’m going to miss certain things about North Dakota but I’m excited for Colorado and the next chapter.”

Enderlin, currently in first place within the NDHSAA Class B Region I with a 12-4 (7-0 Region I) record, has four remaining regular season games before the annual Region I Tournament.

The Eagles play Wyndmere/Lidgerwood tonight at 6:30 p.m.