Courier & Press All-SW Indiana boys basketball: Trent Sisley had a record-breaking year

LINCOLN CITY, Ind. — Heritage Hills trailed Boonville at the half in the PSC Holiday Tournament.

This was an important game near the midway point of the season. The winner would eventually face Corydon Central in the championship round. And the Patriots needed to claw their way back to tie it at 63 in the final seconds as their standout sophomore Trent Sisley led the way.

He had already scored over 20 points, so in those final moments, they ran a set to get the ball in front of their bench. Then, it was kicked back to their best player. Sisley took one dribble inside the 3-point line to sink the game-winner.

It was perhaps the biggest highlight from a memorable season as the 6-foot-8 Sisley made quite the sophomore leap.

“That was a very emotional game,” Patriots coach Nate Hawkins said. “It was a really special moment for our team and obviously for Trent hitting that game-winner. He’s had so many great moments.”

Sisley seemed to do it all for the Patriots this winter as he averaged 26.3 points, 10.2 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.4 blocks while shooting 65% overall — a step forward in every category from an impressive freshman campaign. He scored a career-high 38 points twice in January during a stretch of five straight outings with at least 30. He certainly lived up to the hype that comes when half of the Big Ten Conference is recruiting your talents.

As a result, Sisley is the Courier & Press All-Southwestern Indiana Player of the Year, as voted on by the sports staff.

Sisley also broke the program's season-season scoring record to finish the year with 657 points. His older brother, Blake, previously held the record with 498 points. He also scored his 1,000th point this season with a dunk against Jasper and later passed Simon Scherry and Jay Cutler on the program's career scoring leaderboard.

Sisley has 1,135 career points for Heritage Hills, the fourth-most in school history. He's already set quite the bar for himself with two years to go.

"I take a lot of pride in that. It's something that I worked very hard at," he said of his accomplishments. "To be able to do that has been really cool."

If Sisley continues at his historic pace — he's averaging 23.1 points through 49 varsity games — Hawkins believes he can break the record by next season. That's not even factoring in how much better he could become. Murray Becher is their all-time leading scorer with 1,703 points.

Yet, it's not just Sisley's scoring that draws attention. Sure, he was the top scorer in Class 3A, but he also was the second-leading rebounder. His 6-8 frame is a tough matchup for high schoolers trying to limit his reach for the glass. His willingness to fight for the ball has also stood out.

Perhaps what makes Sisley even more of a great player is his team-first attitude. After being the only freshman in Heritage Hills' starting lineup, Sisley was excited this season to see his sophomore teammates join him, like Colten Hopf and Hunter Meredith. He also helped freshmen Peyton Gray and Jake Prior get up to speed on the varsity level as well.

The Patriots ultimately finished 16-9 overall, placing fifth in the highly-competitive Pocket Athletic Conference. They never seemed to find their stride before falling to Washington in the sectional semifinals, but they have plenty to build on as this young nucleus matures together.

"We definitely got better throughout the year," Sisley said. "Playing those tough games will ultimately help us get better in the future."

Hawkins added: "The one thing I think is so special about Trent is just his unselfishness and his will to win. He gets his teammates involved and very active. He helps everybody on the floor just as much as helping himself."

This upcoming summer will be a busy one for Sisley as he returns to the Nike EYBL circuit with the Indy Heat. He's looking forward to reuniting with his teammates from across the state. He was also selected to play in the inaugural Indiana All-Stars Futures Game, which will take place on June 10 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

On top of that, college coaches in June will be allowed under NCAA rules to start contacting Sisley directly. Michigan State's Tom Izzo, Indiana's Mike Woodson and Purdue's Matt Painter have already seen Sisley play in person. Iowa stopped by for practice before. But he hasn't been fazed by the famous spectators. The Patriots keep going to work.

"You can't let that stuff get to your head as you're playing," Sisley said. "You've got to keep on taking care of business."

As he becomes an upperclassman, Sisley wants the Heritage Hills program to continue building. One goal that he has is to win a sectional championship — multiple postseason titles, ideally. The Patriots haven't done so since the elder Sisley brother, Blake, was a senior in 2021.

"Building a winning culture is really what I'm trying to do these next two years," Sisley said.

Gibson Southern coach Mark Rohrer is the Courier & Press All-Southwestern Indiana Coach of the Year after he led the Titans to their first sectional title in over 20 years. He's claimed sectional crowns with three different schools; South Knox won back-to-back titles from 2017-18 and also led Southridge to a regional in 2021.

2023 Courier & Press All-Southwest Indiana Boys Team

Name, School, Ht., Year

First Team

Nicot Burnett, Mount Vernon, 6-3, Jr.

Cale Donohoo, South Spencer, 6-3, Sr.

Jackson Graff, North Posey, 6-2, Jr.

Quade Morton, Pike Central, 5-11, Jr.

Jaylen Mullen, North Daviess, 5-11, Sr.

Carter Mundy, Jasper, 6-2, Sr.

Brycen Neidigh, Washington, 6-2, Sr.

Trent Sisley, Heritage Hills, 6-8, So.

Second Team

Ty Brown, South Spencer, 5-11, So.

Dakota Candler, South Knox, 6-5, Sr.

Jackson Clowers, Mount Vernon, 6-0, Jr.

Clay Conner, Boonville, 6-5, Sr.

Julian Gish, Pike Central, 6-1, Jr.

Reid Howard, Forest Park, 6-1, Jr.

Jaxun Lamb, Gibson Southern, 5-11, Sr.

Lance Wilson, North Daviess, 6-2, Sr.

Player of the Year: Trent Sisley, Heritage Hills

Coach of the Year: Mark Rohrer, Gibson Southern

Courier & Press sports reporter Treasure Washington can be reached via her email, treasure.washington@courierpress.com, and on Twitter @Twashington490.

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Courier & Press names 2022-23 All-SW Indiana Boys Basketball Team