Notebook: Hoosier Shootout

INDIANAPOLIS, IN | The final live period has come to a close and we are recapping our final days on the road. The month of July and the AAU season is coming to an end for the 2018 class. Now, a look back at our final stop in Indy for the Hoosier Shootout. DistinXion CHAMPIONS Red 17U Showcases New Program The newest program with legitimacy this summer was the Zeller-ran DIstinXion teams. They are bringing a new style to AAU, one that involves more training and less games. For their first year, the team they have had as their top senior program has some players on it. The DistinXion CHAMPIONS Red 17U has some players from Southern Indiana on their roster that are worth a look and following a big summer, they will draw interest heading into the fall. Guys like Brigham Booe, Braeden Beard, Jacob Sanford, and Sam Corrona. Booe, a 6’0 guard from Northview (IN), has been solid during the summer but has been balancing between basketball and baseball. The bigger surprise, though, is Sam Corrona. He’s always been a shooter but he’s been fairly small. A growth spurt has helped him and he’s gotten a bit better with his all around handles. Beard, a 6’6 post out of Tell City (IN), should be the best returning player for this program next year as he was a 2019 playing up. He’s a pretty solid player now and should get more agile and effective as he continues to grow. If the model for this program works, they should see some results next season on the AAU circuit again. Pocket City 2019 Helps Represent Southern Indiana The class of 2019 is deep in every part of the state, including Southern Indiana. The Pocket City 2019 team has an abundance of talent and they showed this weekend, again, that they will help to heavily contribute to the depth. While they have three standouts from Kentucky on the roster in Carson and Connor Guthrie, as well as Kyle Stivers, the program boasts some solid size. Zach Dove has really developed in the time since we saw him last fall. The 6’5 post player has had his share of big games and he’s got the motor colleges covet. His brother Matt has taken steps forward as well and he could be a sleeper heading into next spring. They also have guys like Paxon Bartley, a guy that should draw a lot of attention for his offense, and Logan Carter, a massive low post player with a motor. The group has some talent from both sides of the Ohio River and as the AAU season wore on, you could see how these players will fit into the landscape of the 2019 class and it’s depth. They won’t just be depth pieces but prime talent coaches will want to recruit. New Names To Watch As we did in Fort Wayne, we were on a search to try and find a ton of new names to add to our database. We found quite a few in Indianapolis with most coming from the 2020 class. A few of those names were Vincent Pich and Eli Keiser Pich is a 6’1 guard out of Beech Grove. He showed great handles and a calm demeanor on the ball. Good size already and had enough offensive game to really standout. Keiser is a 6’6 wing out of Rossville (IN). He showed some stretch forward skills as he knocked down some shots from 15’ and out. Thin frame but active and long. A couple of 2018 prospects stood out as well. Guard Elijah Holmes, a Fort Wayne North (IN) standout, was really solid in Lockdown Elite’s game we watched. He has speed and a decent jumper but the pace he plays with makes him fun to watch. We also really liked 6’3 guard Alec Martin out of Gibson Southern (IN). The long, tall guard showed enough ball skills to be intriguing and has the size to impact the game on both ends. Still raw in some areas but upside is there.