Open Gym Report: Brebeuf Jesuit

<p>We are back out on the road this week at Prep Hoops Indiana checking out some high school open gyms. I made the way over to Brebeuf Jesuit Monday evening, plan to hit Northeastern High School on Tuesday night, and then get down to Connersville High School on Wednesday afternoon. Going to these preseason workouts is a great chance to see how some players look in a more structured setting as opposed to AAU basketball and how they mesh their talent with high school teammates.</p> <p>There was a lot of talent in the gym at Brebeuf on Monday night and they looked like a pretty well-oiled machine beginning their sixth week of workouts. A few faces were missing due to football, most notably senior guard [player_tooltip player_id="1063981" first="Michael" last="Irk"], but for the most part the contributing varsity pieces were there.</p> <p>Coach Todd Howard will enter his 8th year at the helm of the Braves program with a record of 106-60. Brebeuf has sectional championships in 2016 and 2020 under Coach Howard. The sights are set much higher than that though as this team will likely enter the season as the odds-on favorite to win the Class 3A State Championship.</p> <p>The Braves will be led by Senior small forward [player_tooltip player_id="870225" first="Billy" last="Smith"] who averaged a team-leading 18.3 points per game a year ago. The 6’7" sharp-shooter was 74-174 from beyond the arc in 25 games, good for a 42.5% clip. Smith, and Indiana All-Star candidate, has offers from Army, Bellarmine, Eastern Illinois, Fordham, IUPUI, Lipscomb, and Miami (OH). A decision is expected before National Signing Day. His ability to stretch the floor at his size makes him a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses.</p> <p>Other returning production doesn’t offer the firepower of Smith, but there is a lot of depth in the senior class that has contributed at the varsity level. [player_tooltip player_id="870273" first="Zach" last="Reed"], [player_tooltip player_id="870236" first="Paul" last="Stubblefield"], [player_tooltip player_id="1063981" first="Michael" last="Irk"], and [player_tooltip player_id="870254" first="Dirin" last="Birhiray"] all averaged between 2.2 and 3.4 points per game and were significant rotation pieces last season. Reed is a 6’2"-6’3" guard who will take over a lot of ball-handling responsibilities this season. He had a strong summer culminating at the Prep Hoops Top 250 Expo where he really stood out and turned the heads of some small college coaches. Stubblefield is a 6’3" catch-and-shoot threat with some athleticism to attack closeouts as well. Irk, who also is a linebacker for the football team, is a 6’2" three-point specialist. Lastly, Birhiray is a 6’5" wing that may be the x-factor of the bunch. His length and athleticism give him a chance to really exploit smaller defenders. Very good driver from the wings and in transition. All four of these players are potential small college recruits with varying levels of interest from DIII programs.</p> <p>Speaking of an x-factor, Brebeuf Jesuit received a move-in from Sandwich, Illinois in [player_tooltip player_id="1210385" first="Marial" last="Puou"] who should play a major role for the Braves. The 6’7" forward has already picked up an offer from Huntington since coming to Indiana. Puou is incredibly long and athletic, serves as a rim protector on the defensive end, and finishes above the rim offensively. His skill set is a little raw, but the physical tools are there for him to really be a force alongside [player_tooltip player_id="870225" first="Billy" last="Smith"] for Brebeuf. The development of Puou and Birhiray will ultimately go a long way towards whether or not the Braves can cut down the nets in March.</p> <p>Rounding out the rotation, junior guard Alex Gothard is the second leading returning scorer after averaging 4.7 per game as a sophomore. He can really shoot it from three-point range. Sophomore wing [player_tooltip player_id="1275802" first="Reis" last="Butcher"] is expected to make significant contributions this season as well after a strong summer. Look for junior point guard Cameron Freeman to play some minutes off the bench. The 6’0" ball handler was impressive in open gym on Monday night and should compete for backup point guard minutes.</p>