It’s the time of year when the state’s best basketball players seem to pick up some new honor or award on a daily basis.
Muncie Central’s Jayla Scaife is in that conversation, and thus, the honors roll in.
A day after being named to the Indiana Junior All-Stars, the athletic Bearcat forward earned a spot on the IBCA/Subway Underclass Supreme 15 All-State team. That puts her in exclusive company with the top 15 non-seniors in the state this year.
All the Dayton commit did was lead Central to a second consecutive sectional title before losing to Class 3A state runner up Tippecanoe Valley. Scaife anchored the team on both ends of the court, posting a line of 21.1 points, 12.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 2.8 steals and 2.5 blocks per game for a 19-6 squad.
Four other locals cracked the underclass honorable mention list. Union teammates DeAnn Kauffman (18.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, four assists, 3.3 steals per game) and Rylee Davis (12.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 2.2 blocks) helped lead the Rockets to a 22-4 record, a share of their first Mid-Eastern Conference title since the late 1990s and the first sectional title since 1998.
Wapahani was one of the teams that shared the MEC title, and it was led by forward Kambrey Jolley, who came through injury to average 13.5 points, eight rebounds and two assists.
New Castle’s Laura Thomas also made the cut for a 16-6 squad by posting 15.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists and two steals a game.