Former AD Fern Masse and current AD Jason Fuller in the Lewiston High School gym recently. Lewiston is naming its basketball court after Masse next season. (Andree Kehn/Sun Journal)

LEWISTON — While Lewiston’s new outdoor athletic fields rapidly approach completion, Lewiston High School athletic director Jason Fuller is also planning some additions to his school’s indoor sports hub.

Next basketball season, the school will honor legendary coach and athletic director Fern Masse by naming the basketball court in his honor.

Athletic Director Jason Fuller said the honor is overdue, but having it realized not long after Lewiston starts unveiling its new fields during the fall sports season is fitting.

“Fern’s been the chairman of the Franklin Pasture group for so long, I think it’s the perfect time to honor him,” Fuller said.

Masse coached at Lewiston from 1958 to 1989 and served as the school’s athletic director through the 1990s. He led the Blue Devils to 250 victories and back-to-back regional titles in 1965 and 1966.

A member of the Auburn-Lewiston Sports Hall of Fame, the University of Southern Maine’s Husky Hall of Fame, and the Maine and New England Basketball halls of fame, Masse remains a fixture in the Lewiston basketball and sports communities.

“It’s a tribute to what he’s done in his career, the things he’s done for our community and statewide,” Fuller said. “He’s a tremendous man. He’s been around for a lot of us, so many of us, and supportive of us. This is a great opportunity just to recognize his contributions.”

Masse, who was coaching the Devils when the gym first opened in 1974,  said he was surprised when Fuller and Lewiston school officials told him of the honor.

“I was a little surprised because naming a court isn’t something I’ve seen too often in high school sports,” he said. “I know some college courts have them, like Duke (Coach K Court, after head coach Mike Krzyzewski). So I don’t know if it’s a first, but it’s a thrill.”

Masse said he and Fuller have discussed what the actual name of the court will be and what the name will look like once it is stamped on the hardwood (perhaps Masse’s autograph), but they haven’t made any decisions yet other than where those stamps will be on the floor.

“We haven’t quite got the language yet, but we’ll have it in two spots — one right in front of the Lewiston bench and one off to the side,” Fuller said. “We’re re-doing the floor this summer, so it’s the perfect time to do it.”