Rochester advanced in opening round girls basketball sectional action and set up another meeting with rival Tippecanoe Valley.
Bremen’s win over John Glenn Tuesday avenged a November 21 regular season 13-point loss.
At South Newton, #7 (1A) Caston defeated West Central, 62-37. Addison Zimpleman scored 24 points to go with five rebounds and five assists. Isabel Scales added 12 points and eight steals. Caston also had Madi Douglas iin double figures with 12.
In Tuesday’s other quarterfinal, Tri-County dominated Frontier, 62-13.
In 2A at North Miami, Winamac head coach Tony Stesiak earned his 275 coaching win and a berth in the semifinal by getting by Wabash, 52-46. Maggie Smith led Winamac with 15 while teammates Kandace Kroft and Marisa Iverson each scored 11.
Wabash was led by 10 points each from Bryleigh Boggs and Kierra Wilson.
At Culver, the home team saw its season end at the hands of the fifth ranked team in 1A. Marquette Catholic advanced by defeating Culver, 59-19.
Rochester placed ten wrestlers into the finals of 14 weight classes at the Plymouth sectional and claimed six individual titles as the Zebras captured the team title Saturday.
Rochester's 256.5 points was good enough for the program's fourth consecutive team title.
Plymouth was second with 238.5 followed by third place Warsaw with 205.
Rounding out the field:
Winamac, 166.5
Triton, 104
Bremen, 81
Culver Acad., 75
North Judson, 66
Caston, 58
Culver Community, 6
Rochester individual championships included
126: Layne Horn (38-0)
165: Brant Beck (37-0)
175: DeClan Gard (32-3)
190: Colin Weiand (32-6)
215: Alex Deming (38-0)
285: Brady Beck (37-0)
Also qualifying for the Penn Regional from Rochester:
106: Grant Holloway (15-3) - lost in championship
157: Ethan Amezquita (22-14) - lost in championship
150: Wyatt Davis (27-4) - lost in championship
144: Kale Shotts (21-10) - won 3rd place
132: Devin Basham (28-11) - lost in championship
For Caston, freshman Jackson Robbins (106) and senior Pete Duvall (190) both placed third and advanced to the regional. Robbins is 27-6 on the season with Duvall 22-7.
For the seventh consecutive year, Jordan Brand will outfit the league’s stars for the 2024 NBA All-Star Game in Indianapolis, which will be available for purchase beginning tonight on NBAStore.com, Nike.com, and through select retailers around the country, following the NBA All-Star Starters announcement on TNT at 7pm ET.
The Jordan Brand NBA All-Star 2024 uniforms, which feature Nike Dri-FIT ADV technology, will make their on-court debut at the 73rd NBA All-Star Game on Sunday, Feb. 18 at 8 p.m. ET in Indianapolis airing on TNT in the United States and reaching fans in more than 200 countries and territories in more than 50 languages.
In the return of the East vs. West format, the uniforms celebrate the league and rich basketball history of Indiana. The 2024 NBA All-Stars will also be outfitted in Jordan Brand old-school, Hoosier-inspired warm-ups.
Designed from the idea that basketball was raised in Indiana, the uniforms are rooted in a nostalgic, heritage look that feature a tonal twist on the classic red and blue uniforms with cream lettering. The pinstripes are inspired by the iconic Pacers uniforms in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Design details include the following:
The 2024 NBA All-Star logo is featured prominently on the front of the jersey under “All-Star,” which weaves in racing stripes to pay homage to the host city.
The five stars on each side of the jersey represent the five players on each team playing on the court at any given time.
The logo is also featured on the side of the short with a large circle around it, honoring downtown Indy’s Monument Circle which surrounds the proud Soldiers and Sailors Monument at the center of the “Circle City.”
The six stars rotating the NBA All-Star logo on each side of the short represents the 12 All-Stars on each roster.
“73rd Annual” is highlighted on the jersey as the anthem graphic above the black jock tag.
The “ASG” ligature mark on the belt buckle is inspired by the graphical origins of basketball.
USA Basketball announced that Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton is among the 41-athlete player pool for the 2024 USA Basketball Men’s National Team.
The players were selected by USA Basketball Men’s National Team managing director Grant Hill and is subject to change.
The 12-member 2024 USA Men’s National Team, which will represent the United States at the 2024 Olympic Summer Games in Paris, will be announced at a later date.
In addition to Haliburton, the pool features 28 players who have represented the USA in Olympics and/or FIBA Men’s World Cup and who together have collected 23 Olympic or World Cup gold medals: Bam Adebayo, Jarrett Allen, Paolo Banchero, Desmond Bane, Scottie Barnes, Devin Booker, Mikal Bridges, Jaylen Brown, Jalen Brunson, Jimmy Butler, Alex Caruso, Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, Anthony Edwards, Joel Embiid, De’Aaron Fox, Paul George, Aaron Gordon, James Harden, Josh Hart, Tyler Herro, Jrue Holiday, Chet Holmgren, Brandon Ingram, Kyrie Irving, Jaren Jackson Jr., LeBron James, Cam Johnson, Walker Kessler, Kawhi Leonard, Damian Lillard, Donovan Mitchell, Chris Paul, Bobby Portis, Austin Reaves, Duncan Robinson, Jayson Tatum, Derrick White and Trae Young.
The 2024 USA Men’s National Team will be led by head coach Steve Kerr (Golden State Warriors), who is assisted by Mark Few (Gonzaga University), Tyronn Lue (L.A. Clippers) and Erik Spoelstra (Miami Heat). Last summer, the quartet coached the 2023 USA Basketball Men’s National Team to a fourth-place finish at the 2023 FIBA Men’s World Cup in Manila. Kerr is a 2020 Olympic gold medalist after serving as an assistant coach to Gregg Popovich in Tokyo.
The USA officially qualified for the 2024 Olympics as one of the top two nations from the FIBA Americas zone at the 2023 FIBA World Cup in September. The American men will compete for their fifth straight – and 17th overall – Olympic gold medal.
Rochester girls basketball will play on the opening night of Class 3A, Sectional 18 on its home court.
The Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) announced the sectional pairings Sunday for the 49th Annual Girls Basketball State Tournament. Sectional games begin on Jan. 30 with sectional champions crowned on Feb. 3. Regional championship games are slated for Feb. 10.
There will be a pair of sectional quarterfinal games on Jan. 30 at Rochester. In the opener, John Glenn (11-10) will take on Bremen (9-11).
Rochester (10-10) will follow against Knox (7-15). The two teams have not met this season.
The first game winner will return to Rochester on Feb. 2 for a semifinal contest with Culver Academy (12-7).
A Rochester win sets up a rematch with Tippecanoe Valley (16-3) in the semifinals. Tippecanoe Valley defeated the Zebras, 42-16, on Nov. 21.
The winner of the Rochester Sectional will face the Highland Sectional champion on Feb. 10 at a yet-to-be-determined regional site. One of eight sites – Bellmont, Caston, Jimtown, Lapel, LaPorte, Marion, Wes-Del and Winamac – will be announced as the host at the conclusion of the sectional tournament.
Class A, No. 2 Caston (18-1) is seeking its first sectional championship since 1985. The only team Caston has lost to this season is in the same South Newton Sectional but on the other side of the bracket.
At Sectional 52, Frontier (4-14) opens the tournament on Jan. 30 against Tri-County (14-6), the only team to defeat the Comets. The winner returns Feb. 2 for a semifinal game against North White (2-17).
Caston follows on Jan. 30 against West Central (11-8). The two teams have not met this season. The winner returns Feb. 2 to face South Newton (1-14).
The South Newton Sectional champion will face the Lakewood Park Christian Sectional champion in a one-game regional championship on Feb. 10.
Class A, Sectional 50, hosted by Culver, features seven teams including Argos.
In the sectional opener on Jan. 30, No. 3 Marquette Catholic (18-2) faces Culver (4-14). The winner advances to Friday’s semifinal game against Oregon-Davis (5-13).
On Jan. 31 in the first quarterfinal game, Triton (8-12) battles Trinity Greenlawn (5-12).
The second quarterfinal pits Argos (8-11) against Westville (7-8). The two teams did not meet this season.
The Culver Sectional champion will face the Morgan Township Sectional champion on Feb. 10 in the regional championship.
Grace College's athletic department announced Trey Stoll as the next head coach for the men's golf program.
Stoll is a familiar face at Grace. He currently serves in Grace's admissions department.
Stoll graduated from Grace in 2014 and finished his career as the most accomplished golfer in team history. He won seven tournaments during his time as a Lancer, a program record he accomplished in three years.
He was an NAIA All-American in 2013 and was a two-time All-Crossroads League performer (2013, 2014).
Stoll was runner-up in 2009 behind Winamac's Keagan Scott at the Logansport Sectional at Dykeman Park GC. Scott won the title by three strokes.
Rochester finished runner-up to Twin Lakes at the 2009 sectional.
"We are excited for Trey to lead our men's golf program. His experience with our golf program and his ability to recruit at a high level will serve him well in this new position," said Grace Director of Athletics Chad Briscoe. "Trey's vision and passion to use golf to impact young men for Christ matches the Grace mission, and we look forward to the continued growth of the program under his leadership."
Stoll takes the reins from Denny Hepler, who retired this winter following 11 years guiding the Lancers.
"To say that I'm excited for the opportunity to lead this program would be an understatement," Stoll said. "Grace College is a special place that helped mold me into the man that I am today. I'm thankful for Chad's leadership and belief in me to continue building this program and to lead these young men."
The Lancers completed the fall portion of their season by placing fourth at the 2023 NCCAA National Championships. It marked the third straight season that Grace has qualified for the national tournament.
The Indiana Pacers announced on Wednesday the team has acquired forward Pascal Siakam from the Toronto Raptors in exchange for guards Bruce Brown, Jr. and Kira Lewis, Jr., forward Jordan Nwora, two first-round picks in 2024, and a conditional first-round pick in 2026.
Siakam, 29, has spent all eight seasons of his career in Toronto. He's averaging 22.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.9 assists.
“We’re incredibly excited to welcome Pascal to Indiana,” said President of Basketball Operations Kevin Pritchard. “As a two-time All-NBA selection and two-time NBA All Star, Pascal is a player that our organization has long admired and respected. We feel that his unique offensive skillset will complement our style of play, while his defensive versatility will be a valuable asset to our team.”
Siakam will wear number 43 for the Pacers.
Posted About Three Months Ago by
Brandon Bradley Assistant Director, IBCA Chair, Selection Commit
Ballplayers from all parts of the state have begun 2024 strong, posting explosive scoring outputs, as well as big assist and rebounding numbers each night.
Though Northern Indiana saw postponements throughout the weekend, a 55-point performance on the girls’ side heated things up earlier in the week, while Southern Indiana saw a young man rewrite his school’s record book, surpassing a prior mark set by a Hall of Famer you are sure to know.
Culver Community senior Jack Rodgers, Argos senior Samantha Redinger, Greenfield-Central junior Braylon Mullins, McCutcheon freshman Lillie Graves, Springs Valley junior Deion Edwards, and South Knox junior Ella Bobe have been selected for Jan. 8 - Jan. 13 in the recognition program coordinated by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association. Rodgers is the boys’ winner and Redinger the girls’ winner in District-1. Mullins and Graves take home boys’ and girls’ honors, respectively, in District-2. Edwards was selected as the boys’ recipient, while Bobe is the girls’ recipient, in District-3.
In his only game of the week last week, Culver Community's Jack Rodgers helped the Cavaliers to a 78-56 victory over Community Baptist Tuesday evening. The 6-0 point guard set a career high by scoring 39 points in the win. Additionally, Rodgers posted a double-double with 12 rebounds, 6 of which came at the offensive end of the floor. For good measure, the senior guard added 7 assists and 4 steals to his stat line.
Argos senior Samantha Redinger is making her second appearance here this season. She is currently leading all Hoosier ladies with a 32.0 point per game scoring average through 18 games, and last week she was well above that mark. In a 79-54 win against Oregon-Davis on Thursday, the 5-7 wing erupted for 55 points on an efficient 18-of-34 shooting, including a 10-of-20 performance from 3-point range. In addition, Redinger added 9 rebounds, 6 steals, and a pair of assists in the triumph.
Greenfield-Central picked up a pair of nice wins over the weekend, and junior Braylon Mullins was a huge part of their success. On Friday, the Cougars took a big Hoosier Heritage Conference win, 70-50, against New Castle. Then Saturday, in their return to the court, they took care of Hancock County rival Eastern Hancock, 64-31. To begin his weekend, Mullins put together an all-around effort against New Castle, scoring 26 points, pulling down 8 rebounds, handing out 4 assists, and collecting 5 steals. Saturday, the 6-5 guard was even better, pouring in 44 points on 16-26 shooting, including 8-15 from deep. In doing so, the Junior’s 44th point also represented his 1000th point of his career. In this memorable outing, Mullins added 7 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals, helping the Cougars to a perfect 13-0 record thus far.
Freshman Lillie Graves is certainly making her mark early in her career for McCutcheon. Last week she managed a pair of 30-point scoring games, as the Mavericks moved to 17-2 on the season, already six wins better than in 2022-2023. In a big win Tuesday against Carroll (Flora), 56-49, the 6-0 wing posted a double-double with 34 points and 15 rebounds. She was 12-of-14 from the charity stripe, plus she added a pair of assists and 4 steals. Saturday, in a comfortable win at Muncie Central, Graves followed that up with 30 points on 12-of-21 shooting, she pulled down 10 rebounds, 6 of which were offensive, posting her second double-double of the week, plus she contributed 3 assists and a pair of steals.
Springs Valley is having a nice season so far with a 10-4 record, plus they are winners of seven games in a row. Last weekend was exciting for the Blackhawks, as they won a pair of games in overtime. Friday night, they traveled to West Washington, escaping by a 60-58 margin for the Patoka Lake Conference win. Junior Deion Edwards didn’t shoot it great in this one, but he still managed to contribute, adding 13 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists in the nail-biter. It was the next day’s game that was one to remember for the 6-4 forward. Saturday, both teams were dropping buckets as quickly as the temperature outside, forcing the Blackhawks to win another overtime thriller, 101-98, over Austin. In this particular game, Edwards was 19-of-31 from the field, 2-of-5 from downtown, and 16-of-18 from the free throw line, scoring 56 points. In addition, the junior forward broke the single-game school record set by a gentleman you might have heard of…Larry Bird. Edwards also posted a double-double with 14 rebounds, hauling in an impressive 11 of them at the offensive end of the floor. He also handed out 4 assists and collected 3 steals in the high-scoring affair.
Junior Ella Bobe has helped South Knox to an 18-1 record this year, with their only loss coming in overtime. Last week, the Spartans posted a 3-0 mark, and Bobe was great across the board in all three games. Tuesday, in a 77-47 Blue Chip Conference win at Wood Memorial, the 5-9 guard scored 26 points on 11-of-18 shooting, she grabbed 8 rebounds, handed out 3 assists, and she stole the ball 3 times. Tuesday, at home, the Spartans picked up an easy win against North Daviess. In limited time, Bobe scored 23 points on 10-of-12 shooting, she dished out 8 assists, collected 5 rebounds, and picked up 2 steals. Saturday was more of the same, as South Knox traveled to Vincennes Lincoln, winning in impressive fashion, 75-37. The Junior guard scored another 24 points, this time on 10-of-15 shooting, plus she added 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals to her weekly totals. For the week, she shot a blistering 69% from the field, while averaging 7.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game.
This is the 16th season for the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association Player of the Week program, andthe fourth season it is being presented by Franciscan Health, a corporate sponsor of the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association.
Player of the Week winners are chosen each week from each of the IHSAA’s three districts. Girls’ winners will be chosen through the Monday following the IHSAA Girls State Finals. Boys’ winners will be chosen through the Monday following the IHSAA Boys State Finals.
Rochester wrestling produced a pair of top-five finishes at the Indiana High School Girls Wrestling State Finals Friday in Kokomo.
Senior Grace Hiroms won her first two matches at 155 pounds before being defeated in the semifinal round. She returned to the mat and won the third-place match with a decisive pinfall victory.
Hiroms scored pinfall victories in her first two matches to set up a semifinal round showdown with Eastside’s Rhaigyn Trenary. The freshman secured a pinfall win over Hiroms.
In the third-place match, Hiroms pinned Monrovia’s Josie Hause.
At 145 pounds, Rochester sophomore Laine Peppler overcame a Round of 8 loss to win two more matches and finish fifth in the bracket.
Peppler narrowly defeated Columbus East’s Eden Knight, 8-6, in her opening match to get into the Round of 8. There she suffered an overtime 4-2 loss to North Montgomery’s Hailey Kunz.
Peppler then pinned Boonville’s Paige Cook to get into the fifth-place match where she pinned New Palestine’s Ella Morris.
Rochester freshman Makenna McKee lost her opening round match at 125 pounds to Southport’s K’yla Johnson.
Posted About Three Months Ago by
Mike Beas, Special to IHSAA.org
Asking Casey Gaynor for a detailed list of the Indiana high schools where he’s officiated at least one varsity basketball game isn’t advisable.
That is, unless one has serious free time on his or her hands.
Requesting that Gaynor either alphabetize those schools, name them in order of games worked, or, worse, break the list down geographically, and you might as well bring a pillow, prop up your feet and get cozy.
It’s going to take a while.
The 57-year-old Gaynor, a Plainfield resident who grew up on Indianapolis’ Westside, accomplished his profession’s version of hitting for the cycle when he worked the boys game between Indianapolis Tech and host Herron on January 2.
Competitively speaking, well, let’s just say the Titans rolled to an 83-22 victory.
Casey Gaynor has officiated basketball at 404 different IHSAA member schools (Photo provided by Landon Ringler).
Historically, however, the four quarters of action proved significant as Gaynor running the Herron court represented the 404th different high school Gaynor has been to officiate either a girls or boys during the course of his 26-year career.
For those counting at home, that’s everywhere, meaning Gaynor knows his Oregon-Davis from his Jac-Cen-Del. His South Bend Clay from his Clay City. His Boone Grove from his Center Grove.
You get the idea.
Gaynor’s start to whistling personal fouls, traveling violations and the like, while somewhat unorthodox, lit the fuse to what’s been an impressive career.
“I referred bitty ball with a buddy in college for beer money,” said Gaynor. “I also played in adult leagues when I was in my 20s. In my Cardinal Ritter alumni league, I was always the guy complaining about the officiating. Bill Nester ran the league.
“After a particularly grueling loss, I went nuts on the two refs. Bill stepped in and told me, ‘Since you’re always complaining about the reffing, I’m putting you down to ref next year.’ I was so mad that I said, ‘Fine.’ The following year started my career. I found that I loved it.”
So much, in fact, that Gaynor eventually began piecing together his own type of game plan regarding officiating as his career evolved: Get your plays right, manage the personalities in a game, study tape and be open to being told that you’re wrong.
Certainly, an official who over the years has made the drive to as many cities and small towns as Gaynor must have his favorite gymnasiums to work. And some that, shall we say find themselves much further down on the list.
He’ll happily share the former.
“New Castle (Chrysler Fieldhouse) and Connersville (Spartan Bowl) because those are the mecca of high school gyms,” said Gaynor, who also mentions Washington Catholic, Tyson Auditorium in Versailles – where the legendary 1953-1954 Milan squad played its home games – and the since-closed Anderson Wigwam.
Casey Gaynor, a Plainfield resident, has been a licensed IHSAA official for 26 years (Photo provided by Landon Ringler).
Gaynor’s time exhaling into whistles, explaining calls to coaches (and their assistants, in many cases) and just flat-out immersing himself into this state’s prep sports scene includes officiating 22 boys basketball and five girls basketball sectionals.
Moreover, he’s been on the court for 17 boys regionals and three more on the girls side, and one boys hoops semi-state. Gaynor has worked 14 seasons as a high school baseball umpire in Indiana, and officiated volleyball for five.
One of Gaynor’s favorite officials to work games with is Lance Ringler, 53, who lives in Ellettsville, and has been at it since the age of 19. Ringler has officiated games in five other states (California, Idaho, Minnesota, Nevada, and Washington) with a variety of other officials.
He places Gaynor in his own category.
“With Casey, I would say we’ve worked close to 30 games this season, and we’re probably over 100 games over the last seven years or so. Mostly boys games,” said Ringler. “Working with Casey . . . I’ve learned a lot from him. The thing about Casey is he’s all business.
“When we go on the road, we have a lot of fun, but every ‘I’ is dotted and every ‘T’ is crossed. He’s there to do his job, and he’s made me a much better official because of his approach. You better bring your ‘A’ game, or he’s going to let you know about it. His focus for the whole basketball game, he’s always on.”
Gaynor has no precise timetable regarding when he’ll hang up his black- and white-striped official’s shirt. Still healthy and enjoying the weekly interaction he has with players, coaches, administrators – and, yes, even fans – Gaynor plans to finish out this basketball season and looks forward to those ahead.
“I want to make 30 years, then see how my body feels,” said Gaynor. “My first licensed high school year was the 1998-1999 season. I’ve seen too many guys who are hanging on way too long. I promise, I won’t be that guy.”
Freshman Makenna McKee, sophomore Laine Peppler and senior Grace Hiroms advanced out the Rochester Semistate last Friday. The top four finishers in each of 14 weight classes qualified for the Indiana High School Girls Wrestling State Finals in Kokomo.
Peppler produced Rochester’s top finish – placing runner-up at 145 pounds to New Haven junior Olivia Bohde.
Peppler’s semistate started with a quick pinfall over West Noble’s Jazmyne Espinoza. In the Round of 8, she pinned Angola’s Mia Walker in the second period to earn her state finals berth.
In the semifinal round, Peppler again scored a pinfall victory over Blackford’s Addison Flores.
Bohde secured the semistate championship with a third-period pin of Peppler.
Hiroms placed third at 155 pounds with a pinfall win over New Haven’s Kaily Bussard.
Hiroms collected two quick pins to get to the semifinal round where she lost to Eastside’s Rhaigyn Trenary.
McKee won her first two matches at 125 pounds to qualify for the state finals before falling to Angola’s Nevaeh Wilson in the semifinals and Prairie Heights’ Christian Lewis in the third-place match.
STATE FINALS
McKee opens the state finals against Southport’s K’yla Johnson. A win would set up a Round of 8 match against either North Posey’s Adelyn Gamblin, the third-place finisher at the Mooresville Semistate, or Tri-County’s Rylee Sheldon, the third-place finisher at the Penn Semistate.
Hiroms’ state finals appearance begins with a match against Madison’s Maylie Skinner, the runner-up at 155 pounds at the Mooresville Semistate. A win would set up a match against either Tri-County’s Kylie Kleist, the fourth-place finisher at the Penn Semistate, or Greenfield-Central’s Jasmine Camacho, the Muncie Central Semistate champion.
Peppler will face Columbus East’s Eden Knight, the third-place finisher at the Mooresville Semistate, in her first state finals match. A win would create a Round of 8 match against either North Montgomery’s Hailey Kunz, the Muncie Central Semistate champion, or Highland’s Kate Robinson, the fourth-place finisher at the Penn Semistate.
Plymouth used a seven point advantage at the free throw line and fourth quarter turnovers by the host Zebras to steal a road win at Rochester Wednesday, 44-39.
For Rochester, the turnover statistic was almost a non-factor until the timing of them impacted the game. Rochester (9-8) had 12 total turnovers but five came in the final period.
Rochester head coach Joel Burrus appeared on the GIANT fm Sports Postgame Report.
Plymouth, coming off a difficult weekend against #4 (3A) Hamilton Heights and Huntington North, bounced back down the stretch to break a two-game losing streak in the series.
The Pilgrims (7-8) were led in scoring by Lena Jones with 11 points to go along with seven assists. Teammates Sophie Miller and Rylee Mann each scored 10.
Plymouth head coach Micaela Shalliol.
Rochester (9-8) was led in scoring by Riley Clevenger with 11 and Jadyn Field with 10.
Hoosier Basketball Magazine offers a comprehensive survey of all high school (boys and girls), college (men and women) and professional (Pacers and Fever) basketball in Indiana.
Twelve high school seniors are featured on Hoosier Basketball Magazine’s traditional front cover, six boys and six girls. The boys pictured are Jack Benter (Brownstown Central), Flory Bidunga (Kokomo), Micah Davis (Franklin), Evan Haywood (Brebeuf Jesuit), Ron Rutland (Indianapolis Attucks) and K.J. Windham (Ben Davis). The featured girls are Alli Harness (Carroll-Flora), Jordyn Poole (Fort Wayne Snider), Chloe Spreen (Bedford North Lawrence), Reagan Wilson (Noblesville), Faith Wiseman (Indian Creek) and Juliann Woodard (Jennings County).
Hoosier Basketball Magazine also has produced a featured “Champions Cover” edition. Spotlighted on the front of the Champions Cover are six senior players – two 2023 Class 4A state champions (Spreen and Windham), a semistate champion (Bidunga) and three regional champions from last season (Benter, Poole and Wiseman).
The design of the special edition cover is a throwback to the 1975-76 issue that featured actions photos on the cover.
There are five college players that appear on the traditional cover including Markus Burton (Notre Dame), Zach Edey (Purdue), Trey Galloway (Indiana), Ella Collier (Marian) and Mackenzie Holmes (Indiana) along with Myles Turner (Indiana Pacers).
Both Edey and Holmes are part of the Champions Cover based on Big Ten titles won by Purdue men and Indiana women from the 2022-23 season. Edey is a replica of the 1979-80 Joe Barry Carroll cover, while Holmes recognizes the 1977-78 cover that pictured No. 54 Kent Benson.
There are three high school seniors that appear with action pictures on the table of contents page. They are Lauren Foster (Indian Creek), Kennedy Fuelling (Norwell) and Jaedin Reyna (Hammond Noll).
The 2023-24 edition can be ordered by mail now by emailing hoosierbbllmag@att.net or call or text 317-925-8200.
Caston celebrated a holiday tournament championship and stayed undefeated in the process.
The games in the Beef O'Brady's Holiday Tournament presented by Logansport Savings Bank were the closest final scores of the season for the Lady Comets, 48-40 semifinal win over Maconaquah followed by a 40-37 championship win over North Miami.
Isabel Scales and Madisyn Douglass were named to the all-tournament team.
Before the tournament the closest outcome for Caston (15-0) was a November 11 decision over Winamac, 47-33.
Head coach Josh Douglass said it wasn't the prettiest basketball but he was pleased with how his team was able to grind out the wins.
The head coach knows there is still plenty left to do to improve for the upcoming postseason.
Key games left on Caston's schedule include a rematch with North Miami, a 10-win Tri-County team, 6th-ranked (2A) Carroll (Flora) (14-2), and 5th-ranked (1A) Bethany Christian (14-2). The Comets will get to host all of those matchups.
