MARION, Ind. — Two of the top coaches in the Big Ten — Purdue's Matt Painter and Ohio State's Chris Holtmann — waited outside the New Castle locker room after the Trojans beat Angola in the regional semifinals.
Mason Gillis emerged, bags of ice taped to both knees, after a grind-it-out win. Painter and Holtmann made the trip all the way to Marion High School at least in part to watch the New Castle star, a 6-foot-6 forward who has developed into one of the state's top juniors.
His performance made it well worth the trip.
Gillis scored a game-high 27 points to go with 10 rebounds and seven blocked shots as Class 3A No.