Jaxson Johnson poured in a career-high 31 points in his only game of the week, and the Muncie Central sophomore headlines the honorees in this week’s IBCA Player of the Week program.
Southwood senior Bryce Wilcox, Evansville Bosse senior Dorion Bowen, Rensselaer Central senior Kamri Rowland, Indianapolis Bishop Chatard senior Alyx Kendall and Gibson Southern junior Paige Schnaus join Johnson as Week 10 winners in the IBCA Player of the Week program for 2025-26.
Also, the Oak Hill boys’ team, South Dearborn boys’ team, the Plainfield girls’ team and the Princeton girls’ team each was cited as an IBCA/Ballogy Team of the Week for respective performances during the week of Jan. 5-10 in the recognition program coordinated by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association.
Players of the Week are selected by IHSAA district – Wilcox and Rowland for District 1, Johnson and Kendall for District 2, and Bowen and Schnaus 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.
Johnson scored his 31 points – including a decisive 3-pointer in the final seconds – as the Muncie Central boys (5-3) pulled out a 53-51 decision at Lafayette Jefferson. The 6-3 guard sank 12-of-15 field goals, 5-of-7 3-pointers and 2-of-4 free throws in accounting for his big game. He also totaled five rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots for the Bearcats.
Wilcox averaged 28.5 points and 9.5 rebounds as the Class A No. 9 Southwood boys won twice. The 6-8 forward opened with 29 points, nine rebounds, three steals and three blocks in a 57-47 victory over Mississinewa. He followed with 28 points, 10 rebounds, one assist, three steals and one block as the Knights (10-1) walloped Wes-Del 62-33. In the two games, Wilcox converted 18-of-25 fielders, 2-of-4 treys and 19-of-28 freebies.
Bowen tallied norms of 25.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists as the Class 3A No. 17 Evansville Bosse boys won two games to improve to 6-3. The 6-6 guard scored 24 points with seven rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block in a 77-35 runaway against Evansville Central. The Memphis Whitehaven transfer netted 26 points with seven rebounds, four assists, six steals and one block as the Bulldogs upset Class 3A No. 7 Princeton 60-55. Bowen eclipsed the 1,000-point plateau against Princeton and now has 1,019 career points, including 913 points in three seasons at Whitehaven. For the week, he made 18-of-30 from the field, 2-of-5 on 3-pointers and 12-of-18 charities.
Rowland averaged 20.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and became the career-leading scorer for the Rensselaer Central girls. The 5-9 guard opened with 34 points, 10 rebounds, one assist and eight steals in a 73-38 victory at Munster. She followed with 13 points, three rebounds, two assists and three steals in a 57-21 win over North White. She completed her week with 15 points, four rebounds, two assists and three steals as the Bombers improved to 14-2 for the season with a 53-38 victory against Lafayette Central Catholic. In three games, she hit on 22-of-40 shots, 3-of-10 3-pointers, and 15-of-17 free throws. She also pushed her career scoring total to 1,269 points, passing the previous school record of 1,267 points set by 2025 graduate Taylor Van Meter.
Kendall scored a career-high 29 points in one game and averaged 20.0 points over two games as the Bishop Chatard girls (9-9) split a pair of contests. The 6-1 forward tallied 11 points with three rebounds and one steal in a 58-57 setback to Westfield. She then dropped in 29 points with seven rebounds, one assist, two steals and one block as the Trojans edged Guerin Catholic 56-50. Kendall sank 18-of-39 field goals, including 4-of-17 3-pointers, in the two games.
Schnaus posted averages of 33.0 points and 11.5 rebounds in two triumphs for the Gibson Southern girls (12-6). The 6-3 forward totaled 29 points, 15 rebounds, one steal and two blocks in an 88-50 victory at Boonville. She then unloaded 37 points plus eight rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks as the Titans topped Tell City 77-47. For the week, Schnaus sank 25-of-43 shots, 11-of-15 3-pointers, and 5-of-6 free throws.
Team of the Week honors went to Oak Hill and South Dearborn for boys as well as Plainfield and Princeton for girls.
The Class 2A No. 1 Oak Hill boys, 10-0 overall and coached by Kevin Renbarger, went 2-0 for the week. The Golden Eagles defeated Peru 79-53 and Zionsville 51-43. The South Dearborn boys, 8-2 overall and coached by Brad Moorhead, won the Rivertown Tournament. The Knights beat Switzerland County 67-34 and Lawrenceburg 52-34 to claim the title.
The Class 4A No. 7 Plainfield girls, 14-5 overall and coached by Curt Benge, won its third consecutive Hendricks County Tournament. The Quakers outlasted Avon 60-42 and Class 4A No. 17 Brownsburg 60-54 for the crown. The Princeton girls, 11-5 overall and coached by Travis Connor, won two games. The Tigers topped Vincennes Lincoln 66-45 and Class 3A No. 1 Washington 52-46 in overtime.
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.
Dec. 15-20 – District 1 boys: Daniel Selking, Bellmont. District 1 girls: Konley Ault, Bluffton. District 2 boys: DeZhon Hall, Indianapolis Crispus Attucks. District 2 girls: Shania Curry, Ben Davis. District 3 boys: Noah Vance, Christian Academy of Indiana. District 3 girls: Haley Wagoner, Center Grove. Teams of the Week (boys): South Bend Riley, Taylor. Team of the Week (girls): Hamilton Southeastern.
Dec. 22-27 – District 1 boys: Dikembe Shaw, Crown Point. District 1 girls: Brooke Zartman, Warsaw. District 2 boys: Luke Ertel, Mt. Vernon (Fortville). District 2 girls: Carly Davison, Clinton Central. District 3 boys: Dane Caldwell, Silver Creek. District 3 girls: Emery Stroud, Crawford County. Teams of the Week (boys): Crown Point, Gibson Southern, Mt. Vernon (Fortville). Team of the Week (girls): Valparaiso.
Dec. 29-Jan. 3 – District 1 boys: Brady Scholl, Northridge. District 1 girls: Joslyn Bricker, Warsaw. District 2 boys: Noah Smith, Plainfield. District 2 girls: Zoey Wood, Mt. Vernon (Fortville). District 3 boys: Braxton Bowman, Crawford County. District 3 girls: Claire Larrison, Greensburg. Teams of the Week (boys): LaPorte, Indianapolis Riverside, Silver Creek. Team of the Week (girls): Homestead.
Jan. 5-10 – District 1 boys: Brice Wilcox, Southwood. District 1 girls: Kamri Rowland, Rensselaer Central. District 2 boys: Jaxon Johnson, Muncie Central. District 2 girls: Alyx Kendall, Indianapolis Bishop Chatard. District 3 boys: Dorion Bowen, Evansville Bosse. District 3 girls: Paige Schnaus. Teams of the Week (boys): Oak Hill, South Dearborn. Teams of the Week (girls): Plainfield, Princeton.