3 For 3: Week 10 Preview

The 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! 3 Players [player_tooltip player_id="769684" first="Branden" last="Northern"] – 5’11 2022 PG – Silver Creek: Northern came into this season with a ton of eyes on him as he was the loan returning star on last year’s Silver Creek 3A Champion team. The Dragons have been struggling this season like many thought they would but Northern himself is having a great season 26.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 6.0. This guy is highly talented and I am very shocked more schools have not offered him. He and Silver Creek have a huge week to get a couple of good wins with games vs Madison (1/28) and Bloomington South (1/29). [player_tooltip player_id="870260" first="Nick" last="Mikash"] – 6’4 2022 SF – Kankakee Valley: I have said this before but Mikash is one of the most aggressive SF’s that I have seen play. He is a guy that has improved his game a ton and right now is one of the best forwards in Northern Indiana. This guy just brings toughness to this very talented Kankakee Valley team. He and Kougars will look to keep their 3-game winning streak alive when they travel to Highland on 1/28 and host Portage on 1/29. [player_tooltip player_id="1042497" first="Zane" last="Doughty"] – 6’9 2023 C – Ben Davis: Doughty and the Giants have been having a very dominant year so far this season. Even though he is still a tad raw, he is a powerful force in the paint that has risen his stock. This past week, he earned his first D1 offer from Siena College and their could be a few more low-major offers coming his way. He and Ben Davis have a monster week this week with a game vs Carmel (1/28) and trip to Crispus Attucks on 1/29. 3 Teams Bloomington South (4A): After starting the season at just 7-5, the Panthers have been on a roll as of late with winning their last 4 games. The last couple of years, Bloomington South has had a dip in talent but have been finding ways to get the job done and usually play their best basketball towards the end when it really matters. Guys like [player_tooltip player_id="1267673" first="Patrick" last="Joyce"], [player_tooltip player_id="870270" first="Brock" last="Kincaid"], [player_tooltip player_id="1236653" first="Aiden" last="Schmitz"], and others are starting to step up. Huge opportunity to get some more wins with games vs Terre Haute South (1/28) and Silver Creek (1/29) on tap. Bishop Chatard (3A): After starting off the season with a surprising 13-0 record, the Trojans suffered a heartbreaking loss to Crispus Attucks in the Indianapolis Tournament this past weekend. With the loss aside, this team has been amazing to watch all season long. [player_tooltip player_id="1143910" first="A.J." last="Roseman"] is having like an incredible year and guys like [player_tooltip player_id="870309" first="Carter" last="St. John"] stepping up in a big way as well. People may still classify them as underdogs, but this team is legit and can make a run in the post-season. If they can get a road win against either University (1/26) or Brebeuf Jesuit (1/29) then that would be a huge lift for them. Lake Station (2A): What a dominant year this Lake Station squad is having. 13-0, one of the top teams in 2A, and have beaten 7 of those teams by double digits. This is an experienced squad with a ton of 2023’s on there with guys like [player_tooltip player_id="1162708" first="Willie" last="Miller"], Armoni Gonzalez, and Romeo Guerra all having breakout years. Their schedule gets a little bit tougher this last half of the season but should have an easy win this week over Rover Forest (1/29). 3 Matchups North Daviess (1A) at Orleans (1A) – Jan 29th, 7:30pm: This is a classic Southern Indiana showdown if there ever was one. North Daviess had a roller coaster weekend as they beat 2A Linton then turned around and lost in OT to Barr-Reeve. Orleans, who was one of my teams to watch last week, has continued to roll on this season having won their last 4 games. Both of these teams are just tough man and I could see both winning this. Going to go with North Daviess to get the road win here simply because if [player_tooltip player_id="935727" first="Jaylen" last="Mullen"] can beat the high powered trio at Linton, then he should be able to lead them to victory over the less talented Orleans. Going to be a fight either way. Mt. Vernon (Fortsville) (4A) at Connersville (3A) – Jan 28th, 7:30pm: This is a battle between two teams that are one of the better squads in their respective class that I don’t feel get enough credit. Mt. Vernon, who is 12-2, has won their last 6 games and have already beaten teams like Zionsville and Decatur Central. Connersville, who is 12-4, just picked up a big win over Noblesville this past and won their first 8 games. For some reason, however, these two teams are outside of the top ten in both 4A and 3A. This one just simply comes down to talent and it is hard for me to bet against the duo of [player_tooltip player_id="870220" first="Amhad" last="Jarrard"] and [player_tooltip player_id="870268" first="Armon" last="Jarrard"]. Mt. Vernon gets a huge road win here. Monroe Central (2A) at Shenandoah (2A) – Jan 29th, 7:30pm: Monroe Central just continues to impress this year. They are still unbeaten and just came off a huge win over 3A Yorktown this past weekend. Shenandoah has not had the best of year at just 7-5 but does have a tough team led by 2022 SG [player_tooltip player_id="1063970" first="Jasper" last="Campbell"]. However, Taylor signee [player_tooltip player_id="870304" first="Jackson" last="Ullom"] has been playing at another level this year which is a big reason why Monroe Central has had so much success. There is upset potential here but Monroe Central should get the job done.