Top Power Forwards In Central & West Central Indiana

In selecting the five regional areas for my regional articles, I used the Indiana Coaches of Girls’ Sports Association’s (ICGSA) five districts. Schools are evenly distributed by county and somewhat geographical, though not exact. Counties included in the "Central & West Central" articles include: Boone, Clay, Clinton, Fountain, Hamilton, Hendricks, Marion, Montgomery, Morgan, Owen, Parke, Putnam, Tipton, Vermillion, Vigo, and Warren. Across the entire Prep Hoops Network, we are exploring ways to bring you different types of content in each of the states we cover. One idea we’ve come up with is "city rankings", where we highlight some of the better players in each metropolitan area. I felt like in Indiana, however, there are talented kids spread all over the state, so it wouldn’t be fair to solely focus on Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, and Evansville, for example. Instead, I have divided the state into five regions based on a fairly even distribution of the 400+ high schools available to choose from. It isn’t exact, but it seemed like the best way to make sure all prospects from the Hoosier state were considered. (Please see the italicized fine print above for a more specific breakdown of the counties used in this article.) Without further ado, below is a look at some of the top returning power forwards in "Central & West Central" Indiana, arranged alphabetically within their graduating classes.   [player_tooltip player_id="62527" first="Bridget" last="Dunn"], 2021, 6-3 PF, Carmel H.S. At times I’ve likened Bridget’s game to past Indiana preps like Haliegh Reinoehl (2016 Westfield/Akron) and Blake Smith (2018 Carmel/Ball State), though Bridget might have more upside as a college prospect when compared at the same age. She is extremely long, fluid, and athletic for her height, plus she has tremendous skill. She was a 5-9ish guard when she was in 8th Grade, and she has maintained and improved a lot of that perimeter skill as she has aged. She can still handle it some in transition, plus she is a very nice shooter with range to the arc. Bridget committed to Kent State University earlier this Spring. [player_tooltip player_id="130317" first="Nakaih" last="Hunter"], 2021, 5-11 PF, North Central H.S. (Indianapolis) Nakaih is the workhorse on North Central’s frontline, and she has been a consistent producer since her Freshman year. She is strong, powerful, physical, and tough around the basket. She is a nice athlete in most directions, and she has learned how to finish through, around, and over taller, longer athletes. She can drive the ball from the mid-post or knock down the 15-footer, but she’s still best around the basket. Nakaih is also an effective defender and can take on players much bigger than herself, plus she rebounds the ball at a high level, including outside of her area. She gave a verbal commitment to IUPUI this Spring. [player_tooltip player_id="130310" first="Meg" last="Newman"], 2021, 6-3 PF/SF, North Central H.S. (Indianapolis) Meg is one of the more talented players in the state, she has played significant minutes for a strong Panther program all three years she’s been in high school, and she recently committed to play at Arizona State University. Meg has a long frame, but she also has broad shoulders, muscle/strength, and some speed and bounce. She’s difficult to define by position because she does so many different things. To me at least, she’s probably best suited as a dominant mid-post ’4’ who can also handle it and make plays around the perimeter or knock down the 3-pointer on occasion. She has a lot of versatility to her game. [player_tooltip player_id="10679" first="Alex" last="Richard"], 2021, 6-1 PF, Avon H.S. Alex is quite the bulldog inside, so it’s only fitting that over a year ago she committed to play at Butler University. She has a strong, powerful frame, good length, and nice athletic ability in most directions. She can run the floor as well as anyone, and she has some bounce as well. Early in her career, Alex was more of a rebounder/defender type. But as she’s aged and worked on her game, she’s really done a nice job of developing her handle and her face-up game to the point she is comfortable around the perimeter and can knock down the 15-footer fairly consistently. She should be a nice addition to the Bulldog frontline. [player_tooltip player_id="130313" first="Katey" last="Richason"], 2021, 6-0 PF, Zionsville Community H.S. Katey’s high school career got off to a fast start her first two years, but then in year-3 she had to fight off the injury bug. She still managed 15 games as a Junior, and Zionsville was noticeably better with her in the lineup. She is one of the tougher, more passionate, energetic kids you’ll see up front, and she brings sort of a contagious energy that picks her teammates up. She has really worked on her ball-handling, her perimeter shooting, and her all-around ability to make plays outside as well as in transition. I really like her skill and versatility, and she should fit in nicely at Miami University in Ohio, where she has committed. [player_tooltip player_id="10744" first="Alyssa" last="Crockett"], 2022, 6-2 PF/SF, Westfield H.S. Alyssa is another talented, young, frontline prospect, and her game has some similarities to maybe a [player_tooltip player_id="130310" first="Meg" last="Newman"] (above) stylistically. Alyssa has a solid handle, the ability to make plays off the dribble, plus she’s a tremendous shooter with range beyond the 3-point line (57-136 42% from ’3’, 87% free throws in 2019-2020). She plays with a nice motor and is a solid North/South athlete. If she can develop her lateral quickness a little more, it would definitely help her game at both ends of the floor. She has picked up her share of Division-I offers already, including the most recent one being from the University of Maryland. [player_tooltip player_id="61051" first="Jozee" last="Rhodes"], 2022, 5-11 PF, Plainfield H.S. Jozee is a really nice basketball player, and despite missing the second half of her Freshman season due to a knee injury, she bounced backed as a Sophomore and had a nice second year. She has a solid frame, wiry strength, and she’s a decent North/South athlete. She is physical and tough-nosed inside, she can post smaller defenders, and she’s an active rebounder. She’s actually probably best facing the basket in the mid-post because she does have some touch shooting the ball. I’d even venture to say that she can become a legitimate pick-and-pop threat from beyond the arc in the next year or so. [player_tooltip player_id="59726" first="Asiah" last="Baxter"], 2023, 5-10 PF/SF, Warren Central H.S. Asiah is a strong, somewhat powerful, but very athletic and versatile forward who is almost deceptive at times in how she plays. She certainly looks like a power player, but she moves around the floor well in all directions, she plays with an outstanding motor, and I think she has a lot more perimeter skill and shooting touch than most people realize. She defends hard and well, and she can guard most wings on the perimeter or forwards up front. If she can continue developing her handle and her perimeter shot, I think she can become a full-time wing in the near future, because she’s certainly athletic enough. [player_tooltip player_id="59743" first="Kelsey" last="DuBois"], 2023, 6-1 PF/C, University H.S. Kelsey fits the University offense to a tee, and she had the fortune of playing alongside and learning from [player_tooltip player_id="10581" first="Lindsey" last="Syrek"] (2020 NJIT PF commit) for a season. Kelsey is a nice-sized frontline prospect, she has good strength/power, plus she has some length and moves around the floor fairly well. She can actually handle it a little around the perimeter, attack from the mid-post, or knock down the 15-footer on occasion. She’s also physical and strong enough to abuse smaller defenders on the low-block. She averaged a double-double (11.1 points, 10.1 rebounds in 2019-2020) as a Freshman. [player_tooltip player_id="59757" first="Laila" last="Hull"], 2023, 6-0 PF/SF, Zionsville Community H.S. Laila is a very talented athlete with a tremendous amount of potential and upside if she continues developing her skillset. She has a wiry strong frame, good length, and she can run and jump with just about any of Indiana’s Class of 2023 prospects. She started all season for the Eagles, averaging 13.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 2.8 steals per game, plus she showed the ability to knock down the occasional perimeter jumper. She is a bit streaky outside still, but when she gets going she can hit three or four in a row. That’s encouraging moving forward. She’s also a nice rebounder and a versatile defender.   Other Noteworthy Power Forwards: [player_tooltip player_id="99389" first="Natalie" last="Howard"], 2021, Ben Davis H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="130328" first="Sydnee" last="Hughes"], 2021, Lawrence North H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="130381" first="Courtney" last="Lee"], 2021, Heritage Christian School [player_tooltip player_id="130355" first="Sally" last="Mortensen"], 2021, Perry Meridian H.S. Riley Pennington, 2021, Carmel H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="130360" first="Emily" last="Wood"], 2021, Noblesville H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="34555" first="Samara" last="Douglas"], 2022, Covenant Christian School (Indianapolis) [player_tooltip player_id="61053" first="Ariel" last="Helm"], 2022, Lawrence North H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="128170" first="Destinee" last="Hooks"], 2022, North Central H.S. (Indianapolis) [player_tooltip player_id="61046" first="Madison" last="Kerrigan"], 2022, Westfield H.S. Belle Miller, 2022, Southmont H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="128145" first="Emily" last="Roper"], 2022, Carmel H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="59751" first="Layla" last="Gold"], 2023, Park Tudor H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="96082" first="Taylor" last="Guess"], 2023, Ben Davis H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="59754" first="Mallory" last="Heerdt"], 2023, Zionsville Community H.S. Reagan Martin, 2023, Owen Valley H.S. Dani Mendez, 2023, Noblesville H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="91591" first="Lauren" last="Stewart"], 2023, Hamilton Southeastern H.S. [player_tooltip player_id="127239" first="Quinci" last="Thomas"], 2023, Brownsburg H.S.