Phil Cox Memorial Holiday Tournament – Quarterfinals Live Blog
In this article:
Prep Hoops Indiana will have boots on the ground coverage from the historic Kokomo Memorial Gymnasium for the fourth annual Phil Cox Memorial Holiday Tournament. The quarterfinals of the eight-team, two-day tournament tip-off at 11:00 a.m. on Friday with the…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingPrep Hoops Indiana will have boots on the ground coverage from the historic Kokomo Memorial Gymnasium for the fourth annual Phil Cox Memorial Holiday Tournament. The quarterfinals of the eight-team, two-day tournament tip-off at 11:00 a.m. on Friday with the championship game being played on Saturday evening at 7:45 p.m. Kokomo’s five-star center Flory Bidunga Flory Bidunga 6'9" | C Kokomo | 2024 State #7 Nation IN , a Kansas signee, is the name that everyone knows, but there are a handful of other Division I level prospects to watch as well as a few additional players who have committed to in-state NAIA programs. For more coverage throughout the day follow @BRamseyKSR on Twitter, but we will also keep the live blog rolling here with game recaps, player evaluations, top performers, and much, much more.
***All rankings are from the Week 5 Prep Hoops Indiana Poll***
11:00 a.m. – #6 Kokomo 81 vs. New Haven 49
This one started with Flory Bidunga Flory Bidunga 6'9" | C Kokomo | 2024 State #7 Nation IN doing Flory Bidunga Flory Bidunga 6'9" | C Kokomo | 2024 State #7 Nation IN this for the Wildkats. He dunked the ball on Kokomo’s first two offensive possessions and ended the first quarter with 8 points on three dunks while also grabbing 4 rebounds. New Haven was trying to zone them, but Kokomo had too much size and athleticism.
The Wildkats have done a great job of placing some shooters around Bidunga on the perimeter to take some interior pressure off of him. Junior guard Zion Bellamy Zion Bellamy 5'8" | PG Kokomo | 2025 State IN is an excellent shooter while Baris Moore Baris Moore 5'11" | PG Kokomo | 2026 State IN and A’Dayveon Young have also hit early triples. The ceiling of their guard play might not match that of the best couple backcourts in the state, but when you put them around a front court of Bidunga and Karson Rogers Karson Rogers 6'6" | PF Kokomo | 2024 State IN it gives Kokomo a chance to beat anyone in the state of Indiana.
It was a two-way domination in first half from Flory Bidunga Flory Bidunga 6'9" | C Kokomo | 2024 State #7 Nation IN scoring 10 points, grabbing 5 rebounds, and blocking 6 shots. Kokomo leads New Haven 37-18 at the break as Zion Bellamy Zion Bellamy 5'8" | PG Kokomo | 2025 State IN nailed a pull-up three-point shot off of the dribble at the buzzer. Bellamy also has 10 points for the Wildkats. Marquaylon Johnson leads the Bulldogs with 5 points at half.
Kokomo led by as many as 32 points but couldn’t quite get the running clock going heading into the fourth quarter. They leads New Haven 61-33. Flory Bidunga Flory Bidunga 6'9" | C Kokomo | 2024 State #7 Nation IN now up to 19 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 blocks. We are officially on triple-double watch.
The running clock went into effect with about 3:30 remaining in this first game of the Phil Cox Memorial Holiday Tournament when Kokomo took a 76-40 advantage. The Wildkats would go on to win 81-49. Kansas signee Flory Bidunga Flory Bidunga 6'9" | C Kokomo | 2024 State #7 Nation IN finished with his fifth career triple-double of 19 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 blocks. Zion Bellamy Zion Bellamy 5'8" | PG Kokomo | 2025 State IN added 18 points for Kokomo while sophomore guard Korbyn Hammel Korbyn Hammel 6'3" | PG Kokomo | 2026 State IN , a transfer from New Haven, shot 4-6 from three-point range on his way to 14 points. Marquaylon Johnson scored 9 points for New Haven in the loss.
12:45 p.m. – South Bend Riley 62 vs. Mishawaka 49
It has been all South Bend Riley early on in this one as they simply have too much firepower for the Cavemen. Bethel commit Payton Baird Payton Baird 6'5" | SF South Bend Riley | 2024 State IN has 9 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists while dynamic junior guard Marvin Schindler Marvin Schindler 5'9" | PG South Bend Riley | 2025 State IN has also scored 9 points for the Wildcats. Jaylen Barbara Jaylen Barbara 6'0" | SG South Bend Riley | 2025 State IN has added 6 points. For Mishawaka, Rasauun Johnson Rasauun Johnson 6'2" | SG Mishawaka | 2024 State IN leads the way with 5 points at the half. South Bend Riley leads 33-16.
South Bend Riley led by as many as 29 points late in the third period, but the Cavemen hung around and got it as close as 13 in the fourth. However, there was no comeback story to this one as the Wildcats would hold on to win 62-49. Bethel bound Payton Baird Payton Baird 6'5" | SF South Bend Riley | 2024 State IN finished with a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Wildcats. Mancell Hill added 15 points as well for Riley while Marvin Schindler Marvin Schindler 5'9" | PG South Bend Riley | 2025 State IN chipped in 14 points. Cooper Pritchett was the team-leader for Mishawaka finishing with 9 points.
2:30 p.m. – Mount Vernon (Fortville) 68 vs. #9 Plainfield 62
Quick start for the Quakers got them out to a 9-0 lead and they extended it to a 16-3 advantage with under two minutes to play in the quarter. 6’7″ sophomore Noah Smith Noah Smith 6'7" | SF Plainfield | 2026 State IN was active early, senior guard Eli Ellis Eli Ellis 5'11" | SG Plainfield | 2024 State IN was finding open teammates all over the floor, and Mount Vernon couldn’t buy a free throw. The Marauders were able to settle in though and keep themselves in the game trailing 16-8 after the opening period. Noah Smith Noah Smith 6'7" | SF Plainfield | 2026 State IN had 5 points and 3 rebounds for Plainfield while Eli Ellis Eli Ellis 5'11" | SG Plainfield | 2024 State IN dished out 3 assists.
Plainfield once led by a score of 16-3, but Mount Vernon (Fortville) has come all the way back to lead at halftime 20-19. Julien Smith Julien Smith 5'10" | PG Mount Vernon (Fortville) | 2026 State IN leads the way with 7 points. Noah Smith Noah Smith 6'7" | SF Plainfield | 2026 State IN and Colton East each have 5 points for the Quakers.
Both teams picked it up offensively in the third quarter with Noah Smith Noah Smith 6'7" | SF Plainfield | 2026 State IN and Collin Schmidt Collin Schmidt 6'7" | PF Plainfield | 2024 State IN leading the charger for Plainfield and Tanner Teschendorf Tanner Teschendorf 6'2" | PG Mount Vernon (Fortville) | 2025 State IN coming up big for Mount Vernon with a corner three as the two traded baskets. Plainfield goes into the fourth quarter with a 36-34 lead over the Marauders.
The pace to this game certainly picked up down the stretch. For much of the final 10-12 minutes these two teams traded baskets largely coming from freshman Harper Baker-Lands Harper Baker-Lands 6'2" | SG Plainfield | 2027 State IN and sophomore Julien Smith Julien Smith 5'10" | PG Mount Vernon (Fortville) | 2026 State IN . Both young, talented players scored in double-figures in the fourth quarter alone for their respective teams. The Marauders forced a couple of turnovers late to overcome a six point deficit in the final minutes, but missed free throws continued to haunt them as they had all game long. However, Smith knocked in a pair when it mattered most to tie the game 55-55 and send the game to overtime.
Big win for the Marauders as they pulled it out in overtime 68-82 over Plainfield. Dynamic sophomore guard Julien Smith Julien Smith 5'10" | PG Mount Vernon (Fortville) | 2026 State IN was excellent down the stretch finishing with 25 points to lead all scorers. Elijah Parra Elijah Parra 6'0" | PG Mount Vernon (Fortville) | 2026 State IN added 14 points for Mount Vernon. For Plainfield, Collin Schmidt Collin Schmidt 6'7" | PF Plainfield | 2024 State IN , an IU-South Bend commit, finished with 17 points and 8 rebounds while freshman Harper Baker-Lands Harper Baker-Lands 6'2" | SG Plainfield | 2027 State IN added 13 points.
4:15 p.m. – Jeffersonville 64 Warren Central 59
Jeffersonville leads Warren Central at the half 25-21. Jeremy Rose Jeremy Rose 6'1" | SG Jeffersonville | 2024 State IN and Michael Cooper Michael Cooper 6'2" | PG Jeffersonville | 2025 State IN each have 9 points to lead the Red Devils. Robert Walker Robert Walker 6'3" | SF Warren Central | 2024 State IN also has 9 points for Warren Central. These two teams are a combined 7-14 from three-point range, but have also turned it over a combined 22 times.
P.J. Douglas P.J. Douglas 6'4" | SF Jeffersonville | 2025 State IN scored 11 points in the fourth to lead the Red Devils with 17 points and 10 rebounds for the game as they defeated Warren Central 64-59. Michael Cooper Michael Cooper 6'2" | PG Jeffersonville | 2025 State IN and Jeremy Rose Jeremy Rose 6'1" | SG Jeffersonville | 2024 State IN each scored 15 points while Tre Singleton Tre Singleton 6'7" | PF Jeffersonville | 2025 State #225 Nation IN added 11 points. In the loss for Warren Central, Robert Walker Robert Walker 6'3" | SF Warren Central | 2024 State IN scored a game-high 28 points on 7-13 shooting from three-point range.