Lawrence North bounced back from two straight losses on Thursday night to beat Franklin Central 76-63. Karnes, a 6’2″ senior guard, poured in a team-high 21 points on senior night in the win. He has had an excellent season for the 18-5 Wildcats who will enter an always tough Sectional 10 field as the favorite next week.

The senior sharpshooter has carried over his strong play from the summer into his final season for Lawrence North and makes the Wildcats dangerous on the offensive end with his shooting ability. Big time shooter with deep range and a smooth release. He does a really good job knowing how to get open and not having any wasted movements on the offensive end. Really good off the catch running off screens and has continued to add off the dribble shot making to his arsenal. He’s always on balance and if he has an ounce of daylight, you can mark him down for three.

A player who had a great shooting night for the Lawrence North Wildcats on Tuesday in the Phil Cox Memorial Tournament was senior shooting guard Duke Karnes Duke Karnes 6'2" | SG Lawrence North | 2026 State IN . Karnes did what he does best, hitting outside jumpers off the catch and making shots that consistently kept the momentum on the Lawrence North side. He also had a couple of dribble pull-up jumpers, continuing to show that he is not just a spot-up shooter. A high-IQ shooting guard who is always so consistent.

Lawrence North comes into this season as one of the more experienced teams in Class 4A and will be looking to have a big time showing vs Noblesville this weekend. A player on the Lawrence North side that will easy be one of the top pure scorers on the floor is senior wing Duke Karnes Duke Karnes 6'2" | SG Lawrence North | 2026 State IN . One of the best pure shooters in the state, Karnes is extremely good at getting buckets off the catch and creating open looks for himself. With a more increased role this season, Karnes is player to take advantage of it.

We watched Karnes at a recent Lawrence North High School open gym and came away very impressed with his growth as a ball handler and facilitator. The 6’2″ guard is best known as a three-point shooting threat, but he really showed off some improved playmaking ability at the Wildcats’ recent preseason workout. Small college programs, including those with scholarship money, should be taking a hard look at Karnes as he sets to begin his senior season.

An under-the-radar player that has been sneakily having a really good AAU season this year has been Lawrence North’s Duke Karnes Duke Karnes 6'2" | SG Lawrence North | 2026 State IN , who runs with Hoopmatics 17u on the 3SSB circuit. Got a chance to watch him vs EG10 on Friday and what caught my eye was ability to make plays on the ball, even though he is mostly looked at as a shooter off the ball. He did a good job of taking his defender off the dribble being able to get a quick burst of speed in the lane to finish. He is longer guard, but has tight enough handles to where he can be a facilitator or scorer off the pull-up. Good feel for the game.

Hoopmatics 17u made a roaring second half comeback, even briefly taking a lead, before ultimately falling 81-68 to Indiana Basketball Club. However, it was an impressive performance for Karnes as he put up 20 points in the loss. The 6’2″ guard from Lawrence North High School scored it from all three levels in the game and stood out defensively for the second straight day. We really like the two-way ability he has shown against high-level competition here in Rock Hill.

Lawrence North is going to have some holes to fill as far as production next season and one of the guys with a major opportunity to be one of the players to step up is 2026 shooting guard Duke Karnes Duke Karnes 6'2" | SG Lawrence North | 2026 State IN . The 6-foot-2 wing came to Lawrence North last season and was able carve out a role as their primary spot up shooter through the season. By all accounts, he has had a really strong spring with Reps317 thus far scoring in high bunches from deep, which he is smooth about doing. Lawrence North is going to be one of the more interesting teams to watch in June, and Karnes could be a guy to turns some heads with a more important role.

It all came in a flurry in the third quarter, but Karnes was the catalyst for what was a brief comeback and lead for Lawrence North. He nailed a three-point shot, an Achille’s heel for this Wildcats team, to tie the game and then put LN on top 40-38 with a tough And-1 on a drive. Obviously the lead did not hold, but Karnes showed off his shot-making ability in that important stretch.