2026

Written by Indiana Basketball Coaches Association | Jan 20, 2026 4:45:35 PM

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Pat McKee, 317-403-1665

Jan. 20, 2026 IBCA Director of Special Projects

Epps, Davis headline IBCA Players of the Week; Lawrence North boys, Westview boys, Whiteland boys, Bluffton girls cited as IBCA Teams of the Week

Homestead senior Myah Epps poured in 42 points in one game and Madison senior Juliana Davis set a school record for career scoring while averaging 27.7 points over three games. Thus, Epps and Davis pace the honorees in this week’s IBCA Player of the Week program.

Lafayette Jefferson senior Maya Layton, LaPorte senior Tim Knoll, Plainfield junior Harper Baker-Lands and Forest Park junior Kamden Partenheimer join Epps and Davis as Week 11 winners in the IBCA Player of the Week program for 2025-26.

Also, the Lawrence North boys’ team, Westview boys’ team, Whiteland boys’ team and the Bluffton girls’ team each was cited as an IBCA/Ballogy Team of the Week for respective performances during the week of Jan. 12-17 in the recognition program coordinated by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association.

Players of the Week are selected by IHSAA district – Knoll and Epps for District 1, Baker-Lands and Layton for District 2, and Partenheimer and Davis 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.

Epps had just one game during her week, and she was sensational as the Class 4A No. 4 Homestead girls improved to 18-2. The 5-10 guard exploded for a career-high 42 points while adding four rebounds, seven assists, six steals and one blocked shot in an 83-61 victory over Fort Wayne Snider. The University of Louisville recruit sank 13-of-17 field goals, 5-of-6 3-pointers and 11-of-12 free throws in her big game. The 42-point total was one point off the Spartans’ single-game record of 43 points set by 2022 Indiana Miss Basketball Ayanna Patterson against Fort Wayne South on Jan. 28, 2021.

Davis pushed her career scoring total to 1,555 points in an 83-point week, eclipsing the previous Madison girls’ record of 1,551 points set by 2004 graduate Brittany Myers. Davis opened with just nine points, one rebound, two assists and two steals as the Class 3A No. 10 Lady Cubs dropped a 49-43 decision to Class 3A No. 2 Silver Creek. But the 5-6 guard bounced back with two 37-point performances – adding four rebounds, two assists and nine steals in a 70-46 victory at Seymour and netting eight rebounds, two assists and 11 steals in a 64-40 win over Corydon Central. In the three games, Davis was 34-of-59 from the field, 8-of-22 from distance and 7-of-7 from the line as Madison moved to 13-5.

Layton averaged 27.5 points, 12.5 rebounds and 8.5 assists in propelling the Lafayette Jefferson girls (15-4) to two triumphs. First, the 5-8 guard totaled 21 points, 13 rebounds, nine assists, two steals and three blocks in a 63-47 victory over Noblesville. The Northern Kentucky recruit followed with 34 points, 12 rebounds, eight assists and four steals as the Bronchos defeated Anderson 80-47. Layton connected on 21-of-29 fielders, 3-of-6 3-pointers and 10-of-13 freebies in the two games.

Knoll posted norms of 21.7 points and 3.7 rebounds in leading the LaPorte boys (11-4) to a 2-1 week. The 6-0 guard opened with 15 points, four rebounds, one assist, three steals and one block in a 67-54 upset of Class 4A No. 14 South Bend Adams. He followed with 26 points (including 7-of-7 3-pointers), four rebounds and one steal in a 73-62 setback at Chesterton. Knoll completed his week with 24 points, three rebounds and three assists as the Slicers topped Mishawaka 76-59. In the three games, he converted 22-of-30 shots, 12-of-15 3-pointers and 9-of-10 free throws.

Baker-Lands averaged 25.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists as the Class 4A No. 7 Plainfield boys knocked off two ranked opponents. The 6-4 junior guard tallied 24 points, three rebounds and two assists in a 50-47 thriller over Class 4A No. 3 Carmel. He followed with 27 points, five rebounds and four assists as the Quakers outlasted Class 3A No. 5 Northview 67-58. Baker-Lands hit on 15-of-25 field goals, 8-of-13 treys and 13-of-14 charity tosses in the two games.

Partenheimer posted two double-doubles while averaging 29.5 points and 15.5 rebounds as the Forest Park boys (7-7) split a pair of contests. The 6-10 wing scored 27 points with 15 rebounds, two assists and one block in a 58-55 loss at South Spencer. He came back with 32 points, 16 rebounds, four assists, two steals and three blocks as the Rangers beat North Posey 56-48. For the week, Partenheimer was 22-of-44 on field goals, 5-of-14 on 3-pointers and 10-of-15 on free throws.

Team of the Week honors went to Lawrence North, Westview and Whiteland for boys as well as Bluffton for girls.

Lawrence North Boys Westview Boys

Whiteland Boys

The Lawrence North boys, 14-1 overall and coached by Chris Giffin, went 4-0 to win the Marion County Tournament. The Class 4A No. 6 Wildcats posted victories over North Central (77-52), Class 3A No. 6 Roncalli (59-49), Class 2A No. 11 Park Tudor (61-48) and Class 4A No. 5 Pike (58-55 in overtime) to claim the championship. This is the second time this season that the LN boys have recognized as a Team of the Week, joining an honor for the week of Dec. 8-13.

The Westview boys, 12-1 overall and coached by Chandler Prible, went 3-0 to prevail in the Northeast Corner Conference Tournament. The Class 2A No. 3 Warriors defeated Class 3A No. 8 Fairfield (60-50), Garrett (66-32) and Angola (68-65 in overtime) to capture the trophy.

The Whiteland boys, 11-2 overall and coached by Nate Cangany, went 3-0 to claim the Johnson County Tournament. The Warriors seized the prize after beating Indian Creek (90-49), Greenwood (70-61) and Franklin Community (77-67).

Bluffton Girls

The Bluffton girls, 14-5 overall and coached by Doug Curtis, went 3-0 to take the Allen County Athletic Conference Tournament. The Tigers defeated South Adams (61-26), Adams Central (69-30) and Jay County (65-54) en route to the crown.

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: Bryce Wilcox, Southwood. District 1 girls: Kamri Rowland, Rensselaer Central. District 2 boys: Jaxson Johnson, Muncie Central. District 2 girls: Alyx Kendall, Indianapolis Bishop Chatard. District 3 boys: Dorion Bowen, Evansville Bosse. District 3 girls: Paige Schnaus, Gibson Southern. Teams of the Week (boys): Oak Hill, South Dearborn. Teams of the Week (girls): Plainfield, Princeton.

Jan. 12-17 – District 1 boys: Tim Knoll, LaPorte. District 1 girls: Myah Epps, Homestead. District 2 boys: Harper Baker-Lands, Plainfield. District 2 girls: Maya Layton, Lafayette Jefferson. District 3 boys: Kamden Partenheimer, Forest Park. District 3 girls: Juliana Davis, Madison. Teams of the Week (boys): Lawrence North, Westview, Whiteland. Team of the Week (girls): Bluffton.

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Gene Milner

IBCA Website Coordinator

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