Devin Bolden scored 41 points with 20 rebounds in one game while averaging 25.0 points and 15.5 rebounds over two games, and the Indianapolis Cardinal Ritter junior headlines the honorees in this week’s IBCA Player of the Week program.
Mt. Vernon (Fortville) senior Luke Ertel, Merrillville sophomore Charles Hardiman, Heritage Hills senior Jake Prior, Northridge junior Allison Ambers, Roncalli junior Elliott Leffler and Evansville Central senior Maddy Shirley join Bolden as Week 6 winners in the IBCA Player of the Week program for 2025-26.
Also, the Lawrence North boys’ team, Northridge boys’ team and Floyd Central girls’ team each was cited as an IBCA/Ballogy Team of the Week for respective performances during the week of Dec. 8-13 in the recognition program coordinated by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association.
Players of the Week are selected by IHSAA district – Hardiman and Ambers for District 1, Bolden, Ertel and Leffler for District 2, and Prior and Shirley for District 3. Teams of the Week are cited at the discretion of the program coordinators, former Martinsville coach Kip Staggs for boys and former Brownsburg coach Debbie Smiley for girls. Players and teams are recognized based on all performances in a Monday through Saturday week.
Bolden and Ertel shared the boys’ District 2 award.
Bolden opened his week with nine points, 11 rebounds, two steals and two blocks as the Class 2A co-No. 16 Cardinal Ritter boys dropped a 77-62 decision to Class 2A No. 7 University. The 6-8 forward bounce back in a big way, pouring in 41 points with 20 rebounds, one assist and one steal as the Raiders (3-2) posted a 77-50 victory at Class A co-No. 19 Indianapolis Lutheran. For the two games, Bolden sank 20-of-30 field goals and 10-of-10 free throws. That included a 17-of-21, 7-of-7 shooting effort in the 41-point explosion.
Bolden’s output left him four points short of the Cardinal Ritter school record of 45 points set by then-sophomore Larry Ivy at McCutcheon on Feb. 24, 1979. Ivy was 20-of-30 from the field and 5-of-7 from the line while adding eight rebounds and two assists in his record-setting game.
Ertel nearly recorded a triple-double in the only game of the week for the Class 4A No. 6 Mt. Vernon (Fortville) boys, a 62-47 victory over Class 4A No. 9 Pendleton Heights. The 6-2 guard totaled 26 points, 15 rebounds, eight assists and five steals as the Marauders improved to 4-1. The Purdue recruit converted 10-of-17 shots, 4-of-7 3-pointers and 2-of-2 free throws en route to his game-high output.
Hardiman scored 30 points with six rebounds, two assists and one steal in leading the Merrillville boys (1-1) to a 66-62 conquest of rival Andrean in the Pirates’ only game of the week. The 6-4 guard sank 13-of-20 shots and 4-of-5 free throws. In two games this season, Hardiman is averaging 32.5 points and 4.5 rebounds.
Prior averaged 23.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists in propelling the Heritage Hills boys (4-1) to a 2-0 week. The 6-6 wing tallied a career-high 27 points plus five rebounds, three assist and four steals in a 60-36 victory over North Posey. He followed with 20 points, six rebounds, five assists, one steal and three blocks as the Patriots beat Floyd Central 52-44. For the two games, Prior was 19-of-30 from the field, 8-of-15 on 3-pointers and 1-of-2 from the line.
Ambers netted norms of 22.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 5.3 steals in leading the Class 4A No. 13 Northridge girls (9-3) to three victories. She opened with 18 points, six rebounds, two assists and five steals in a 64-15 runaway against Wawasee. The 5-9 guard followed with a career-high 26 points plus 12 rebounds, six assists and five steals in a 68-33 decision over Concord. She concluded her week with 24 points, two rebounds and six steals as the Raiders topped Portage Central, Mich., 67-23. For the week, Ambers sank 27-of-33 field goals, 7-of-11 3-pointers and 7-of-9 free throws.
Leffler tallied averages of 20.0 points and 4.7 rebounds as the Class 3A No. 9 Roncalli girls improved to 10-2 with first round, quarterfinal and semifinal triumphs in the Marion County Tournament. The 5-9 guard scored 23 points with seven rebounds and four steals in a 71-59 victory over Decatur Central. She followed with 23 points, five rebounds and two assists in a 57-53 nail-biter over Franklin Central. She tallied 14 points with two rebounds and two steals as the Royals upset Class 4A No. 1 Lawrence Central 50-45. In the three games, Leffler was 21-of-46 from the floor, 6-of-20 from distance and 12-of-15 from the line. Leffler finished the week with 976 career points.
Shirley posted two double-doubles while averaging 26.0 points and 14.0 rebounds in a 1-1 week for the Class 3A No. 8 Evansville Central girls (6-7). The 6-1 forward scored 25 points with 14 rebounds, one assist and one blocked shot in a 49-46 setback to Evansville North. The University of Southern Indiana recruit followed with 27 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, one steal and three blocks as the Bears defeated Henderson County, Ky., 56-50. Shirley connected on 21-of-37 field goals and 10-of-14 free throws in the two games.
Team of the Week honors went to Lawrence North and Northridge for boys as well as Floyd Central for girls. The Class 4A No. 3 Lawrence North boys, 3-0 overall and coached by Chris Giffin, edged arch-rival Lawrence Central 80-78 in their only game of the week. The Class 4A co-No. 11 Northridge boys, 5-0 overall and coached by Scott Radeker, beat Class 4A co-No. 16 Brownsburg 43-31 in their only game of the week. The Floyd Central girls, 7-2 overall and coached by Jerry Hickey, went 3-0 for the week. The Highlanders defeated Columbus East 66-29, Class 3A No. 2 Silver Creek 55-45 and Class 2A No. 4 North Knox 45-32.
This is the 18th season for the IBCA Player of the Week program. This is the second season for the IBCA Team of the Week program and the second season the Team of the Week program is presented by Ballogy, an IBCA corporate partner.
Coaches may nominate players and teams via buttons on the IBCA website (in.nhsbca.org). Coaches must be a current-year member for their players and/or team to be selected for a weekly award. Girls’ winners are chosen from now through Monday following the IHSAA girls’ State Finals. Boys’ winners are chosen from now through the Monday following the IHSAA boys’ State Finals.
2025-26 IBCA weekly honorees
Nov. 3-8 – District 1 girls: Laniah Davis, Marquette Catholic. District 2 girls: Kenzie Koch, Eastern Hancock. District 3 girls: Gracyn Gilliard, Center Grove. Teams of the Week (girls): North Knox, South Central (Elizabeth), Warsaw.
Nov. 10-15 – District 1 girls: Leah Shappell, Leo. District 2 girls: Adah Hupfer, Pendleton Heights. District 3 girls: Emily Parker, Boonville. Team of the Week (girls): Homestead.
Nov. 17-22 – District 1 girls: Sarah Thompson, Oregon-Davis. District 2 girls: Kennedy Holman, Hamilton Southeastern. District 3 girls: Mollie Ernstes, Jennings County. Teams of the Week (girls): Crown Point, LaPorte.
Nov. 24-29 – District 1 boys: Josh McBride and Nick McBride, Norwell. District 1 girls: Kendall VanderWal, Angola. District 2 boys: Brayden Thiele-Hahn, Rossville. District 2 girls: Carly Davison, Clinton Central. District 3 boys: Anthony Fresh, Charlestown. District 3 girls: Natalie Stenger, East Central. Teams of the Week (boys): Corydon Central, Plainfield. Team of the Week (girls): Maconaquah.
Dec. 1-6 – District 1 boys: Mack Welker, Homestead. District 1 girls: Hillary Labis, Westville. District 2 boys: Drew Matelic, Speedway. District 2 girls: Riley Suarez, Hamilton Heights. District 3 boys: Wyatt Jones, Borden. District 3 girls: Hannah Higgs, Evansville Christian. Team of the Week (boys): Indianapolis Cathedral. Team of the Week (girls): Borden.
Dec. 8-13 – District 1 boys: Charles Hardiman, Merrillville. District 1 girls: Allison Ambers, Northridge. District 2 boys: Devin Bolden, Indianapolis Cardinal Ritter, and Luke Ertel, Mt. Vernon (Fortville). District 2 girls: Elliot Leffler, Roncalli. District 3 boys: Jake Prior, Heritage Hills. District 3 girls: Maddy Shirley, Evansville Central. Teams of the Week (boys): Lawrence North, Northridge. Team of the Week (girls): Floyd Central.