We’re finally into the Top 20 and it’s starting to feel like basketball season. We’re only 2 weeks away from actual real games rather than just rankings. There’s some big boy schools in this week’s edition. As good as all five of these teams are, they all could actually not make it out of their sectional. That’s just life for alot of 4A schools. A couple of Sectional 8 rivals enter into the rankings this week. Both are more than capable of pulling an upset or 2 in March. There’s a group that is up in Ft. Wayne that now have semi state experience from last year. There’s also a couple of Sectional 3 foes that make an appearance this week. They’ll be two sets of rankings coming out this week and next so let’s get ready for some basketball.
20. Fort Wayne Snider Panthers- Snider returns from a 20-8 season, including a 7-2 conference record, and a 54-46 New Castle Regional upset win over Carmel before losing 76-47 to Crown Point in the Class 4A semi-state. That works out to about 62.5 points for and 56.6 against per game, a margin of +5.9, and they went 9-2 at home, 6-4 on the road and 5-2 at neutral sites. The biggest hole is graduated point guard Xavier Wilson, who led the team at 15.7 points, 3.6 assists, 1.2 steals and 4.3 rebounds per game while shooting 48% overall and 39% from three. His 409 points were nearly a quarter of the team’s scoring. Junior guard Trell Hogue was slated to be the top returning player but left for prep school just before the school year started. Now alot of responsibility is expected from Sr. Ketron Paschall who scored 8.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game on 60% shooting, and he led the team with 168 rebounds and 37 blocks. Junior guard Chance DeRossett returns as the team’s top perimeter defender, with 1.4 steals per game, 1.7 assists and a 40% mark from three-point range. Derossett played really well @ the Charlie Hughes in June and more than held his own against a talented Silver Creek team. Sr. Braylin Fertil also shot 39% from deep, so Snider has real shooting depth on the wing. 6’6 soph. John Vance is a name that will be important now, and later to help on the inside. Jr guard Terrell Lapsley should also step up his productions from last season. Soph. Grayson Wyss is the most likely candidate in filling the point guard spot now that Hogue is gone. Losing Jordan Woods (56% from the field), Layne Patterson (3.8 rebounds per game), and Trell really hurts but this is the year Snider has been working towards for a few years now. A sectional and regional run is realistic if some of their unproven pieces step up.
Key Games
November 28 @ Chesterton
December 22 v. South Bend Riley
January 5 @ New Haven
January 15 v. Homestead
19. South Bend St. Joe’s Huskies- St. Joe’s enters the season as a program with the first state title in its history back in 2025 with a 56-52 W over Crispus Attucks. And last season the Huskies went 21-5 that ended with a regional-final loss to Northridge. Last year’s group was the state’s top scoring team at 78.4 points per game, while allowing 58.4. The Huskies finished at roughly 78 per game and reached 80 or more points 13 times. They graduated a good number of contributors; Nick Shrewsberry (17.8 points per game) is gone, along with the team leaders in rebounding (Shrewsberry, 7.2), assists (Ethan Roseman, 5.4), steals (Ryder Place, 2.4) and field-goal percentage (Braylen White, 58%). Sr. guard Elijah King is the leading ppg scorer back, leading the team at 19.1 points per game last season, and he’s one of the top in-state prospects in the class of 2027. King was a Jr. All Star and is on track to make the Indiana All Star team in June. Sr. forward Peyton Miamba, listed at 6’6″, was scoring 13.3 points per game late in the year, which makes him the likely second option. Two varsity players Gus Peciulis and Connor Gallagher as returning upperclassmen that will find themselves with bigger roles. St. Joe’s may give the keys to the program over to incoming freshman Markiss Northern. He comes in as one of the top 10 freshmen in the state and will be a huge part of their success this season. This is another team in a super tough Sectional 3.
Key Games
December 4 v. Chesterton
December 12 v. Homestead @ Grace
December 29 + 30 @ Homestead Tournament
January 22 @ Penn
18. Westfield Shamrocks- Usually losing players like Drew Haffner and Brock Detamore would knock a team right out of contention. This season could actually be better than last year’s 13-9 record. The schedule is never easy when you’re a school from Hamilton County and there’s not many gimmies for the Rocks either. One main reason for the optimism is there’s another Smith running the show. Incoming freshman Maddox Smith will come into the season with the keys to the Westfield car and not only be counted on to run the team, but score as well. It also helps that the Westfield game I watched @ the Charlie Hughes, Smith was putting up 26 points on defending 3A champs, Cathedral. There’s also not many teams that have a legit 6’10 big on the floor. Sr. Luke Vandergriff averaged 8.7 ppg and 5.4 rebounds last year so look for those numbers to increase this year. Seniors Logan Sumpter and Bryce Bigsbee will also be looked at for increasing their roles and production. Bigsbee is a really good athlete that you could feel good about putting on other teams best player. Soph. Graham Wilson is a 6’0 guard that scored 4.8 ppg. in his first high school season. Alot of their season comes down to how good Maddux Smith actually can be during his first high school season. I have no doubt he’ll be good eventually in the future but he could also be special right now. If he’s a top 3 kid in the 2030 class then Westfield should hover around the top 10 in 4A all season.
Key Games
November 24 v. Scecina
December 4 @ Zionsville
December 12 v. Guerin Catholic
January 15 @ Hamilton Southeastern
17. Zionsville Eagles- Zionsville opens the 2026-27 season under a new head coach, after finishing 13-11 last year and losing 42-38 to Noblesville in the Sectional 8 opener. J.R. Howell stepped down after six seasons, and Andy Weaver, the former Plainfield coach, took over, bringing a 423-313 career record over 32 years and an IBCA District 2 Coach of the Year award after a 22-3 season at Plainfield. There’s no shortage of talent for the Eagles this year. The offense should run through Sr. guard Camden Moore, a 6’2″ player who led the team at 13.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. He also led the Eagles with 19 points in the sectional loss. Sr. forward Preston Johnson is the other key returner, having led the team in field-goal percentage at 56%, assists at 2.7 per game and blocks at 1.0 per game, which makes him an important piece if Zionsville wants to move through Sectional 8 in March. Forward Nick Snively, listed at 6’4″, and rising seniors Rylon Gore, Ayo Oguntunde and Wesley Sim also return, with sophomores Zack Green and Elijah Berger coming up behind them. Two freshmen that could get some varsity time but will be big pieces for the Eagles in the future are Kaden King and Layton Jenkins. The main losses are seniors Owen Haan and Cooper Hess, a 5’8 point guard and a 6’7 power forward. Hess’s size is likely the hardest thing to replace. It’s not out of the question for Zionsville and their new coach to play spoiler and get through a loaded sectional.
Key Games
November 24 @ Carmel
December 4 @ Westfield
December 29 + 30 Tournament @ Homestead
January 22 v. Hamilton Southeastern
16. Penn Kingsmen- Penn enters 2026-27 after an 18-7 season that ended in a loss to South Bend Riley in the sectional semifinal, with a young group of Kingsmen. The centerpiece is Caleb Coolman, now a junior: a 6-foot-5 point guard in the class of 2028 who averaged 21.0 points, 8.4 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game last season and earned Prep Hoops Indiana All-State honors. As a sophomore he also broke Penn’s sophomore scoring record of 394 points, set by Markus Burton, reaching 425 points by mid-February. 6’8 Sr. Makale Prince forward who looks to be second option, with performances like 21 points on 7-of-8 shooting against Fort Wayne Wayne. Mikell Burton, last year’s freshman point guard and now a sophomore, showed his promise with 9 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists in that same game, so expect a bigger role for him this winter. The biggest question is replacing the departures, because Penn lost three senior starters and one more senior off the bench, and last year’s roster listed five seniors: Lucas Obermeyer, Ben Murphy, Caleb Martinez, Cody Evans and Christian Bonner. Obermeyer in particular gave Penn double-figure scoring and rebounding in some games, so interior production and perimeter shooting depth are the biggest concerns. Incoming freshman Josh Sanderson is a kid that should get alot of varsity time, if not start this season. Last year’s team could run up scores, such as 96-65 at Fort Wayne Wayne and 91-51 over South Bend Washington so everyone will have to step up their ppg if they want to continue those high scoring games. If Coolman keeps producing at a 20-plus-point level and Price and Burton take on larger roles, Penn looks like a team that can compete for a loaded sectional 3 title.
Key Games
December 5 v. Crown Point
December 12 v. Hamilton Southeastern @ Carmel
January 22 v. SB St. Joe’s
February 6 v. Chesterton