Fans,
Shown below are my annual pre-season rankings for the 2019-20 season for Class 2A. A big apology for being so late with these rankings this time around. Rankings for 3A and 4A will be coming soon.
These rankings are based on a formula I've developed over the years that places emphasis on each team's record for the past year combined with the number of key players they have returning along with the actual number of points returning. Strength of schedule is also a strong consideration. One aspect that is NOT considered is attempting to evaluate players who rarely played at the varsity level during this past season.
This formula usually works in a majority of cases but occasionally “misses the boat” on some others. I developed it so that my own personal biases do not enter into the final rankings. These rankings are usually more indicative of a team’s strength at the start of the season as opposed to how they might finish.
Most of the info used for this analysis was derived from the following sources:
* Coaches from 100 schools
* www.maxpreps.com, the IHSAA-endorsed statistical service, provided
usable data for 262 schools.
* E.T.Pearl’s excellent website which provides complete statistical info for 62 schools in North Central Indiana. See etpearl.homestead.com./
* subscribing to seven different newspapers
* researching the websites of several other papers and basketball websites.
A big Thank You to everyone who provided information.
For each school, the info below shows this past year's record along with the number of key players and points returning. Where a + is shown, that means that a key player is returning for whom I do not have statistical information.
The “Power Rating” is shown for each school so that readers can see how each of the ranked schools compared with each other. If two or more teams have the same power rating, the number of points returning is used as a “tie breaker.”
One additional note. Unless otherwise known, these evaluations assume all players stay at the school they were at last year. In this day and age, that’s not a very safe assumption anymore, but I don’t know of any other way to deal with it, especially at this early date.
If you know of a team that you feel should be ranked, don’t hesitate to let me know (Dan.Wantz@yahoo.com). It’s possible that I did not have enough information to properly consider them.
And lastly, a big Thank You as always to John Harrell’s great website for all of the easily accessible historical info that I often reference in these write-ups.
Enjoy,
Daniel Wantz
---------------------------------------------------------------------
CLASS 2A’s TOP 20 TEAMS
(For each ranked team, their 2019 record is shown along with the number of key players returning and the cumulative ppg represented by those players.)
2019 #Key Players & Power Rank
Team W-L Players Ret PPG Returning Rating
01_Andrean________________21-8______5________42___________150
02_Park-Tudor_____________ 16-7______5________45___________141
03_Covenant Christian (Indy)__12-12_____9________70___________132
04_Fort Wayne Blackhawk____28-2______3________41___________130
05_University______________ 21-5______7________49___________117
06_Bowman Academy________13-12_____5________36___________114
07_Westview_______________25-6______2________27___________112
08_Linton-Stockton_________ 27-4______4________38___________110
09_Prairie Heights___________20-6______3________40___________109
10_Evansville Mater Dei______17-8______4________23___________109
11_Wabash________________21-5______ 6________50___________108
12_Lapel__________________14-10_____7________ 42___________108
13_Forest Park_____________ 15-10_____4________ 38___________106
14_Blackford______________ 17-6______4________ 62___________102
15_Whitko________________ 13-10_____4________38___________ 102
16_Southwestern (Hanover)__ 25-2______4________43___________ 101
17_Shenandoah_____________26-2______5________50___________100
18_Southridge_____________ 19-6______ 2________25___________ 100
19_Central Noble___________15-8______ 3________37____________99
20_Heritage Christian_______ 19-6______ 1________14____________97
Projecting ahead, let’s take a look at the tournament trail for the
teams shown above—starting in the far North part of the state.
01_Andrean__ _________Sect. 33/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
06_Bowman Academy___Sect. 33/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
07_Westview__________ Sect. 35/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
09_Prairie Heights______ Sect. 35/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
19_Central Noble______ _Sect. 35/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
04_F.W. Blackhawk_____Sect. 36/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
11_Wabash____________Sect. 36/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
15_Whitko____________Sect. 36/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
14_Blackford__________Sect. 39/Northeast Reg./North Semi-State
12_Lapel_____________ Sect. 40/Northeast Reg./North Semi-State
17_Shenandoah________Sect. 41/Southeast Reg./South Semi-State
02_Park-Tudor________ Sect. 42/Southeast Reg./South Semi-State
05_University_________ Sect. 42/Southeast Reg./South Semi-State
03_Covenant Chris.(Indy)_Sect. 42/Southeast Reg./South Semi-State
20_Heritage Christian___Sect. 42/Southeast Reg./South Semi-State
16_Southwestern (Han.)_ Sect. 45/Southwest Reg./South Semi-State
08_Linton-Stockton____ Sect. 47/Southwest Reg./South Semi-State
10_Evans.Mater Dei____ Sect. 48/Southwest Reg./South Semi-State
13_Forest Park________ Sect. 48/Southwest Reg./South Semi-State
18_Southridge_________Sect. 48/Southwest Reg./South Semi-State
Now, here’s a closer look at the Top 20 teams in 2A. Unless stated otherwise, all players are seniors. Those 6’ 3 or taller have their height mentioned, if known. Scoring average is shown in parentheses. Rebound and/or assist average is also shown where known and relevant.
1_Andrean: 6'7 junior Kyle Ross (17.0, 9-r) and junior Nick Flesher (8.6). Ross was a Soph All-State selection for this past year.
2_Park-Tudor: 6'3 junior J.C.Glenn (11.0, 6-r), junior Ronald Johnson (10.5), and 6'4 Kadaphi Honaker (10.5).
3_Covenant Christian (Indy): Cameron Shurig (14.5, 5-r), junior Trey Flatt (14.1), and 6'3 Noah Hendrick (9.9).
4_Ft.Wayne Blackhawk: 6'10 junior Caleb Furst (18.8, 10-r), 6'3 junior Zane Burke (13.0), and junior Marcus Davidson (9.5). Furst was a member my All-State team for this past year.
5_University: Max Greenamoyer (11.0), 6'3 Joseph Martin (10.2, 4-a), and Sam Mervis (7.1, 5-r, 6-a).
6_Bowman Academy: 6'5 junior Koron Davis (11.4) and 6'5 Jaquez Williams (9.4, 9-r).
7_Westview: 6'5 Charlie Yoder (23.7). Yoder was a member my All-State team for this past year.
8_Linton-Stockton: 6'4 junior Lincoln Hale (18.4) and 6'3 Kip Fougerousse (11.4). Also, JV squad was 16-3.
9_Prairie Heights: Mike Perkins (16.3), 6'7 Elijah Malone (13.5, 10-r), and 6'4 junior Brandon Christlieb (10.2, 5-r).
10 Evansville Mater Dei: 6'4 Jackson Hiester (8.6) and 6'6 Tyler Phelps (7.8, 5-r). JV squad was 18-4.
11_Wabash: Trenton Daughtry (18.7, 5-r, 4-a), Dereck Vogel (8.2), and 6'7 Elijah Vandervelden (7.5, 6-r).
12_Lapel: Carson Huber (10.3) and Cole Alexander (8.5).
13_Forest Park: 6'8junior Curt Hopf (16.2, 9-r), junior Simon Jacob (9.3), and soph Drew Howard (8.5). Hopf was a Soph All-State selection for this past year.
14_Blackford: Junior Luke Brown (35.0, 5-r, 7-a) and Brandon Stroble (16.1, 5-r). Brown was an All-State selection for this past year.
15_Whitko: Juniors Brett Sickafoose (16.0, 6-r) and Drake Lewis (10.2).
16_Southwestern (Hanover): Juniors Foster Mefford (15.7, 5-r, 7-a) and 6'4 Matthew Williams (15.6) as well as soph Zach Cole (8.0, 5-r).
17_Shenandoah: Juniors Andrew Bennett (13.3, 5-a), Kade McCullough (11.2), and Jakob Kinsey (10.9, 4-a). Also, Peyton Starks (10.2).
18_Southridge: 6'4 junior Colson Montgomery (21.1, 7-r). Montgomery was a Soph All-State selection for this past year.
19_Central Noble: 6'3 soph Connor Essegian (18.8), 6'3 junior Sawyer Yoder (9.0), and Lucas Deck (8.0).
20_Heritage Christian: 6'4 Harrison Eckel (13.9, 6-r).
Shown below are my annual pre-season rankings for the 2019-20 season for Class 2A. A big apology for being so late with these rankings this time around. Rankings for 3A and 4A will be coming soon.
These rankings are based on a formula I've developed over the years that places emphasis on each team's record for the past year combined with the number of key players they have returning along with the actual number of points returning. Strength of schedule is also a strong consideration. One aspect that is NOT considered is attempting to evaluate players who rarely played at the varsity level during this past season.
This formula usually works in a majority of cases but occasionally “misses the boat” on some others. I developed it so that my own personal biases do not enter into the final rankings. These rankings are usually more indicative of a team’s strength at the start of the season as opposed to how they might finish.
Most of the info used for this analysis was derived from the following sources:
* Coaches from 100 schools
* www.maxpreps.com, the IHSAA-endorsed statistical service, provided
usable data for 262 schools.
* E.T.Pearl’s excellent website which provides complete statistical info for 62 schools in North Central Indiana. See etpearl.homestead.com./
* subscribing to seven different newspapers
* researching the websites of several other papers and basketball websites.
A big Thank You to everyone who provided information.
For each school, the info below shows this past year's record along with the number of key players and points returning. Where a + is shown, that means that a key player is returning for whom I do not have statistical information.
The “Power Rating” is shown for each school so that readers can see how each of the ranked schools compared with each other. If two or more teams have the same power rating, the number of points returning is used as a “tie breaker.”
One additional note. Unless otherwise known, these evaluations assume all players stay at the school they were at last year. In this day and age, that’s not a very safe assumption anymore, but I don’t know of any other way to deal with it, especially at this early date.
If you know of a team that you feel should be ranked, don’t hesitate to let me know (Dan.Wantz@yahoo.com). It’s possible that I did not have enough information to properly consider them.
And lastly, a big Thank You as always to John Harrell’s great website for all of the easily accessible historical info that I often reference in these write-ups.
Enjoy,
Daniel Wantz
---------------------------------------------------------------------
CLASS 2A’s TOP 20 TEAMS
(For each ranked team, their 2019 record is shown along with the number of key players returning and the cumulative ppg represented by those players.)
2019 #Key Players & Power Rank
Team W-L Players Ret PPG Returning Rating
01_Andrean________________21-8______5________42___________150
02_Park-Tudor_____________ 16-7______5________45___________141
03_Covenant Christian (Indy)__12-12_____9________70___________132
04_Fort Wayne Blackhawk____28-2______3________41___________130
05_University______________ 21-5______7________49___________117
06_Bowman Academy________13-12_____5________36___________114
07_Westview_______________25-6______2________27___________112
08_Linton-Stockton_________ 27-4______4________38___________110
09_Prairie Heights___________20-6______3________40___________109
10_Evansville Mater Dei______17-8______4________23___________109
11_Wabash________________21-5______ 6________50___________108
12_Lapel__________________14-10_____7________ 42___________108
13_Forest Park_____________ 15-10_____4________ 38___________106
14_Blackford______________ 17-6______4________ 62___________102
15_Whitko________________ 13-10_____4________38___________ 102
16_Southwestern (Hanover)__ 25-2______4________43___________ 101
17_Shenandoah_____________26-2______5________50___________100
18_Southridge_____________ 19-6______ 2________25___________ 100
19_Central Noble___________15-8______ 3________37____________99
20_Heritage Christian_______ 19-6______ 1________14____________97
Projecting ahead, let’s take a look at the tournament trail for the
teams shown above—starting in the far North part of the state.
01_Andrean__ _________Sect. 33/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
06_Bowman Academy___Sect. 33/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
07_Westview__________ Sect. 35/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
09_Prairie Heights______ Sect. 35/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
19_Central Noble______ _Sect. 35/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
04_F.W. Blackhawk_____Sect. 36/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
11_Wabash____________Sect. 36/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
15_Whitko____________Sect. 36/Northwest Reg./North Semi-State
14_Blackford__________Sect. 39/Northeast Reg./North Semi-State
12_Lapel_____________ Sect. 40/Northeast Reg./North Semi-State
17_Shenandoah________Sect. 41/Southeast Reg./South Semi-State
02_Park-Tudor________ Sect. 42/Southeast Reg./South Semi-State
05_University_________ Sect. 42/Southeast Reg./South Semi-State
03_Covenant Chris.(Indy)_Sect. 42/Southeast Reg./South Semi-State
20_Heritage Christian___Sect. 42/Southeast Reg./South Semi-State
16_Southwestern (Han.)_ Sect. 45/Southwest Reg./South Semi-State
08_Linton-Stockton____ Sect. 47/Southwest Reg./South Semi-State
10_Evans.Mater Dei____ Sect. 48/Southwest Reg./South Semi-State
13_Forest Park________ Sect. 48/Southwest Reg./South Semi-State
18_Southridge_________Sect. 48/Southwest Reg./South Semi-State
Now, here’s a closer look at the Top 20 teams in 2A. Unless stated otherwise, all players are seniors. Those 6’ 3 or taller have their height mentioned, if known. Scoring average is shown in parentheses. Rebound and/or assist average is also shown where known and relevant.
1_Andrean: 6'7 junior Kyle Ross (17.0, 9-r) and junior Nick Flesher (8.6). Ross was a Soph All-State selection for this past year.
2_Park-Tudor: 6'3 junior J.C.Glenn (11.0, 6-r), junior Ronald Johnson (10.5), and 6'4 Kadaphi Honaker (10.5).
3_Covenant Christian (Indy): Cameron Shurig (14.5, 5-r), junior Trey Flatt (14.1), and 6'3 Noah Hendrick (9.9).
4_Ft.Wayne Blackhawk: 6'10 junior Caleb Furst (18.8, 10-r), 6'3 junior Zane Burke (13.0), and junior Marcus Davidson (9.5). Furst was a member my All-State team for this past year.
5_University: Max Greenamoyer (11.0), 6'3 Joseph Martin (10.2, 4-a), and Sam Mervis (7.1, 5-r, 6-a).
6_Bowman Academy: 6'5 junior Koron Davis (11.4) and 6'5 Jaquez Williams (9.4, 9-r).
7_Westview: 6'5 Charlie Yoder (23.7). Yoder was a member my All-State team for this past year.
8_Linton-Stockton: 6'4 junior Lincoln Hale (18.4) and 6'3 Kip Fougerousse (11.4). Also, JV squad was 16-3.
9_Prairie Heights: Mike Perkins (16.3), 6'7 Elijah Malone (13.5, 10-r), and 6'4 junior Brandon Christlieb (10.2, 5-r).
10 Evansville Mater Dei: 6'4 Jackson Hiester (8.6) and 6'6 Tyler Phelps (7.8, 5-r). JV squad was 18-4.
11_Wabash: Trenton Daughtry (18.7, 5-r, 4-a), Dereck Vogel (8.2), and 6'7 Elijah Vandervelden (7.5, 6-r).
12_Lapel: Carson Huber (10.3) and Cole Alexander (8.5).
13_Forest Park: 6'8junior Curt Hopf (16.2, 9-r), junior Simon Jacob (9.3), and soph Drew Howard (8.5). Hopf was a Soph All-State selection for this past year.
14_Blackford: Junior Luke Brown (35.0, 5-r, 7-a) and Brandon Stroble (16.1, 5-r). Brown was an All-State selection for this past year.
15_Whitko: Juniors Brett Sickafoose (16.0, 6-r) and Drake Lewis (10.2).
16_Southwestern (Hanover): Juniors Foster Mefford (15.7, 5-r, 7-a) and 6'4 Matthew Williams (15.6) as well as soph Zach Cole (8.0, 5-r).
17_Shenandoah: Juniors Andrew Bennett (13.3, 5-a), Kade McCullough (11.2), and Jakob Kinsey (10.9, 4-a). Also, Peyton Starks (10.2).
18_Southridge: 6'4 junior Colson Montgomery (21.1, 7-r). Montgomery was a Soph All-State selection for this past year.
19_Central Noble: 6'3 soph Connor Essegian (18.8), 6'3 junior Sawyer Yoder (9.0), and Lucas Deck (8.0).
20_Heritage Christian: 6'4 Harrison Eckel (13.9, 6-r).
