Carroll came out ready to roll in this one. Thought this one was going to get out of hand early, but New Haven had other plans. New Haven killed Carroll on the offensive glass and was able to stay with Carroll after the first 5 minutes or so. Drelyn Truesdale, Jaxon Pardon, and Jaiyre Sampson led Carroll to a hard fought win.
* Sophomore guard Drelyn Truesdale was really impressive in this one. Truesdale is LONG and fluid. His jumper is smooth but when he attacks the rim he is really effective. He got out on the break and dunked on a New Haven player and got people off their feet. Really high ceiling for Truesdale. Looks like he has room to get taller and only going to continue to get better. Potential D1 kid. Truesdale finished with 20 points.
* Junior Jaxon Pardon came on late in this one. Love Pardon’s release on his shot- super quick and can get it off from deep and contested. Pardon can knock down shots but also showed his aibility to finish at the rim and get up above the rim to swat a layup out of bounds. Pardon finished with 9 points.
* Sophomore PG Jaiyre Sampson came on late in this one as well. Really quick and shifty guard. Really tough to stop getting downhill and he not only finishes himself but finds his teammates as well. Sampson can shoot from the perimeter as well. He finished with 9 points
Freshman guard Korbyn Hammel got the start for New Haven last night and showed he belongs on the floor. He finished some shots at the rim and showed he can shoot from the perimeter. One to keep an eye on moving forward. Finished with 9 points for the Bulldogs.
An early 7-2 deficit prompted a Cathedral timeout, which responded with a 7-0 run to end the quarter. They stretched it to a 12-0 run before Carmel got on the board again, leading 19-17 at the half. Carmel started the second half with a 6-0, and as the game tempo started to pick up, so did the production of Jaron Tibbs, Jake Davis and Kamari Slaughter.
We do like triple-doubles. Leading West Noble to their best start in nearly a decade, 10-1, senior Austin Cripe has been a varsity contributor his whole high school career. This week he produced his normal stat sheet stuffing.
In a win over Eastside, Cripe produced 10 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals and 1 block. However, he outdid himself the evening before in the win over Lakeland, charting 32 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists and 2 steals.
Earning Austin Cripe the Courtside Indiana Player of the Week for the week of January 2-7, 2023.
Others Considered
Others Nominated
Sophomores / Freshmen Nominated
Concordia took a tough loss Friday night at home vs Luers. They were ready to go at the start of this game. Cole Hayworth came out hitting threes and getting transition dunks. He had 10 points in the first quarter. Concordia was up 17-8 at the end of 1st quarter. Isaac Smith and Josh Furst lead the charge in the 2nd quarter for Blackhawk and gave them a 4 point lead at half. Furst continued his strong play in the 2nd half and then Gage Sefton and Kellen Pickett got it going as well to help propel the Braves. Blackhawks size and length really bothered Concordia in the 2nd half and they couldn’t get many shots to fall.
* Josh Furst was dominating the paint in this one. Fun battle on the block between him and Grant Hayworth. When Furst gets to his right hand on the block he’s hard to stop. When things aren’t opening up offensively for Blackhawk, Furst is their go-to guy on the block. He ended with 20 points in this one.
* Sophomore Kellen Pickett really came on late in this one. Pickett could not get his shots to fall around the basket like he normally does but he was active on the glass and altering shots all game. He finally got some shots to fall in the 2nd half including an and 1 dunk that got Blackhawk fans on their feet. Pickett ended with 12 points.
* Concordia Junior Cole Hayworth started off blazing hot with 10 points in the 1st quarter. The only thing that slowed him down was 2 fouls. He sat for most if not all of the 2nd quarter. Hayworth showed the ability to shoot the 3 and showed his athleticism at the rim. Hayworth ended with 14.
* Concordia Junior David Speckhard ended with 13 points and showed ability to get to the rim. I knew he was Concordia’s best shooter but I liked to see him finish in the paint. Concordia kept getting him the ball on the left wing where he could get into his right to left crossover and finish on the left side of the rim or he would use his spin move back to the middle if his defender cut him off.
Made it out to two games this week. Tuesday was East Chicago Central @ #10 Hammond Central. Saturday was Valparaiso @ #3 Penn. These are my player evaluations for the week. College coaches you need to get these players on your watch lists!
Matthew King is a 6'1" junior guard for Hammond Central. Great piece of the Hammond puzzle. He's shooting 44% (21-48) from 3 this season. Great elevation on his shot and can really find his spots and get going. This squad loves to get out in transition and he's a big reason why. Solid on ball defender with good hands. Handles the ball well enough to create his own shot. Would like to see him attack the basket a little more to get to the line because of his quickness. Really good player colleges need to get on their lists before it's too late.
If you need a stretch 4 then I think Danny Garza is your guy. The 6'6" 2024 forward showed in this one that he can be just that. Currently averaging 10 and 6, he really showed up on the offensive glass and has a knack for being in the right place at the right time. Motor is there and outside shot is something he has added to his game. Really nice and smooth lefty release. As mentioned before this Hammond team likes to run and Danny is part of that as well. He had a dunk in transition so can run the floor. Capable of posting which is improving as well. Like his ceiling.
I'm not usually one to write about kids who have already committed, especially committed to another sport, but 6'3" senior Jordan Woods is good. Really good. He is already heading to Eastern Illinois for football, but a lot of schools are missing out on this one. Stat sheet stuffer as he's averaging 15pts 7rebs 5asts 4stls a game and this was all on display. Plays with swagger, grit, and toughness. Definitely a leader and someone you'd want on your team. Hope he has a successful football career!
6'5" ECC sophomore forward Dominique Murphy was one that has had a lot of noise with his game. Eye test was passed as he has great size and build. Finished with right around his season average as he had 23 and 6. Best when in transition or attacking the basket. Outside shot isn't quite there yet on a consistent level but knocked one or 2 down. D1 for sure.
Jack Smiley is an intriguing sophomore prospect from Valpo. The 6'2 lefty has shown flashes this season. Averaging about 15 a game he struggled to get going in this one, as did most of the Vikings, and finished with 5 points. Jack has that smooth lefty shot and has had some games where he plays really well. Consistency is building for him as he has really put some solid games together this season. Would love to see him attack the basket more, using his outside shooting to make that happen. If he can get some dog in him and take over some games, then the sky is the limit. Strength will come. Tons of upside.
Quick Hitters
Penn senior big Josh Gatete (6'8") is a block hunter. Controls the paint with his length and athleticism. Strength will come. Intriguing to see what he develops into. Joey Garwood and Joe Smith are two more seniors for Penn who are on some college radars. 6'1 Garwood and 5'11 Smith are both hard nosed defenders and both can shoot the ball well. Smith has solid handles and can get to the rim or find the open kick out. Joey can get goin from outside in a hurry and with some range. Also solid distributor. Garwood with some NAIA interest. Smith has JUCO and D3 interest. Both guys to keep an eye on to see where they end up when it's all said and done.
Just a 8 of the uncommitted players who made an impression on me over the last week!
Two really well coached teams battled it out Wednesday morning. Homestead forward Grant Leeper got really physical with Munster’s Brandon Trilli early and took him out of his game. I thought Munster was in trouble, but a trio of juniors carried the Mustangs the rest of the way. Coach Hackett kept switching from man to zone throughout the game and it seemed like it gave Homestead fits. Homesteads Jr guard Will Jamison came alive in the 4th quarter and almost brought the Spartans back by himself but it wasn’t enough.
*Munster’s Junior guard David Cundiff impressed me in this one. Cundiff seemed to get wherever he wanted on the court and showed the ability to knock down threes and get to the rim. High IQ point guard that NAIA’s need to have their eye on. Cundiff ended with 12 points in this one.
* Another pair of juniors impressed for Munster, Jermaine Coney and Nolan Kinsella. Coney finished with 13 points and knocked down some big three’s for Munster and was active defensively. Nolan Kinsella killed Homestead with a couple back door cuts for layups and hit some big 3’s as well. Kinsella also ended with 13 points.
* Homesteads Jr guard Will Jamison came alive in the 4th quarter. He led the Spartans with 13 points. I love Jamison’s ability to get to his pull-up jumper. He is also tough to stop in transition getting to the rim. I want to see more consistency from 3 from Jamison, but one to keep an eye on moving forward.
*Homestead senior forward Grant Leeper was business as usual. Really good physical defender, rebounding machine, and getting buckets at the rim. Every team in the state would take a player like Grant Leeper.
This was a battle between each teams best player. Deaglan Sullivan carried Marian throughout the game along with Dareon Thornton having an impact in overtime. Fishers had a slim lead for most of the game leading by 5 at halftime and was up 2 at the end of the 3rd. Marian’s 2-3 zone slowed Fishers down and they had a hard time executing at times.
* Senior guard Deaglan Sullivan did it all for Marian on Wednesday morning. Fishers could not keep him from getting to the rim. He scored most of his points at the rim and from the free throw line. Sullivan ended with 29 points. This kid needs more offers!!
* Senior forward Dareon Thornton was huge in overtime for the Knights. Thornton hit a contested three to put them up by 3 in overtime and hit 2 huge free throws to put them up 3 again with 2.5 seconds left.
* Jalen Haralson was good again as usual. Most of his buckets came at the rim and from the free throw line. Marian’s zone definitely “slowed him down” even though he had 26 points. In the second half he did struggle to finish at times, but the zone had him trying to finish over 2 or 3 guys.
* Jr guard Taden Metzger was a zone buster for Fishers. His first 2 three’s didn’t hit the rim in the 1st quarter and I started to think Marian’s going to come out of the zone in a hurry but then I remembered the 2-3 zone is a staple for Coach Rob Bergen’s Knights. Metzger ended with 12 points on 4 3’s.
Fun game that didn't disappoint. Early on in this one the Legends looked to be in complete control as they were up 13 at the half. Northridge didn't quit though and the game was all tied up after three. Flow was fast paced throughout with some big plays by Mason Bales and Alex Ellenson down the stretch.
NEXT UP:
Northridge - 12/27 - Noblesville Tourney vs Noblesville - 4:15
FW North - 12/30 - Trine Classic vs Fairfield - 4:30
It was all 6’8 sophomore Kellen Pickett in the first half for Blackhawk. The second half was led by the 3 returning senior starters for Blackhawk, Gage Sefton, Jimmy Davidson, and Josh Furst. Junior guard Josiah Dunham came alive in the 2nd half and got the score under 10 points, but it wasn’t enough. Blackhawk’s size and physicality is something Evansville Christian won’t see in the 1a state tournament. Evansville Christian was my preseason 1a favorite and that still remains after the loss today.
*Sophomore Kellen Pickett ended with 21 points and 10 rebounds. He did a little bit of everything. Super active on the glass and blocking shots, scored inside some, and knocked down 5 triples. Said this a few weeks back when Blackhawk beat Fort Wayne North, but Pickett should be on D1 coaches radars.
* Seniors Gage Sefton and Josh Furst were very good as usual. Sefton is Blackhawks best player currently and he was good again today. Sefton hit a couple threes today which makes him really hard to deal with. Furst was his normal self inside. Big and strong with a nice touch around the rim. Sefton ended with 21 points and Furst added 15.
* Junior guard Josiah Dunham was the catalyst for Evansville Christian. Jimmy Davidson for Blackhawk made things difficult for Dunham, but he did get it going in the 2nd half. Dunham can create his own shot and can really shoot it. Dunham will be the best player on the floor throughout the 1a state tournament.