3 For 3: Week 1 Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 2023-24 high school boys' basketball season is underway and we at Prep Hoops Indiana want to give you the absolute best coverage in the whole state. Indiana is full of great teams and talented players thus giving the fans incredible matchups every week. Join me, Kyler Staley, every Monday during the season as I preview the 3 Players, 3 Teams, and 3 Matchups to watch for that coming week. Are you ready? Let's get started!&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">3 Players</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1363488"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"There no bigger way to start the '3 For 3' series than with perhaps the biggest name in the state, [player_tooltip player_id='1363488' first='Flory' last='Bidunga']. The Kansas signee comes into this season having led the Kokomo Wildcats to the Class 4A Championship game, only to fall short to the undefeated Ben Davis. This year, Bidunga will be looking to finish the job and go out on a high note. From now until March, you have to make it a point to get it and see this phenom before he heads out of the state. Bidunga will be lead Kokomo in two homes games this week vs Western (11/21) and Westfield (11/25).","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6558df034aee4"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1749527"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Lindeman was one of the players on my watchlist this season because he steps into the role as 'the guy' for a sneaky talented Bloomington North team. Last season, he shot 50% from the field and 39.3% from the three which led him to averaging 11.7 ppg as a sophomore. This year, those numbers are expected to see a major increase for the son of former Indiana Hoosiers center Todd Lindeman. He is a highly skilled wing with excellent size on the perimeter, athletically fluid, great pace both on and off the ball and has a real knockdown jumper from 15ft and out. I will be in attendance as he leads Bloomington North vs Bedford on Tuesday.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6558df034af37"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1560952"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Another player that made one of my watchlists ahead of the high school season is 2026 big [player_tooltip player_id='1560952' first='Evan' last='Harrell']. Harrell will have a lot of pressure on him this season as he jumps into one of the leading roles for a Carmel Greyhound team with ton of youth and inexperience. At 6'7″ he has excellent height and length to pair with his guard-like skill. He has shown that he can be a star on the defensive end using his length well to disrupt, and he has enough athleticism and size to guard 1 through 5. This week will be the first true test for Harrel as Carmel host's Zionsville on Tuesday.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6558df034af78"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">3 Teams</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Heritage Hills (3A)</strong> - The Patriots of Heritage Hills are looking to make a deep run come the postseason and having one of the best, if not the best, players in the state in [player_tooltip player_id='1297118' first='Trent' last='Sisley'] certainly helps. For the past few seasons, the storyline of the Patriots has always been about getting 'help' around Sisley and this year they may have it with guys like sophomore wing [player_tooltip player_id='1560951' first='Jake' last='Prior'] looking to take some pressure off the elite prospect. The Patriots are one of my teams I feel will make a deep postseason run in 3A this season. They kick off their season with a road game at North Harrison on 11/25. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Manchester (2A)</strong> - The Squires of Manchester come into the 2023-24 high school season as one of the dark horses to make a deep run in 2A this season. They are led by one of the rising forwards in the state, 6'7 big man [player_tooltip player_id='1297028' first='Gavin' last='Betten']. The Squires come into this season finishing 18-6 last year but hit a roadblock vs Fort Wayne Blackhawk in Sectionals last season. With a much more experienced team, Manchester will be a tough out all season long. They kick off their season in a solid match vs Oak Hill on 11/25. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Greenwood Christian (1A)</strong> - The Cougars of Greenwood Christian will be looking to make a run in Class 1A this season. The Cougars will be led by senior shooting guard [player_tooltip player_id='1386511' first='Max' last='Booher'] as they have the last few years a brings back 15.4 ppg from his junior season. Booher also has a nice complimentary piece in 2025 guard [player_tooltip player_id='1529293' first='Evan' last='McIntire'], who is coming off a big summer. It will be extremely difficult to get out of Sectional 59, but combo of Booher and McIntire could get them over the hump. Greenwood Christian plays at Lebanon (11/21) and at Oldenburg Academy (11/25) this week. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">3 Matchups</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jeffersonville (4A) at Cathedral (4A) - Nov. 25th, 7:30 pm: </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is a game that is going to be a first good test for both Jeffersonville and Cathedral as they both look to prove themselves. The Red Devils of Jeffersonville make the trip up to Indianapolis to face a Cathedral team that is not as loaded and experienced as we have seen in recent years. Jeffersonville brings in arguably the top trio in the state in sophomores [player_tooltip player_id='1388408' first='Tre' last='Singleton'], [player_tooltip player_id='1297093' first='Michael' last='Cooper'], and [player_tooltip player_id='1373104' first='P.J.' last='Douglas'] with Cathedral leaning on breakout candidates [player_tooltip player_id='1525663' first='Brady' last='Koehler'], LeBron Gough, and [player_tooltip player_id='1561135' first='Keaton' last='Aldridge Jr']. to step up. This could be an extremely fun game, but I like Jeffersonville to come in an get the win due to their experience right now. <strong><a href="https://prephoops.com/player/p-j-douglas/"></a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Fishers (4A) at Ben Davis (4A) - Nov. 22nd, 7:30 pm: </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This game looked a whole lot different this past June, but still has a big fight feel to it with both Fishers and Ben Davis looking to make a deep postseason run. Fishers comes into this season about as balanced as you can get with senior 1-2 combo [player_tooltip player_id='2079500' first='Keenan' last='Garner'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1578471' first='Taden' last='Metzger'] leading the way. Ben Davis on the other-hand have arguably the best backcourt in [player_tooltip player_id='1158204' first='K.J.' last='Windham'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1373105' first='Mark' last='Zackery']. With football season wrapping up for Ben Davis, it is unclear just how much of factor Zackery will be this game. Either way, the youth of Fishers' backcourt in [player_tooltip player_id='2140345' first='Cooper' last='Zachary'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2267046' first='Jason' last='Gardner Jr.'] will leaky have some struggles vs Windham and company. This one is extremely close to call, but I like Ben Davis to barely squeak this one out. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Gobbler Games 2023</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It is always great to start the high school season with a holiday shootout and Southern Indiana has the best one this week in the Gobbler Games, which takes place at Terre Haute South High School. Below is the schedule plus the top players featured in this great event. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Schedule: </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>10 AM: North Vermillion vs West Vigo</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>11:30 AM: Owen Valley vs South Vermillion</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>1 PM: Bloomfield vs Mitchell</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2:30 PM: Mt. Vernon Posey vs North Central (Famersburg)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>4 PM: Northview vs South Knox</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>5:30 PM: Evansville Harrison vs Parke Heritage </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>7 PM: Sullivan vs Terre Haute South</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>8:30 PM: Evansville Christian vs Terre Haute North</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Players: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1158176' first='Josiah' last='Dunham'], [player_tooltip player_id='1158180' first='Braden' last='Walters'], [player_tooltip player_id='1253266' first='Zeke' last='Tanoos'], Zayvion, Baker, [player_tooltip player_id='1548652' first='Jack' last='Halls'], [player_tooltip player_id='1761697' first='Malachi' last='McNair'], [player_tooltip player_id='2089943' first='Eli' last='Speer'], [player_tooltip player_id='1578468' first='Shane' last='Sims'], [player_tooltip player_id='1297123' first='Jay' last='Summitt'], [player_tooltip player_id='2053676' first='Bryce' last='Renn'], [player_tooltip player_id='1560965' first='Treigh' last='Schelsky']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->