In a normal year with a normal senior class in the state of Indiana, Columbus North senior Blake Barker and South Decatur senior Lane Lauderbaugh might be good bets to make the Indiana All-Star team.
Because of the incredible talent and depth at the top of this year’s senior class, Barker and Lauderbaugh probably are longshots to make this year’s Indiana All-Star squad. But the pair did get to square off Monday night in the All-Area All-Star Games at Columbus Christian.
In the end, Barker’s Blue team got the best of Lauderbaugh’s White squad 114-111 in a game that featured most of the players from The Republic’s All-Area boys basketball team and honorable mention list.
“It was a lot of fun,” said Barker, who led the Blue with 26 points. “The proceeds that go to the families, I really love doing it for them, and the guys on my team and guys on the other team are great guys. It was a really fun night.”
Lauderbaugh had a chance to tie the game, but his 3-pointer at the buzzer bounced off the front of the rim. He finished with 26 points for the White.
“It was a really good time,” Lauderbaugh said. “I had fun. It was nice catching up with everybody. It was cool being invited to come and play with the best players in the area.”
Meanwhile, Barker’s and Lauderbaugh’s underclass teammates showed that they may be capable of filling leading roles for the Bull Dogs and Cougars next year. North sophomore Cooper Horn scored 24 points and led the Blue with 10 rebounds, while South Decatur junior Hunter Johnson led the White with 33 points and eight rebounds.
“It was just shoot-and-go, shoot-and-go and see who could score more,” Johnson said.
“It was nice just to come out here and have fun and play hard and compete against guys that you’ve seen throughout the season and play with some of your teammates that you haven’t seen in a couple weeks that we’ve been off,” Horn added. “It was just fun to get back on the court.”
Columbus Christian junior Gabe Ridder scored 14 points for the Blue. Edinburgh’s Caleb Dewey had 12 points, and North’s Sam King added 11 points and nine rebounds.
For the White, East’s Jacob Pierce scored 16 of his 22 points in the first quarter, which ended with a 36-23 lead for the White. Brown County’s Travis Ely had 11 points, and East’s Daniel Murphy added 10.
“A lot of guys in the first quarter shot it really well,” Pierce said. “It tapered off a little bit in the second quarter. Then, we kind of picked it up in the second half and had a decent shooting performance. All in all, it was a fun night. I’m glad we could help out charity.”
Proceeds from this year’s event are going to benefit a Columbus Christian parent and the husband of a Hauser employee who are battling cancer.
