Under the Radar in Central Indiana (The Suburbs)

The featured image is of [player_tooltip player_id='1225169' first='Marin' last='Koch'] (2027) from Whiteland Community High School.   About once a year I like to go through various areas of the state and highlight players for different reasons. In this specific article, I wanted to focus on 6 prospects (3 in 2027, 2 in 2028, and 1 in 2029) who are either listed on the watch list, or not at all included in the rankings at the release of this article. All 6 of these prospects come from schools in Central Indiana, but more specifically, from the counties of Boone, Hamilton, Hancock, the Northern half of Shelby County, the Northern half of Johnson County, the Northern half of Morgan County, and all of Hendricks County.   .    I felt like Aaliyah had an outstanding Spring & Summer grassroots season, so I'm a little hesitant to put her on this last. However, I am a little surprised more small colleges aren't recruiting her at this time. She is tough-nosed, strong, physical, and aggressive to the rim. She absorbs contact extremely well and can finish in a variety of ways. Additionally, she is unselfish and can find open teammates in positions to score, plus she is also physical and assertive at the defensive end of the floor. I really think she could be a problem at the next level because of her strength and athleticism.     When I saw Quinn in the Spring with her grassroots team, her physical talent stood out. She is long for her height, quick, fast, and explosive in most directions. But it was in June with her high school team where I was impressed with her vocal leadership, her command of the offense, and her ability to not only affect the game statistically, but also with her Senior leadership. She is a true floor general, and despite being a little undersized, she is a blur at times because of her physical talent. She can score it at all three levels, create for open teammates, and she's a water-bug defensively.     Marin has gotten better each season, and I think a lot of it has to do with finishing her growth and starting to add some strength to her frame. She is a long, gliding athlete who can pick up speed in transition. She plays with a nice motor, she uses physicality inside, and she makes a lot of hustle plays as well. Defensively, she's able to use her length to battle some on the boards, but she's also athletic enough to step outside and help contain wings and bigger guards. She has also become and effective mid-post scorer, she can attack off the bounce, and her 3-point shot is getting more consistent.     Piper entered high school as more of a combo guard, but in order to find her way onto the floor and help contribute the last couple of seasons, she has gotten stronger, tougher, more physical, and learned how to be that "hustle" kid who helps her team win games. She still maintains a nice handle and can initiate the offense or push in transition. She has some touch from around the perimeter as well. But it's her versatility now that stands out, and she is able to defend most '2s', wings, and even the occasional undersized '4'. She could very well step into a leadership position this year.     I was able to recently see "Millie" in the middle of July, and she continues to improve. She has always been a quick, feisty little water-bug, but I was more impressed with her understanding of changing speeds more often, being aggressive but no forcing the action as much, and really getting after it defensively. She's probably always going to be a little undersized, but her speed and quickness more than make up for it. Next Spring could be huge for her, as small colleges look for floor generals. If she continues her ascent and learning situational basketball, she could be a good one.     Due to unfortunate injuries, transfers, and graduation, Emersyn is in a prime position at Guerin Catholic to have a breakout year after averaging 3.9 points and 2.0 rebounds per game as a rookie. She has a wiry-strong frame, she is fast North/South, and she is very bouncy. She plays with an outstanding motor as well. Her effort can be contagious, but as she learns to sense tone and change speeds throughout a game, I think it will help her keep defenses off-balance. She is a solid multilevel scorer, a creator for teammates off the bounce, plus she can get after it defensively.

The featured image is of Marin Koch Marin Koch 5'11" | PF/SF Whiteland | 2027 IN (2027) from Whiteland Community High School.