June Preview – Class 1A & Class 2A Teams to Watch

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After a busy spring we press pause on the grassroots circuit and return to good old Indiana High School Basketball for the month of June. Teams will conduce workouts, play in local leagues, and travel for shootouts throughout this month. June also brings major events like the Indiana All-Star series, the IBCA Top 100 workout, and the annual Charlie Hughes Showcase. As always, Prep Hoops Indiana will have boots on the ground covering it all. However, before we get started, let's take a look at some of the teams that you'll want to make a point of watching this month. Here are five of the top Class 1A and Class 2A teams to watch going into the 2023-2024 season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Brownstown Central</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The obvious draw to watching the Braves this summer will be one last go around for Indiana Mr. Basketball candidate [player_tooltip player_id='1158245' first='Jack' last='Benter']. The Purdue commit will spend his senior season moving up the state's all-time scoring list while pursuing a Class 2A state championship. However, Benter has a good amount of help around him as well. Rising senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1547584' first='Parker' last='Hehman'] alongside rising juniors [player_tooltip player_id='1296999' first='Chace' last='Coomer'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1297005' first='Colby' last='Hall'] are all proven contributors that will help to take some pressure off of their star scorer. I'll be getting eyes on Brownstown Central each of the next two weeks on Friday, June 2nd at the University of Indianapolis and then at Hanover College on Thursday, June 8th.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Evansville Christian</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Returning five of your six primary rotation players including an Indiana Junior All-Star is a pretty darn good start for building a contender in Class 1A. That is exactly what Evansville Christian has headlined by rising senior point guard [player_tooltip player_id='1158176' first='Josiah' last='Dunham']. Dunham averaged 24.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 5.4 assists last season, but the Eagles were upset in the Sectional championship game by Northeast Dubois in overtime. In their second season of IHSAA postseason eligibility, Dunham and Evansville Christian will look to make more noise in the state tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Indianapolis Lutheran</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The defending Class 1A state champions will be very good once again. Indianapolis Lutheran will play in the PAC Summer League on Tuesday nights, they go to UIndy on the 9th and Anderson on the 16th, and will play in the Charlie Hughes Showcase June 24th-26th. Their leading scorer, rising junior Lonte Ward averaging 13.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game to lead the Saints to a state title. The super athletic guard is having a breakout spring playing with Progeny 2025 as well. Look for rising junior Cayden Loescher to have a big month as well after scoring a game-high 22 points to go with 10 rebounds as they cut down the nets at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in March.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Tipton</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tipton is coming off of back-to-back Sectional championships and will have their sights set on advancing further in the state tournament this time around. The Blue Devils graduate just 9.4 points per game and bring back their three leading scorers. Rising senior point guard [player_tooltip player_id='1158205' first='Nolan' last='Swan'] has had an excellent spring so far with [program_tooltip program_id='167506' first='Grand' last='Park'] Premier Black. As a junior, he averaged 19.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game. Meanwhile, rising junior [player_tooltip player_id='1297029' first='Grady' last='Carpenter'] stuffed the stat sheet averaging 15.4 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 7.4 assists per game. Rising senior Jackson Money added 11.2 points per game. That high scoring three-headed monster will give them as good of a core as anyone at the small school level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">University</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Trailblazers came up just short of capturing a Class 2A Sectional championship last season, falling 40-37 to Park Tudor ending an excellent 22-3 season. Their star, 6'3" rising senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1293439' first='Sabien' last='Cain'], will be back after averaging 16.1 points per game and earning Indiana Junior All-Star honors. Other up-and-coming guards will be looked upon for an increased scoring role this season like rising juniors Robert Russell and [player_tooltip player_id='1578353' first='Bryce' last='Gray'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->