Sweet-shooting guard Joey Schmitz has helped power Center Grove to an 8-0 start.
Daily Journal file photo
Witnessing a game of HORSE between the four guards in Center Grove’s starting lineup might be great way to spend an hour.
Maybe bring a pillow, just in case.
“It definitely doesn’t come down to 3s,” said junior Joey Schmitz, whose Trojans (8-0) are off to their best start since the 1987-88 squad opened with the same record.
“We know it will take forever if we play. It usually comes down to a half-court shot or something like that. Behind the backboard, maybe.”
Ranked No. 8 in Class 4A, Center Grove’s starting lineup consists of 6-foot-5 junior Will Spellman (9.1 ppg, 4.4 rpg) and the sweet-shooting quartet of Marcus Ankney (15.6 ppg), Schmitz (14.4 ppg), seniors Ethan McComb (5.3 ppg) and and junior point guard Jalen Bundy (6.9 ppg, 3.9 apg).
The Trojans have made 58 of 132 tries (43.9%) from 3-point range this season, led by Schmitz with 15 and McComb and Ankney with 10 apiece.
“It’s probably the most fun I’ve ever had in a season because of the freedom we’re given on the court,” Schmitz said. “It’s never a set. Whatever we want to run, we get into it, and we know the more we move the ball, the better our shot selection will be.
“Running four guards in our lineup, it makes us small, but all five starters have been in the program for three years. We definitely take pride in our defense, too. It’s how you win.”
Center Grove is outscoring opponents by an average of 19.9 points per outing, its 62.3 norm being the highest in Zach Hahn’s nine seasons as coach.
The 42.4 points the Trojans permit is far and away the program’s stingiest number over the same period of time, last season’s 48.6 being the closest. Opponents are shooting 39% from the floor, including a brisk 29% from behind the 3-point stripe.
In the case of the 6-foot-2 Schmitz, the initial stages of this season have been a noticeable jump statistically after he averaged 4.6 points during a 2021-22 season that ended with an 11-13 record.
“Joey can play anywhere from the 1 to the 3 for us,” Hahn said. “Honestly, he has a scorer’s-first mentality. He can shoot off the screen, he can shoot off the catch and he can shoot off the bounce.
“And he can shoot with either hand. Just the complete offensive package.”
Center Grove benefits from a solid quartet of juniors whose job it is to spare the starters while also giving the team a different look at both ends of the floor.
Garrett Messer and Peyton Byrd, both 6-6, along with guards Dylan Meador and Owen Baker, combine for a 10.1 scoring average off the bench. All have seen action in between 25-30 quarters of play this season.
Later this week, the Trojans compete in the eight-team Phil Cox Memorial tournament at Kokomo.
Center Grove plays South Bend Riley (5-4) at 6 p.m. on Thursday, and could meet the host Wildkats (5-3), ranked sixth in 4A and led by all-everything 6-10 junior center Flory Bidunga, in a noon semifinal on Friday.
Brownsburg (7-1), the No. 5 team in 4A, is also part of the tournament, as is former MIC rival Warren Central (5-2).
A formidable field, to be sure, but Hahn, who expressed excitement about his squad prior to the season, hasn’t lessened his stance.
“The best compliment I can give (Schmitz), and that group, is they’re basketball players,” Hahn said. “There are so many things we can do because they’re so well-rounded.
“We’ve been really lucky to have guys who are skilled and extremely mature.”
