Two of Zay’s more impressive games came with 18 points opposite eventual state champion Blackhawk Christian and 24 against Winchester and he shot a combined 18-of-24 in those games. As he continues to improve in multiple areas, he is bound to be one of the best players in the SAC sooner than later. He averaged 9.4 points and 1.1 steals per game as a freshman, but also showed that he can rebound and has good enough court vision that lead guard duties won’t evade him. Every team needs a deep range threat who is more than competent in other areas of their game and Zay clearly tries to improve on all of that if you watch him one week and then come back to see him 10 days later. Zay seems to know his capabilities and doesn’t try to force outside of those, yet is still building them constantly. One of the highest level playing freshmen to break onto the scene in the SAC last season, Zay was a name that was brought up a lot by coach Fonso White before he ever played a high school game. He has been working on his game nonstop since our Regional loss last year, and I’m looking forward to seeing the type of season he puts together.” – Fremont coach Josh Stuckey He got off to a very poor shooting start, and he still broke our school record for 3pt% in a season last year. Last year it took him about half the season or so to get comfortable in the offense. Athletically, I’m not sure if there is anyone in our conference that has all of the things he has- acceleration, vertical jump, speed, lateral quickness, strength- he has it all. First, and most importantly, he is a great person. “Gabel Pentecost is a special human being. He averaged 14.4 points and 6.6 rebounds last season while hitting 43 percent of his three pointers. He is a good catch and shoot player and can also shoot threes off movement because he reads the defense well when running around screens. If you are too worried about Pentecost getting to the rim, then he will hurt you from deep if given space. He is a dagger shooter, so when we say his off the dribble acceleration can change things, this is what we mean. Pentcost is another top three point threat for Fremont who has plenty to choose from. Pentecost became a very solid player in transition who can push the ball and make the right decision or fill the wings and spot up for a deep shot. The more that he can exploit opposing defenders with his ball handling, the more cerebral that he can play in the NECC and he really looked to be getting there last season.

He has a pretty innate ability to see the floor and put the ball in the right places because of how he can accelerate defenses at a rate that they don’t like. Pentecost utilizes high level basketball IQ and feel, contorting defenses to his will. Pentecost is one of the most intelligent guards in the area, instead of relying on raw physical talent, which he had plenty of too.

Pentecost really should be getting a lot more buzz. Grant should pose mismatches with opposing teams, as he has the strength to defend most bigs, while creating space for us offensively on the perimeter.” – Snider coach Jeremy Rauch He has taken his shot to another level, adding both range and movement to his 3 point prowess. He is a fighter and that is a great fit for a team that can really be a 3-and-D threat. He had six multiple steal games last season, including three steals each against two of the tougher guard teams on Snider’s schedule last season: North Side and Churubusco. The question on Brown is what he will do this season when chased off the line less than 17 percent of his shots last season came inside the arc.īrown is just a hard nosed kid defensively that that has a knack for the aggression needed in the SAC. Last season, he shined brightest doing that three times: 3-of-5 against Wayne, 3-of-4 against Carroll and 4-of-7 against Blackhawk Christian. That will help him get more games where he is burying several triples a night. He has been able improve his lateral movement and his ability to get around without the ball to become more of a consistent threat. He still needs to find some consistency in his shot but once he gets going, Brown can really be a knockdown guy that Snider sees as a late game threat for them. 35-31īrown’s game really pushed forward later in the season in 2020-21 when coach Jeremy Rauch really showed that he wanted and needed Brown on the court. Today, we unveil five of the best in the area at positions No. Outside the Huddle and Bounce are counting down who it feels are the top 50 individual boys basketball players in northeast Indiana heading into the 2021-22 season. This is our third annual Top 50 countdown.

Pentecost countdown