Prospect Watch: Luke Loewenstein (2018)
Class of 2018 power forward Luke Loewenstein of Duchesne is a throwback type of player in the age of 3-point shooting and open court play.
While many bigs enjoy the comforts of life beyond the line, the burly 6’5″ 230-pound Lowenstein still enjoys the bump-and-grind action in the low post. His strong play in the blocks have attracted recruiting interest from Division III schools such as Millikin, McMurray, Illinois Weslyan and Illinois College.
“I love playing in the low post,” Loewenstein said. “I play in an offense where they try to get the ball inside as much as possible. I have the lower body strength to be able to hold my position and get easy buckets down low. I feel that I’m effective in the post, but I’m a good enough passer to find the open man to shoot open 3-pointers.”
As a junior, Loewenstein averaged 14.4 points and 6.0 rebounds while shooting 61 percent from the field in helping the Pioneers to an 18-9 record. As a sophomore, he averaged 8.4 points and 5.4 rebounds while shooting 55 percent from the field. Although Loewenstein has established himself as a reliable scorer in the low post, he has continued to work on expanding his game as he works towards the collegiate level in a year.
“I’ve had to work on my jump shot a lot more,” he said. “I’m not the biggest guy out there anymore, so I have to find other ways to score.”
Lowenstein’s main goal as a senior is to help the Pioneers make a deep run in the Class 3 state tournament. He is part of a talented group of seniors that have been playing together for many years. Last season, Duchesne’s season ended prematurely with an upset loss to Lutheran North in the district quarterfinals. That loss has been a big motivator for Loewenstein and his teammates.
“As a team, we want to get out of the districts and hopefully win a state championship,” he said. “That loss has motivated us. We think about it every day when we go through our workouts. We just want to get back to where we want to be for our senior years.”