Most Likely 3A Team to Lead the State in Scoring
As we get into the swing of previews, we will track each class with teams that we are interested in. Up next in our list of superlatives are the 3A teams that we think have the best chance to lead the state in scoring. Next will be the five 2A teams who will have the best chance to lead the state in scoring.
New Castle
New Castle is a good candidate to lead the state in scoring as they return their two leading scorers. Mason Gillis, a Purdue commit, and Luke Bumbalough, a Ball State commit, are back in town and are looking to score more than the 69.2 points a game they scored last year. Gone is their third leading scorer, but a host of seniors should be able to step up into that role and score a few more points each. Look for New Castle to have a big year as they attempt to get to the State championship at the end of the year.
Danville
Danville loses quite a bit of scoring from last year including their leading scorer Alec Burton who averaged 19.5 points a game. Danville does return their next three top scorers though and two of them should be poised for a breakout. Danville won’t be as focused on moving the ball through the post as they were last year with dominant force Burton but this year should be more focused on moving the ball and creating scoring opportunities. Dillon Ware and Sam Comer are two juniors who should really step up this year and their scoring should almost double this year combined.
Blackford
Blackford has the chance to do something very special this year and a lot of that rides on the shoulders of sophomore Luke Brown. Brown is a scorer and will really be able to put up as many points as he wants to. They lose their second leading scorer from a year ago but also were without the services of Brown for the entire second half of the season and still scored north of 60 points a game. Brown is back and healthy for this season and we should see an uptick in scoring from Blackford due to that.
Indianapolis Manual
Manual likes to play quickly and this year is going to be no different. Jalen Johnson is back for another year and should be able to score close to 27 points a game after a big AAU season. Wilante Hankston and Braxton Houston are going to provide some more scoring for the team as they combined to score 18 points a game last year but will have more control of the offense this year after some graduations. Manual is a team that likes to go quick and score, so this year is just going to fall in line with how they have played in years past.
Marion
Speaking of playing fast, Marion is the safe bet to lead the state in scoring. A year removed from averaging 75 points a game, Marion returns their top four scorers including Jalen Blackmon who averaged 22.4 points a game and JK Thomas who added in 15.3 a game. Marion likes to go quick and run their offense off of the guards so they can get as many shots up as possible during the games. Marion is going to score a ton over the next three years.