Takeaways From the Class 1A and 2A IHSAA Boys Basketball State Championship Games

We are just days removed from the 2025 IHSAA boys' state championship, and what a day it was. Eight teams took action, ranging from South Bend in the far northern part of the state to Orleans in the southern part of the state (a whole 3 hours and 37 minutes apart from each other—isn't Indiana lovely?). Those eight teams put on a show for one of the best crowds in the championships' now 115th year history (including a record 10,457 people for the early session) and wrapped up the incredible 2025 season with a storybook ending that involved the seemingly unstoppable Fishers Tigers falling just a point short from back-to-back championships to the now champion Red Devils of Jeffersonville.

I was, of course, in attendance in the ONLY way one should be in attendance, that being off quite literally zero minutes of sleep after work, and enjoyed every second of it. This isn't the only time I've been in this state in the previous few weeks. I followed the eventual champion Red Devils throughout the entirety of their playoff run, made my way to semi-state in the same condition, and was rewarded with an enjoyable Jennings County and Princeton game, followed by a blowout to the Evansville Harrison Warriors by way of Jeffersonville. The point I'm getting at is I have seen a lot of basketball these past few weeks and am ready to unpack the culmination of everything I saw down below.

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Author's Note: Real quick, just wanted to say, yes, that is the same intro that is in the 3A and 4A sister article to this piece. It was originally supposed to be all four in the same article, but it was over 5,000 words, so, yeah.

Alex DeWitt Will be the Player in Class 1A Next Season

As an outsider, I was greatly impressed by the Clinton Prairie Gophers and their seek for their first boys basketball state championship in program history. It was an incredible run that began with a 65-37 victory over the Frontier Falcons that was the catalyst for the program's first sectional championship since 1982. Unfortunately for the Falcons, there was no stopping the #4 ranked (John Harrell) Bulldogs this past Saturday.

The fact of the matter is the better team will usually find a way to win, which is exactly what the Orleans Bulldogs accomplished at the 115th annual boys' basketball state championship. Six ties and four lead changes were the final numbers recorded at the end of the night between the two squads, including an unbelievably 11-2 nerve-racking run in favor of the Gophers that narrowed a what-was 44-33 Bulldogs lead to just 46-44 to begin the fourth quarter. Said run was catapulted from back-to-back fouls on the Bulldogs, the second of which sent the Gophers' Nick Curtin to the line. Followed was an incredible display of bucket getting from the Gophers in just about two minutes of gametime that included six points from the Gophers' Jared Stillwell alone.

The final score is all you need to see after that. The Bulldogs went on to outscore the Gophers 18-11 in the closing eight minutes of the matchup. Said run is what capped off a record-setting performance from the Bulldogs, shooting an astounding 63.9% from the field for the entire matchup, including a fantastic run from Orleans' Bryce Jones, where the senior scored six of the team's final quarter 18 points including the two dagger free throws to officially seal the game for the Bulldogs. Clinton Prairie showed major resilience throughout the conclusion of the matchup, but the Bulldogs were simply too much near the end.

Now that I have all the objectives out of the way, let's get to why we're really here: This is Alex Dewitt's class for next season. The 6'3 junior was heavily impressive throughout the entirety of the matchup and was the go-to option to control the flow of the offense when it came down to crunchtime. This is a six-man rotation in the Orleans Bulldogs that features two graduating seniors, which says a lot about a player when you're the option when it's incredibly commonplace to look towards your more developed options. Dewitt seemed to have a response for every single set that went towards the Bulldogs' way throughout the night (cough, 1-3-1, cough). Ball movement was, of course, pivotal in breaking said zone, but the Bulldogs said themselves in the postgame coverage of the matchup that this Gophers team was not small. This length (a heavy factor in contributing to that late 3Q run from the Gophers) made it difficult at times to continue the ball movement, which the Bulldogs were quickly able to recognize to find their guys, of course, in our case, it was Jones and DeWitt. Jones, on one hand, has a knack for getting to the free-throw line at will in late-game situations, while DeWitt shines finding the bottom of the bucket when needed most. Ball screens were used but not required, motion away from the ball caused the defense to miss one rotation after another, heavy coverage was negated by DeWitt's 6'3 height to go over the heaviest of coverages. All of which DeWitt made the Gophers pay for with his final tally of 24 points.

Don't let it slip under the radar how incredible of an accomplishment this was for head coach Tom Bradley, who was able to finally bring home the hardware in his 26th season at the helm for the Bulldogs. A career filled with one of the highest winning percentages of all time, including ten different 20-win seasons, 10 sectional championships, 2 regional championships, and now one semi-state as well as a state championship. Coach Bradley handled this program excellently, and it finally paid off with the first state championship in the first appearance in the title game in program history. Bravo coach.

Class Recruiting Bias is Real and Gavin Betten is a Prime Example

Coach Eli Henson broke through in his 5th season at the helm for the Squires and completed the quest for not only the Squires' first regional championship since 1994, but also the first state championship in program history. A close back-and-forth duel with University (also shooting for their first state championship in program history) resulted in a convincing win after a fastbreak sealed the game after an excellent Squires free-throw shooting performance.

Despite how the momentum started to firmly shift into the Squires' hands once and for all, nearing the end of the game, the back-and-forth was real throughout the night. Each team started 2-4 from deep to begin the night to keep the score at 11-10 in favor of University at the end of the first quarter, with each team going cold to begin the 2nd quarter. Manchester switched to a zone early in the matchup, which University began to make them pay with their shot-making that finally started to pick up. Major props are deserved to University junior Blake Gray, who was quickly able to recognize that his movement was too much for the Manchester zone. Combine that with his shot making, he led all scorers at the halftime period with 11 points (finished with 20 on the night). Eight points from Betten (we'll get to him) leads the way for the Squires as sharing the ball seems to be the gameplan for the Squires. At this point, I can appreciate an effort from Manchester, but I'm leaning University. The shot making seems far more difficult for the Squires than University, who seems to be conserving energy for a second half outburst.

Here we are at the second half, welcome to the Gavin Betten show. The 6'7 senior opted for takeover as he scored seven points in the first 3 minutes and 30 seconds of game time. The aggressiveness was immediately the primary factor for the senior, whose six shot attempts to start the half nearly surpassed his total shot attempts throughout the first half. Betten has an incredible range for a player his size, but he was able to realize his presence as the biggest man on the court in the second half. It's clear he realizes he has the forward-like skills to move positively off and on-ball, but going towards his size is what allowed Manchester to find and create easy baskets for its players on the court. It seems incredibly clear that Betten has the operations in both ways, which should lead to a seamless transition into the college-level game where he won't be the biggest guy on the court every matchup.

University has an unbelievable knack for staying in games that frankly shouldn't be as close as they are. A 7-0 run to begin the fourth quarter and comes within a single point of the Squires' lead. After a few more Betten heroics to go along with a great free-throw shooting performance, the Squires managed to claim the first state championship in program history.

This almost feels unfair to limit this entry to Betten, as this entire Manchester team was hitting on all cylinders and playing incredible basketball to conclude the game, but that's the problem I'm addressing here in the first place. It is far clear that on my limited sample size watching Betten that there is far too much talent here to not be scouted in a higher level of college basketball. Betten is committed to Grace College and is joining a very solid program under head coach Scott Moore (the team went 29-6 this last season and fell by two in the NAIA tournament to #3 ranked Arizona Christian) and on paper should fit right in on a roster that is graduating seven seniors. I expect high things from the Lancers in the coming years and will be following with a close eye, but I don't think it's a crime to say the talent Betten provides shouldn't have fielded interest from some programs in the area. I mean the numbers speak for themselves, the guy just wrapped up four consecutive seasons averaging at least 18 points per game, which included three 20-point per game seasons (25 points per game on 63.64% (!) shooting this year). What you see is raw scoring ability, keen and aware decision making, and in-game adjustments that are needed to translate for any basketball team that wants to contend at a high level. There is very little I don't like as a prospect in Betten. Court awareness and control are the strengths you want to look for in someone who you're wanting to slot in at a forward/big man spot. He'll fit right in under Coach Moore and will be a name to watch. I'm sure and near positive that Betten chose an excellent school to continue his athletic career at, the Lancers got a very high-end talent for the NAIA division.

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