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BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS
Sports Editor, RTC
When did we know that Tayde Kiser was our RTC Boys Basketball Player of the Year? We knew on Feb. 21.
Kiser and his Tippecanoe Valley teammates were playing Warsaw at the Tiger Den, a venue where Valley’s best wishes typically meet their demise.
Cooper Walls had a hot shooting night, but he fouled out in the third quarter. Nolan Cumberland was surrounded by more Tigers than Siegfried and Roy.
Kiser had to carry Valley, and he did, scoring 25 points in leading Valley to a 57-56 win. It was their first win over Warsaw since the 2013-14 season and their first road win over Warsaw since 2006.
But that was just one of Kiser’s big games. He scored 38 points against an outstanding Wabash team, he had 23 against a Southwood team that is in the Class 1A state finals, and he averaged 21 points per game in two games against a John Glenn team that made semistate.
That season-ending loss to John Glenn might be a hard one to take, but Valley made a step forward this season to win 18 games, and Kiser is a main reason why.
Overall, how one’s outlook of the season just passed probably had to do with what class one’s favorite team was. Class 3A seemed a little down this year. Class 2A was way, way up. Class 1A was wide open from the start, and there are a lot of teams looking at Southwood right now preparing for a state championship game after losing 12 games during the regular season and wondering if that could have been them.
Here are the top players in our area this year. While we thank area coaches for their thoughts and opinions, this ultimately is our list where we are making the final say.
We take full responsibility for this list.
First team
Tayde Kiser (Tippecanoe Valley) – Kiser was also the elite defender in the area, guarding everybody from J.J. Morris to Bauer Maple to Davis Wray to Izaak Wright. He was also an 83 percent free throw shooter who salted away many close games from the line.
J.J. Morris (Argos) – Morris averaged nearly 20 points per game when he was on the top line of every opponent’s scouting report, likely in a bold font. Marquette Catholic coach Ray Tarnow raved about his passing skills after the Blazers beat Argos in the sectional. He helped lead the Dragons to 15 wins after huge graduation losses last year.
Nolan Cumberland (Tippecanoe Valley) – If Kiser’s legendary game was the Warsaw game, then Cumberland’s legendary game was the 59-57 win at Manchester in which he took the game over in the fourth quarter. That was the game in which Valley won the TRC. Cumberland is a relentless scorer with a tight handle.
Drew McKaig (Pioneer) – It’s easy to notice McKaig’s shooting the first time you see him, but he has become a complete player in his third year on the varsity. He can drive the ball to the basket and score, and he had to be a top rebounder on a team without a center, and his ballhandling and defense were also improved.
Paul Leasure (Rochester) – Leasure is quick and strong, and he had the defensive matchup on the opponent’s top perimeter scorer for much of the year. He had the ball in his hands much more often this year, and he had to set up his teammates, but he also needed to score. He got it all done and surpassed 1,000 career points while he did it.
Paul Leasure J.J. Morris Nolan Cumberland Drew McKaig
Second team
Cain Schanlaub (Caston) – Schanlaub averaged 11.3 points and a team-high 5.2 rebounds, and we were impressed by his defensive improvement as a shot blocker and shot intimidator.
Emiliano Ortiz (Culver) – Ortiz was the embodiment of a slasher, usually scoring or drawing fouls on his forays to the rim. He scored 12 points against a Marquette Catholic team in the sectional that got within one win of the state finals.
Shane Shuman (Culver) – Shuman was an undersized back-to-the-basket center, typically scoring in the post around and over taller defenders. He also averaged 7.6 rebounds per game.
Sean Richard (Argos) – Richard had not been a point guard since he was in middle school, but he maintained the tradition at that spot for Argos that his predecessors like Vinny Stone, Sam Manikowski and older brother Michael Richard had set. Richard was a rugged defender and an improved scorer.
Caleb Stinson (Caston) – Of the guys Caston called up from the JV after graduating all five starters from last year’s team, Stinson looked the most comfortable. He has a very quick first step and showed off an improved jumper. He will be one of the better point guards in the Hoosier North next year.
Cain Shanlaub Emiliano Ortiz Shane Shuman Sean Richard Caleb Stinson
Honorable mention
Caleb Sweet (Pioneer)
Brock Bowers (Rochester)
Ethan Keller (Culver)
Luke Hunting (Rochester)
Luke Stults (Argos)
Riley Shepherd (Tippecanoe Valley)
Talon Zeider (Caston)
Stephen Akase (Tippecanoe Valley)
Tanner Reinartz (Rochester)
Joey Pizur (Culver)
Colby Pugh (Caston)
Cooper Walls (Tippecanoe Valley)
Brayden Erickson (Pioneer)
Kyler Johnson (Tippecanoe Valley)
Aidan Smith (Rochester)
