Two of Evansville's best faced off against each other on Tuesday night as Harrison visited Memorial. Memorial came in ranked in 3a while Harrison is a top 20 team in 4a. From the beginning the energy that Harrison brought was just simply more than what Memorial brought. Junior Jay Summitt got hot early for the Warriors and Malachi McNair controlled the inside and never looked back. Harrison went into the break up 33-22. Jr. Tiger Luke Ellsperman helped keep Memorial within striking distance in the 3rd before Warrior senior Eli Speer got hot from deep. The 4th quarter saw the game slip away for Memorial as Harrison junior Shane Sims caught fire and led the Warrios to a 70-45 win.

● 6'3 junior guard Shane Sims led the Warriors tonight in points with 25. Sims is a great catch and shoot kid that stretches the floor. At times he can also get to the basket and pop from 7-8 feet out. I would be surprised to see NAIA schools start to take a real look at him this summer going into his senior year. Sims is a junior all star candidate in a strong 2025 class that runs with Team Teague in the summer. When Sims gets hot he becomes very confident and with his shooting ability is bad news for the opposition. I would like to see him continue to improve his ball handling going into next year.

● 6'4 Warrior junior Jay Summitt is the definition of untapped potential. Jay is a great athlete that you can tell is just now becoming a basketball player. He needs to tighten up his handles and shot but at this level can guard bigs or perimeter players. It seems like HCAC schools would be all over him sooner rather than later. If he can develop a consistent shot, watch out for Summitt next year. Jay had a very strong first half. He just needs to stay consistent throughout the game. Summit finished with 12 pts, 7 assists, and 5 boards.

● 6'8 Harrison senior Malachi McNair is such a force for the Warriors. You can tell he has worked hard to get where he is and it's all coming together for him his senior year. McNair can protect the paint, rebound, and finish inside. Not a super athlete but being 6'8 makes up for alot. McNair even showed he could step out 10-12 ft. and knock down a jumper. I'm not sure he can put it on the floor at this stage of his development but he finishes very well around the rim opening up space for outside shooters. McNair finished with 17 pts and 11 rbs. tonight and a coach somewhere at the next level will be happy to have him.

● A bright spot for Memorial was 6'3 junior Luke Ellspermann. Luke did his work from the outside as well as getting to the basket. He is more than just a catch and shoot kid. He is not afraid to drive into traffic and draw contact. Him and Tornatta form a nice inside- outside duo for Memorial at the 3A level. Ellspermanm finished with 15.

● 6'7 Tiger senior Tucker Tornatta had his hands full tonight battling with the two Harrison bigs (Malachi McNair and Brook Thomas). Tucker is a big boy down low and doesn't mind contact. He understands where he is best used and forces his way inside. Tonight he had 14 pts against a clogged Harrison defense inside. Tornatta is a legitimate Indiana all star candidate and if Memorial makes a run in March, it will be because of him. Hitting the outside shot consistently is the next evolution of his game.

Harrison next is at home against Vinceness on Friday while Memorial hosts Princeton the same night.

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