The window in which high school basketball programs in Indiana can participate in workouts always varies, but in June it means that much more.
Teams have seen their players all over the place since March. Some play AAU, some play other sports at their schools or during the summers, some have private workouts and some just let sports wait.
October and November seem like forever away right now, but with June finally here and players heading back to their high school teams for the month, there is work to be done. Here are 5 boys teams and 5 girls teams that have a vpivotal June when it comes to developing or redeveloping their programs with new faces, new expectations and more.
BOYS
WARSAW
Mydin Burgher did a lot for the Tigers last season and helped them maintain after graduating a really, really good class of 2025. But now the Tigers need to have a new lead guy step forward and their depth on the interior could be something really exciting. Senior to be Timmy Yeager and juniors to be Drew Jones, Gabe Ioane and Landon Kralis all bring unique levels of strength to the interior. They are four very different players who can all contribute to a decent core of returning guards. Things could be exciting if all four of these guys can get involved with Yeager and Jones having a bit of a perimeter touch and Kralis as a tough midrange option.
SNIDER
The Panthers were a bit of cardiac kids a season ago, coming back from the dead several times to pick up big wins, including in the Sectional title game opposite North Side. They made it to the semi state round and bring back as much talent as pretty much any team in the area. Can they click this June and find even more ways to spread out their balanced scoring act? Trell Hogue and Ketron Paschall continue to be a focus, but Chance Derossett did a really good job on integrating himself last season and Braylin Fertil is an underrated shot maker. Snider could really rise this June and if they can be a well oiled machine by the end of this month, as much as you can in the summer, they have to be considered an area favorite into the new season.
HUNTINGTON NORTH
The Vikings get smaller on the inside, so some things will have to change from how they played the game last year without Dalton Husband and Blaine Freiburger in the lineup. But athletically and shot wise, this is a team who is still going to compete really hard. Senior to be Titus Schultz will again be one of the best offensive players in the area, capable of scoring at every level, while Brayden Freiburger is coming off a breakout season as a sophomore and will help make up for those losses inside as a strong rebounding and potential shot blocking wing. Freiburger’s junior classmates will fill in nicely with Brody Bolen and Aaron Grogg getting the chance to expand their roles after playing in most games last season, Andrew McCutcheon is a stellar athlete who could have a chance to be one of the area’s breakout players and Camden Keyser brings a toughness to the lineup too from the wing.
BLUFFTON
Even more so than Huntington, Bluffton also gets smaller but still capable as they adjust to their new lineup. Gavin Grieser will return after a breakout sophomore season and he is a load to handle inside, but there isn’t going to be a lot of interior depth around him despite some length from both Max and Maddox White. That said, there aren’t a lot of shooters in the ACAC on the same spectrum as Maddox White when he gets hot and this month will allow him to test that against a different variety of opponents. The Tigers will also lose a really good inside-out game from graduates Declan Grieser and Marshall Gerber, who worked so well together but may be able twist that with twins Gavin and Gibson Grieser both in the varsity lineup.
ANGOLA
The Hornets have not at all been a one class show the last two seasons since coach Bryan Weber took over, but their 2026 class was really good and nobody can argue that. They are one of the best area teams that will take a significant hit but still be expected to contend at the top of their conference. June is a great month for returning pieces to step into new and enhanced roles and for some new faces to populate their lineup. Niles Knox is going to continue to be a massive centerpiece for Angola, but classmate Cru Weber started to really become a big shot maker last season at times and fellow junior to be Parker Goslee could be ready to breakout. Senior to be backcourt mates Dane Lantz and Jacob Fraley bring a tenacity to follow the style that graduated Hornets guards have set.
GIRLS
COLUMBIA CITY
Massive changes are afoot with the Eagles and that is something that doesn’t happen very often. They have a smart new coach in Kyle Fillman, who is more than capable of getting Columbia City back to the top of the NE8, but what that journey looks like is still unknown. This is a really intriguing starting month for the new look Eagles and when a completely new tone is needing to be set. It is also a big month for Izzy Knitter, the defensive stopper who could become the focal point of this team. She is coming off a season averaging 2.9 steals and 4.4 deflections per game.
JAY COUNTY
Merging identities will be key for the Patriots this month. This is a team who was very good, return essentially everyone but also bring in a new coach and a very good one with a great track record at that. Donna Buckley has over 300 wins and a state title to her resume and she is a great choice to take the Patriots to the next level. The question that we could get some answers to this month is to what level they could get. They finished third in a fun ACAC race last season, but with Buckley at the helm and the Schwieterman sisters clicking on all levels, could Jay County have a much, much bigger reality in mind this coming season?
FAIRFIELD
The last time that Brodie Garber stood on the sideline for Fairfield girls basketball, the hoisted a state championship. 2023 really wasn’t that long ago and as Garber reacquires the program, the cupboard is far from bare. Just last season, the Falcons were two wins away from returning to the state finals and they will return one of the area’s top scorers in Madison Jones (17.9 ppg) as well as an underrated asset in Paige Park that really helped Fairfield last season. How will the team build up around them and how fast will Garber’s coaching take back a hold?
NORTH SIDE
The Legends were due one and they got in first year head coach Marq Abram. It was time for some excitement with the North Side girls program and a new coach always leans to that in ways. But excitement around Abram just doesn’t come because he is the new guy, it comes because he is a guy who knows North Side. He is in the building, has been part of a solid girls flag football program and has spent the last several years as an assistant on the North Side boys staff, winning Sectional titles on the staff of former coach Gary Andrews and staying on last year under Shabaz Khaliq. Abram brings a lot of energy to the sideline and the program and that is a massive start to get quality athletes out to finally rebuild this program.
BELLMONT
It would be wildly unfair to say Bellmont’s success was due to catching people off guard. They were a well oiled machine on their run to a state title a year ago, a team and program long built for that success. But things are different now, not because the Braves caught anyone off guard, but because the Braves are now the ultimate hunted team. Norwell won the NE8? It doesn’t matter because Bellmont got the big trophy in the end. Keeping the mentality that they had last year while dealing with the reality that they are going to get everyone’s best game every night this winter is huge. Bellmont is great team still, with so much back, but June is huge in making sure that nothing is taken for granted in a year where they will be considered one of the favorites in Class 3A again.
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