Lafayette All-Area Team
In this article:
My first post for Prep Hoops was back in January where I provided a list of the best players in the Lafayette area about halfway through the season – https://prephoops.com/2021/01/top-players-in-l…y-through-season/. The Lafayette All-Area boys basketball team was recently announced, highlighting…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingMy first post for Prep Hoops was back in January where I provided a list of the best players in the Lafayette area about halfway through the season – https://prephoops.com/2021/01/top-players-in-l…y-through-season/. The Lafayette All-Area boys basketball team was recently announced, highlighting several of the players I mentioned in the first article. I wanted to compare these two lists just for fun. The all-area team was announced by the Journal & Courier.
First Team:
Brooks Barnhizer Brooks Barnhizer 6'5" | SF Lafayette Jeff | 2021 State #203 Nation IN – Senior – G/F Lafayette Jeff – 33 PPG, 11.5 RPG, 6.5 APG
Jonah Lucas Jonah Lucas 6'0" | PG Lafayette Harrison | 2022 State IN – Junior – G Harrison – 15 PPG, 3 RPG, 2 APG
Leyton McGovern – Senior – F McCutcheon – 20 PPG, 7 RPG, 3 APG
Joe Phinisee – Senior – G McCutcheon – 20 PPG, 5 RPG, 2.5 APG
Braedon Shrewsberry – Sophomore – G West Lafayette – 21 PPG, 4 RPG, 1.5 APG
Second Team:
Ashton Beaver Ashton Beaver 6'1" | SG Lafayette Jeff | 2021 State IN – Senior – G Lafayette Jeff – 17 PPG, 4 RPG, 2.5 APG
Jacob Collicott – Senior – G Lafayette Jeff – 10 PPG, 5 RPG, 2.5 APG
Connor Hall – Senior – F Benton Central – 15 PPG, 6 RPG, 1 APG
Jesse Hall Jesse Hall 6'7" | PF Crawfordsville | 2021 State IN – Senior – F Crawfordsville – 19 PPG, 7 RPG, 3 APG (pictured)
Noah Johnston – Senior – F Twin Lakes – 16 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.5 APG
Recap:
The players selected for the all-area first team are not a surprise to me and many others as I had all five players mentioned in the first article back in January. Those five guys were consistently the best players in the area with Barnhizer leading the group. Barnhizer finished fourth in Indiana’s Mr. Basketball rankings and led the state in scoring – very much a historic season for the future Northwestern Wildcat. Moving on to the second team, there are a lot of names that I didn’t have on the first list – Ashton Beaver Ashton Beaver 6'1" | SG Lafayette Jeff | 2021 State IN being the one that I did have. Jacob Collicott, Connor Hall, Jesse Hall Jesse Hall 6'7" | PF Crawfordsville | 2021 State IN , and Noah Johnston all had fantastic seasons and deserve the nod for the second team. The numbers that these players on this list are what jumps out to me. For example, Jesse Hall Jesse Hall 6'7" | PF Crawfordsville | 2021 State IN ’s numbers of 19, 7, and 3 a game and he is on the second team? That just shows how talented this area is. There are also several players who were left off of this list and received honorable mentions but could make the case for the second team.
As you can see, this list is dominated by upperclassmen. With eight out of the ten players being seniors, there will be ample opportunity for new players to be on this list next year. The only Junior, Jonah Lucas Jonah Lucas 6'0" | PG Lafayette Harrison | 2022 State IN , will more than likely be the favorite for Area Player of the Year. The only Sophomore, Braeden Shrewsberry, will likely be moving to Pennsylvania as his dad was recently hired as the next Head Coach at Penn State. That being said, that leaves nine open spots for next year’s list, creating a lot of excitement and opportunity for younger guys to put their names on the map.