Player/Team of the Week(POW/TOW) Week Five 12/09/2025

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

Dec. 9, 2025                                                                     IBCA Director of Special Projects

Borden’s Jones headlines IBCA Players of the Week; 

Cathedral boys, Borden girls cited as IBCA Teams of the Week

            Wyatt Jones poured in career-high 40 points, including a school-record 17 free throws, and the Borden sophomore headlines the honorees in this week’s IBCA Player of the Week program.

            Homestead junior Mack Welker, Speedway senior Drew Matelic, Westville sophomore Hillary Labis, Hamilton Heights freshman Riley Suarez and Evansville Christian senior Hannah Higgs joined Jones as Week 5 winners in the IBCA Player of the Week program for 2025-26.

            Also, the Indianapolis Cathedral boys and Borden girls each was cited as an IBCA/Ballogy Team of the Week for respective performances during the week of Dec. 1-6 in the recognition program coordinated by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association.

            Players of the Week are selected by IHSAA district – Welker and Labis for District 1, Matelic and Suarez for District 2, and Jones and Higgs 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.

    Jones’ 40 points came in the only game of the week for the Class A No. 15 Borden boys, who posted a 74-69 victory at Lanesville. The 6-3 guard produced 20 points of his total in the fourth quarter, including 15 points in the game’s final two minutes. He added 13 rebounds, five assists as the Braves improved to 3-0 for the season. For the game, he went 11-of-21 from the field, 1-of-3 on 3-pointers and 17-of-22 on free throws.

   Welker averaged 28.0 points and 11.0 rebounds in the first two games of the season for the Class 4A No. 16 Homestead boys (2-0). The 6-6 forward scored 31 points with 13 rebounds and five steals in an 82-23 runaway against Manchester. He followed with 25 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, two steals and two blocks as the Spartans defeated Class 4A No. 17 Warsaw 48-37. In the two games, Welker was 23-of-32 from the field, including 3-of-6 from distance, and 7-of-9 from the line.

    Matelic netted norms of 31.7 points and 10.0 rebounds over three games for the Speedway boys, now 2-2 overall. The 6-6 guard totaled 38 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, four steals and one block as the Sparkplugs outlasted Western Boone 79-71 in overtime. He followed with 33 points, nine rebounds, four steals and two blocks in a 57-54 setback at Beech Grove. Matelic completed his week with 24 points, nine rebounds, two assists, three steals and one block in a 60-52 victory at North Montgomery. For the week, he hit 33-of-59 field goals and 29-of-37 free throws.

   Labis averaged 31.5 points, 17.0 rebounds and 5.5 blocks in leading the Westville girls (6-4) to two victories. The 5-11 guard-forward opened with 32 points, 22 rebounds, five assists, three steals and seven blocks in a 58-38 decision over Oregon-Davis. She followed with 31 points, 12 rebounds, two assists, four steals and four blocks as the Blackhawks beat Tri-Township 49-35. In the two games, her seventh and eighth double-doubles of the season, Labis was 26-of-46 on field goals, 5-of-12 on 3-pointers and 6-of-10 on free throws.

    Suarez posted norms of 26.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in keying the Hamilton Heights girls (6-2) to a 2-0 week. The 6-1 wing poured in 35 points with four rebounds and one block in a 68-52 victory at Peru. She followed by scoring 18 points with 11 rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block as the Huskies notched a 50-47 home triumph over Connersville. For the week, Suarez was 23-of-39 from the field, including one 3-pointer, and 6-of-8 from the line.

   Higgs averaged 25.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and set a school record for 3-pointers in a game in three victories for the Class A No. 6 Evansville Christian girls (7-1). The 5-7 guard tallied 25 points, eight rebounds, three assists, three steals and one block in a 65-45 triumph over Wood Memorial. She followed with 26 points, one rebound, one assist, eight steals and one block in a 57-45 win at Vincennes Lincoln. She completed her week with 26 points, six rebounds, one assist, three steals and two blocks as the Eagles defeated Loogootee 51-40. She had a school record six 3-pointers against Wood Memorial, then equaled the long-range output against Vincennes Lincoln. Higgs was 25-of-58 shooting, including 15-of-31 from distance, and 12-of-17 on free throws for the three games.

            Team of the Week honors went to Cathedral for boys and Borden for girls. The Cathedral boys, 3-0 overall and coached by Jason Delaney, won two games during the week. The Class 3A No. 1 Irish topped rival Brebeuf Jesuit 71-62 and knocked off Class 4A No. 4 South Bend Saint Joseph 78-71. The Borden girls, 8-1 overall and coached by Matt Vick, went 3-0 for the week. The Class A No. 1 Braves defeated Class 4A Jeffersonville 58-55, topped Class A New Washington 69-14 and upset Class 3A No. 3 Jennings County 60-54.

        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.

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 Gene Milner

IBCA Website Coordinator