Grassroots Introductions: IGB
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The featured image is of Linzie Wernert Linzie Wernert 5'8" | PF Lanesville | 2023 State IN (2023) of Lanesville High School and IGB-Bradley 16U. With the 2021 grassroots season wrapping up last weekend, I wanted to finish introducing several…
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Continue ReadingThe featured image is of Linzie Wernert Linzie Wernert 5'8" | PF Lanesville | 2023 State IN (2023) of Lanesville High School and IGB-Bradley 16U.
With the 2021 grassroots season wrapping up last weekend, I wanted to finish introducing several of the state’s programs over the next few days. For the bigger programs in 17U-15U, they have gotten their own articles, while some of the smaller programs and individual teams will be found later in articles summarizing the remaining teams in each of those age groups, 17U-15U. Below is a look at the IGB (Indiana Girls Basketball) program. While they were “new” to the scene this year in the high school age groups, the program has been strong in the elementary and junior high age groups over the last several years. The focus this year was on building a high school program, so there were no teams in the 17U age group during the 2021 grassroots season. IGB draws girls primarily from Central Indiana, with an emphasis on Hamilton County, but there are a handful from other parts of the state as well.
16U:
There were two entries at the 16U level…IGB-Bradley and IGB-Novinger. The IGB-Bradley group was a fairly tall and skillful group with girls spread throughout the state, and even one from Kentucky. Their size started in the pivot as posts Ashlee Schram Ashlee Schram 6'3" | C Tipton | 2023 State IN (2023) and Sarah Gick Sarah Gick 6'1" | C Benton Central | 2024 State IN (2024) manned the middle. The 6-3 Schram was on display during the state tournament, as she helped Tipton to the Class 2A State Finals. She has a solid/strong frame, some length, and her skill and coordination in finishing around the basket is impressive for a traditional post. The 6-2 Gick is a bit longer and bouncier, and she is a really nice back-end defender who rotates well to help, blocks shots, and rebounds aggressively. Forward Abbie Lucas Abbie Lucas 6'0" | PF Bloomington South | 2024 State IN (2024) of Bloomington South is a nice frontline athlete who plays with a great motor. She can run and jump, she’s versatile defensively, and she’s solid scoring it inside of 15-feet. Linzie Wernert Linzie Wernert 5'8" | PF Lanesville | 2023 State IN (2023) of Lanesville is all energy, toughness, and physicality. She’s a strong, assertive, high-motor forward who can play around the perimeter or in the mid-post, she’s aggressive on the boards, and she loves to seek contact. Emily Mattingly Emily Mattingly 5'10" | SF Evansville Memorial | 2023 State IN (2023) of Evansville Memorial had a really nice grassroots season and certainly helped herself with regards to her recruiting. While she was primarily a perimeter shooter for a very good Memorial team last Winter, this Spring/Summer she showed the ability to attack the basket and finish inside, and she flashed a nice mid-range pull-up. Adylan Ayer Adylan Ayer 5'9" | SF Daviess County | 2023 State KY (2023) of Daviess County (KY) brought a great deal of athleticism to this group. She is extremely long, fast, and bouncy, and she plays hard at both ends of the floor. She did a solid job of handling the ball and initiating the offense at times, but she was also tough to stop when attacking the basket. Tori Allen Tori Allen 5'9" | CG Andrean | 2023 State IN (2023) of Andrean can play either guard spot effectively, and she really improved her ability to handle pressure throughout the season. She has length, fluid athleticism, and she can really shoot the ball outside. Ava Reitmeyer Ava Reitmeyer 5'10" | SG Bloomington North | 2024 State IN (2024) of Bloomington North is another dangerous outside shooter. She is a skillful, hard-working, young-for-her-grade guard who will only continue to improve the next three years. Gracie Kramer Gracie Kramer 5'4" | PG Vincennes Lincoln | 2023 State IN (2023) of Vincennes Lincoln missed a good portion of the season with an injury, but she returned in mid-July. She is quick-on-quick, extremely feisty, and an outstanding defender. She does a nice job of creating offense, and she plays with a nonstop motor.
As for the IGB-Novinger team, they are incredibly scrappy and tend to compete with the best of teams regionally. Point guard Kaitlyn Shoemaker Kaitlyn Shoemaker 5'4" | PG Noblesville | 2023 State IN (2023) of Noblesville brings a ton of energy for them. She is quick/fast, incredibly feisty, and very skilled. She can handle the ball and run offense, but she can also create offense, and she does a nice job of finding space and burying shots from the perimeter. Noblesville backcourt ’mate Brooklyn Ely (2023) is a nice compliment, as she works extremely hard, and she acts as a dangerous shooter hiding on the wings and in the long-corners. She too is feisty and will get after it defensively. Whitney Warfel Whitney Warfel 5'10" | PF Pendleton Heights | 2023 State IN (2023) of Pendleton Heights is an incredibly productive, versatile front-liner who does a lot of things inside of 15-feet. She is tough, physical, and she plays with a great motor. She will hit the mid-range jumper, she can score it on the block, and she has a nose for the ball. Grace Fisher (2023) of Fishers is an intriguing post who could be a really nice small college ’sleeper’. At 6-0, she is extremely long, somewhat bouncy, and she plays with an outstanding motor. She just needs to continue getting stronger and building her skillset. I also think wing Aubrey Novinger Aubrey Novinger 5'10" | SF Noblesville | 2023 IN (2023) of Noblesville could be a really nice prospect long-term, because she is still growing and gaining strength. She’s a bit of a wait-and-see kid still because of that, but she is a nice wing with skill and the ability to knock down shots outside consistently. Sophie Shephard (2023) of Carmel adds toughness and a nice motor to this team’s backcourt. She can knock down open jumpers, but it’s her hustle and scrappiness that help them most. Vivien Rector (2023) of Westfield, Ava Phillips (2023) of Pendleton Heights, and Tori Tomalia (2023) of Carmel round out this hard-working squad.
15U:
In the 15U age group, there are actually four IGB groups to note. They are IGB-Morse, IGB-Martin, IGB-Harris, and IGB-Cavanaugh. The IGB-Morse team has garnered the most attention over the Spring/Summer. They are very guard-heavy, but they are extremely skilled, hard-working, and they shoot the ball very well from just about every position. Westfield point guard Elizabeth Kelleher Elizabeth Kelleher 5'10" | PG Westfield | 2024 State IN (2024) has probably seen her interest increase the most. She has grown a lot since last Summer, but her game has also greatly improved. She is so cool under pressure, she takes care of the basketball, she’s a nice athlete, but she’s also making shots consistently at all levels. Allison Caldwell Allison Caldwell 5'11" | SG Zionsville | 2024 State IN (2024) of Zionsville Community also had a strong Spring/Summer season. I’ve always enjoyed her vision and awareness for the game, and she has worked on her handle a bit. She too is an outstanding shooter with some range around the perimeter. Speaking of shooters, I think Olivia Nickerson Olivia Nickerson 5'7" | SG Twin Lakes | 2024 State IN (2024) of Twin Lakes is probably the last person I want to play H-O-R-S-E against. If she’s given any space whatsoever, she is nearly automatic to about 27-feet. She has also worked on her handle and ability to absorb contact, plus she plays with a great motor. I felt like Kaiden Kreinhagen Kaiden Kreinhagen 5'8" | SF North Central (Indianapolis) | 2024 State IN (2024) of North Central (Indianapolis) had a nice grassroots season as well. She is a strong athlete, physical, but skillful as well. She hit some big shots at key times for this team, but she was also willing to get inside and defend/rebound. Meredith Tippner Meredith Tippner 5'10" | SG Noblesville | 2025 State IN (2025) of Noblesville was “promoted” to this 15U group for July, and she didn’t miss a beat. She is a long, fluid, skilled combo guard who plays with a great deal of toughness. She can handle the ball, run offense, attack the basket, and finish inside at odd angles. She’s also a capable shooter, and she plays with a nonstop motor. While the above girls are all really nice talents, the trio of Alivia Elmore Alivia Elmore 5'8" | SF Jennings County | 2024 State IN (2024), Kate Thomas Kate Thomas 6'1" | PF Fishers | 2024 State IN (2024), and Ava Shoemaker Ava Shoemaker 5'9" | SF Noblesville | 2024 State IN (2024) came up huge in the win department. Collectively they are an undersized ’frontline’, but they outwork everyone they play against. Elmore, a 5-8 small forward from Jennings County, might have played with the best motor I saw throughout July. She was simply everywhere, grabbing rebounds, defending, and finishing around the basket. Thomas, a 6-0 power forward from Fishers, is much tougher and more physical than her frame might suggest. She’ll mix it up with true posts, and she’s always on the floor after loose balls. And Shoemaker, a 5-9 forward, is somewhere in between the two, taking on multiple positions defensively, diving on the floor, rebounding, and scoring it in the mid-post.
I had the opportunity to finally see IGB-Martin in early July down in Louisville, and they are a tremendously scrappy group. I was very impressed with the play of Marissa Koschnick (2024) of Zionsville Community. She is a highly intelligent wing with a tremendous natural feel for the game. She hit shots at all three levels, but it was her ability to understand situations and find open teammates that stood out most to me. Lilly Chapman (2024) of Heritage Christian was a new name to me, but she was highly intriguing. At 6-0 tall, she has a fairly strong frame, plus she’s a solid athlete, and she has a balanced skillset and can play some around the perimeter, in the mid-post, or with her back to the basket. I’ll be curious to see how she develops her game going forward. Kooper Stone Kooper Stone 6'0" | PF Danville Community | 2024 State IN (2024) of Danville Community is a nice athlete along the frontline. She has broad shoulders and some length, she plays with a nice motor, and she moves well in most directions. She is more of a mid-post threat right now, a solid defender/rebounder, but I think she’s athletic enough to eventually develop into a wing. Kori Dues (2024) of Carmel is another similar type of forward who can play inside-out. She has a bit more length and shoots it a little more outside than Stone, but she also has a solid mid-post game and plays with a nice motor. 6-0 post Paizley Cool (2024) of Delta could be a nice small college kid down the road. She has a strong frame, some touch to near the 3-point line, and she plays with an outstanding motor and is willing to be physical around the basket. Greta Brown (2024) of Columbus North and Emani Washington (2024) of Lawrence North offer this team a couple of hard-working, scrappy guards who can both handle it a little and can score the ball at all three levels.
I unfortunately didn’t get to see much of IGB-Harris or IGB-Cavanaugh, but I do know a handful of those players who stand out. For IGB-Harris, I think Riley Hodges (2024) of Noblesville and Rachel Tolen (2024) of Benton Central have a real shot at helping their Varsity programs this season. Hodges is a hard-working, versatile guard who is a solid athlete. Tolen is a long, fluidly athletic wing who can shoot it outside a little or attack off the bounce. As for IGB-Cavanaugh, 6-1 Genna Hayes (2024) stands out in a big way. The post from Kankakee Valley has a broad, strong frame, she can be a physical presence in the paint, but she also has some touch outside and can knock down the occasional 3-pointer. Also, Rae Holok (2024) of Crown Point and the Cavanaugh sisters, Becca (2024) and Sophia (2024) of Valparaiso, are skillful perimeter players who shoot the ball fairly consistently from the perimeter. They look to see increased roles for their high school teams this Winter.